Shooting victim is recovering; parish plans Liturgy of Reparation

Intermountain Catholic

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Two days before the shooting, James and Tara Evans returned from a trip to the Holy Land, where they renewed their wedding vows in the Church at Cana in Galilee, with Father Erik Richtsteig, pastor of St. James the Just Parish, presiding. Courtesy photo/ Father Erik Richtsteig

OGDEN — James Evans, who was shot in the head June 16 while he and his wife were attending Mass at their home parish, Saint James the Just in Ogden, is expected to recover.

"He turned his head just at the right time. If he hadn’t turned his head, he would have been hit in the back of the head and he would have been dead," said Tara Evans, his wife, during a June 17 press conference at McKay-Dee Hospital Center, where James Evans is recovering.

Barbara Kerwin, the hospital’s ICU medical director, said James Evans suffered no brain damage; the bullet entered near Evans’ right ear and exited through his cheek. Eventually he will need reconstructive surgery on his jaw, and he will require rehabilitation to re-learn to swallow and to speak, Kerwin said, but he is awake and communicating through gestures and by writing.

Charles Richard Jennings Jr., the Evans’ son-in-law, has been arrested in connection with the shooting. Police say they do not know the motive behind the shooting, but they have received reports of domestic violence in the home of Jennings and his wife, the Evans’ daughter.

During the press conference, Father Erik Richtsteig, St. James the Just pastor, said the shooting occurred just before the Eucharistic prayer. He saw the alleged perpetrator enter the church, although he did not see a weapon. He looked down at the altar, and then heard the shot. When he looked up, the alleged shooter had left the church.

Jennings allegedly commandeered a vehicle at gunpoint and drove north. The vehicle ran out of gas, and he was located at mile marker 32 on Interstate 84 in Box Elder County, said Ogden Police Lt. Danielle Croyle.

Jennings was booked into the Weber County Jail; he has been charged with attempted murder, aggravated robbery, two counts of aggravated burglary and possession of a firearm by restricted person.

At the church right after the shooting, "we made sure that Jim was taken care of and the people were OK and the crime scene was preserved, then we started up Mass again," said Fr. Richtsteig, a family friend of the Evans’ and godfather to one of their grandchildren. "I’m really proud of my parishioners. Their first response was to help Jim, help Tara, and then they were praying. What more can you ask of people?"

Many parishioners acted heroically during the shooting, Fr. Richtsteig said, including a teenager who was right next to the Evanses. "Her first response wasn’t to freak out or anything; she grabbed her little brother, she shoved him down, and then she ducked down," he said. "There are tons of stories like that. The way people responded was amazing."

The Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City, who was out of state on June 16, called Fr. Richtsteig and also spoke with the victim’s wife, Fr. Richtsteig said. The bishop asked Fr. Richtsteig to ensure that psychological counseling has been made available to those affected by the shooting (see Bishop Wester’s statement, above).

"People are rattled, including me," Fr. Richtsteig said. "There were quite a few children at the Mass and they’re the ones that we’re most concerned about. ... We’ve got some kids who are afraid to go to church."

The people who attended the Mass at which the shooting occurred "are a mess," he added. "They were worshiping God and this man came in and did an act of violence."

At the press conference, Tara Evans thanked all the people who have been praying for her husband and their family. "That means the most to us," she said.

James and Tara Evans had just returned June 14 from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land led by Fr. Richtsteig, who said that their guide, a Palestinian Christian, learned of the shooting and arranged for a June 17 Mass for James Evans at the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth.

During the trip, the Evans’ had renewed their wedding vows at the Church of Cana in Galilee, Fr. Richtsteig said.

Although the June 16 evening Mass had to be canceled to allow police to complete their work at the crime scene, the regular schedule resumed with the 8:30 Mass the next morning, which was attended by many people, Fr. Richtsteig said.

The church does not need to be re-consecrated, but Fr. Richtsteig will celebrate a Liturgy of Reparation on Thursday, June 20, at 6 p.m. to "pray for healing, and that all evil will be expunged from the church," he said. "We’re not going to let the bad guys win."