Man Faces Murder, Other Charges in Mormon Church Killing
FALLON, Nev. (AP) — A man "willfully and deliberately with premeditation" opened fire during services last Sunday at a Mormon church in Nevada, killing one man and wounding the victim's brother, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday, although authorities have yet to determine a motive. John O'Connor made his first court appearance but did not enter a plea. Connor, 48, is charged with first-degree murder in the killing of 61-year-old Charles E. "Bert" Miller, a longtime volunteer firefighter in rural Fallon, Nevada, and with battery with a deadly weapon in the shooting of Miller's 64-year-old brother. He faces a third count of assault with a deadly weapon after authorities said he pointed a gun at another man. O'Connor, 48, ran unsuccessfully for the state Assembly as a Libertarian in 2010 and 2014. Authorities say he and Miller knew each other from church but they have not determined a motive. An estimated 50 people were in the church at the time of the shooting.