Maryland's
first female Episcopalian bishop will face charges over a hit-and-run crash
that killed a cyclist in Baltimore, prosecutors say. Bishop Suffragan Heather Cook will be arrested for vehicular
manslaughter over the death of Tom Palermo, 41. Continue...
Prosecutor Marilyn Mosby said Ms Cook's blood-alcohol level was
at .22 after the crash, almost triple the state's legal limit for driving.
Ms Cook, who was elected bishop in September, has been put on
leave.
The Maryland diocese previously said Ms Cook initially left the
scene but returned 20 minutes later "to take responsibility for her
actions".
The national Episcopal Church has also opened a separate
investigation to determine whether Cook violated church law.
Bishop Cook became an ordained priest in 1987 and served in
Virginia, New York and Pennsylvania before returning to the state.
In a statement, the Palermo family said they "support the
prosecutor's efforts to hold Bishop Heather Cook accountable for her actions to
the fullest extent of the law".
A small
makeshift memorial was created near the road where Mr Palermo was killed on 27
December. The road had a designated bike lane.
An eyewitness said he found Mr Palermo on the road and while
other witnesses called emergency services he went looking for the vehicle and
found it at a light.
"The windshield was completely smashed in, with a hole on
the passenger side, and from the damage of the car, there was no doubt in my
mind that was the car," Moncure Lyon said.
"I asked the lady who was driving 'Are you all right?' Then
the light turned green, she said 'Yes,' and she left."
Ms Cook had previously pleaded guilty to driving under the
influence in 2010 and was sentenced to a fine and probation, according to court
records.
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