Bishop Posts Bail, Released from Jail on Manslaughter Charges

A man who used to be Bishop Heather Cook’s boyfriend reportedly got her out of Baltimore City jail this week after a judge ruled to uphold her $2.5 million bail.

Related: Bail for Bishop Set at $2.5 Million

Mark Hansen, a former Episcopal priest who dated Cook when she was in her twenties, signed a promissory note for $215,000 and posted $35,000 in collateral Thursday to bail her out of the Baltimore City Detention Center, the Baltimore Brew reported.

Hansen will make monthly payments of $1,000 until the $215,000 is paid off, according to The Baltimore Sun.

Upon her release from the detention center, Cook received “super special treatment,” a source at the jail told WBAL, which reported her lawyer arranged for her to be picked up away from public view in an area reserved for police cars transporting inmates. A white sedan with a dog in the back seat reportedly greeted her.

See Also: Former Ravens Cheerleader Gets Special Exit from Delaware Court

Cook has been charged with negligent manslaughter, criminal manslaughter, negligent vehicular homicide while under the influence and negligent vehicular homicide while impaired in connection with the death of 41-year-old cyclist Thomas Palermo, a custom bike builder and father of two who lived in Anneslie.

The Baltimore City state’s attorney alleged Cook was texting and drunk at the time of the Dec. 27 crash on Roland Avenue. She is accused of fleeing the scene after the deadly crash and later returning, which the state’s attorney reportedly said made her a flight risk, asking that bail be revoked.

Related: State’s Attorney Reveals Results from Bishop’s Breathalyzer

Judge Nicole Pastore Klein said that Cook had shown a “reckless and careless indifference to life” and could not be trusted outside of jail, so at a bail review hearing Monday, the judge held firm on the $2.5 million amount set when the Episcopal bishop turned herself in to authorities Jan. 9, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Now that she is out, Cook’s lawyer said the plan was for her to go into treatment for alcoholism, WBAL reported. Before charges were filed Jan. 9, Cook had been at Father Martin’s Ashley, an inpatient rehab center in Havre de Grace.

One condition of her release was that she not drive, according to The Baltimore Sun.

Cook, who in 2014 became the first female bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, has been placed on administrative leave, and the Episcopal Church is conducting a disciplinary review of her actions and the process through which she was elected. Cook was charged with DUI in 2010, for which she was given probation before judgment.

For the new criminal charges she is facing, Cook is scheduled to appear Feb. 6 in Baltimore City District Court.

Screenshot of Bishop Heather Cook from WBAL/YouTube.

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Related:

• Bail for Bishop Set at $2.5 Million
• Bishop Drunk, Texting at Time of Fatal Bike Crash: State’s Attorney
• More Than 700 Take Memorial Ride to Honor Anneslie Cyclist
• Maryland Bishop Investigated in Fatal Bike Crash
• Funeral Service Planned for Cyclist Thomas Palermo, 41
• Maryland Bishop Accused Of Killing Bicyclist Has Drunk Driving History
• Diocese Knew of Bishop’s DUI, ‘Practiced Forgiveness’