Anthony O'Connell
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Anthony J. O'Connell was the Roman Catholic Bishop of Palm Beach, Florida. He resigned March 8, 2002, after admitting that he sexually abused a teenage seminary student in the 1970s while serving as a priest in the Diocese of Jefferson City. The student, Christopher Dixon, stated the relationship lasted well into the 1990s, and was awarded $125,000 in an out-of-court settlement.
In 1988 O'Connell was appointed the first bishop of the Diocese of Knoxville, and was assigned to lead the Palm Beach Diocese in 1998 in order to help it heal after the resignation of Bishop Joseph Keith Symons, who admitted that he had sexually molested five boys earlier in his career.
Preceded by erected |
Bishop of Knoxville 1988–1998 |
Succeeded by Joseph Edward Kurtz |
Preceded by Joseph Keith Symons |
Bishop of Palm Beach 1998–2002 |
Succeeded by Sean Patrick O'Malley |