Jim Avila , an award-winning journalist who was a senior correspondent for ABC News and worked at the news outlet for 17 years, has died. He was 69.

ABC News president Almin Karamehmedovic announced Avila’s death in a memo to staff Thursday, saying that “a former colleague of ours, Jim Avila, passed away after a long illness.” Avila died Wednesday, Nov. 12, at his home in San Diego, according to his family, CBS News reported .

Avila had served as ABC News’ senior national correspondent based in Los Angeles, specializing in politics, justice, law, and consumer investigations, and also was a “20/20” correspondent. He had first joined ABC News in 2004. After leaving the network in 2021, Avila joined KGTV, the ABC affiliate in San Diego, where he continued his work as a senior investiga

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