Gabino Zavala (born September 7, 1951) is a Mexican-born, former American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Zavala served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles from 1994 until 2012. Zavala resigned at the request of Pope Benedict XVI after admitting he was the father of two children. Biography Early life Born September 7, 1951, in Guerrero, Mexico, Gabino Zavala and his family moved to Tijuana, Mexico when he was a child. He survived a fire in his family's apartment that killed two of his brothers. The family then moved to East Los Angeles, California. In 1969, Zavala entered St. John's Seminary College in Camarillo, California. Priesthood Zavala was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles at St. Vibiana's Cathedral in Los Angeles on May 28, 1977, by Cardinal Timothy Manning. After his ordination, Zavala served as an associate pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in East Los Angeles, associate director of the marriage tribunal for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. After earning a Licentiate of Canon Law from Catholic University of America School of Canon Law in Washington, D.C. Zavala became a professor of canon law and the rector of St. John's Seminary. Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles Pope John Paul II appointed Zavala as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and titular bishop of Tamascani on February 8, 1994, He received his episcopal consecration from Cardinal Roger Mahony on March 19, 1994. Zavala served as the auxiliary bishop and episcopal vicar of the San Gabriel Pastoral Region until his resignation. Zavala promoted restorative justice, opposed the death penalty, and was a long-time supporter of immigration reform. Although he was sometimes considered orthodox in his beliefs, he had a long history of supporting controversial positions on LGBT rights. Zavala was involved with a number of organizations: he was the bishop president of the U.S. section of Pax Christi, co-president of Interfaith Worker Justice, and the episcopal advisor to the International Commission of Catholic Prison Pastoral Care (ICCPPC). He was also an adjunct professor of canon law and pastoral theology at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. In 2000, Zavala organized Encuentro, a conference of Catholics from different backgrounds and cultures. Encuentro had over 5,000 attendees, including 40 bishops and Cardinal Bernard Law. Zavala was honored in 2004 by the group Death Penalty Focus for his efforts to bring restorative justice reforms