Former Bishop Sentenced to Jail: Report

Former Episcopal Bishop Heather Cook was sentenced Tuesday in Baltimore City Circuit Court for manslaughter and other charges related the death of a bicyclist she killed in a hit-and-run crash two days after Christmas.

She was sentenced to seven years in jail, according to WBAL.

Cook, 59, pleaded guilty last month to four offenses—vehicular manslaughter, driving while intoxicated, leaving the scene of an accident and texting while driving—in the death of bicyclist Thomas Palermo.

Palermo, 41, was riding in a bike lane on Roland Avenue when he was hit on Dec. 27, 2014, authorities said. Cook reportedly left the scene and later returned.

Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby alleged that Cook registered a 0.22 blood alcohol level on a breathalyzer. The legal blood alcohol limit is 0.08 in Maryland.

In the plea agreement announced in September, the state’s attorney recommended a sentence of 20 years in jail with 10 years suspended, plus 5 years of probation.

In court Tuesday, the state’s attorney’s office said Cook showed lack of respect for human life, according to Fox 45.

Cook’s lawyer said she had been devastated and defrocked as a result of the crash, the TV station reported.

Cook, the first female bishop inducted in Maryland in May 2014, resigned on May 1, 2015.

This was not her first run-in with the law. She received probation before judgment in a 2010 drunk driving case in Caroline County, where she was found to have a blood alcohol level three times more than the legal limit, plus a marijuana pipe as well as bottles of whiskey and wine in her vehicle, Christian Today reported.

Related:

• Former Bishop Pleads Guilty in DUI Death of Baltimore Cyclist
• Trial Postponed for Former Bishop Charged in Bicyclist Death
• State’s Attorney: Bishop was Drunk, Texting at Time of Crash
• Maryland Bishop Investigated in Fatal Bike Crash