Bishop who killed cyclist while driving drunk gets 7 years

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By JULIET LINDERMAN

BALTIMORE (AP) — A former Episcopal bishop who killed a bicyclist in Baltimore while driving drunk was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison.

Heather Cook, who had been the second-highest-ranking Episcopal leader in Maryland, pleaded guilty last month to manslaughter, drunken driving and leaving the scene.

Her blood-alcohol level was 0.22 percent, and prosecutors said she was texting when she struck 41-year-old cyclist Tom Palermo on Dec. 27. The impact threw Palermo onto Cook's hood and into the windshield of her car. He died of severe head trauma, leaving behind a wife and two young children.

Cook left the scene for 30 minutes before returning, prosecutors said.

FULL story at link.


FILE - This undated file photo provided by the Baltimore Police Department shows former Episcopal Bishop Heather Cook. Cook, who killed a bicyclist in Baltimore while driving drunk was sentenced Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015, to seven years in prison. (Baltimore Police Department via AP, File)

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/d7255d67b7664ebb99267428ea0514b7/bishop-who-killed-cyclist-while-driving-drunk-gets-7-years

[KamaAina]

1. Another black-collar crime

http://ffrf.org/news/video/item/16881-black-collar-crimes

[milestogo]

2. Former Lutheran bishop sentenced to 10 years for killing woman while driving drunk

This guy was on his way to an ordination ceremony when he ran down a jogger and left the scene:



Two hours before the crash, Burnside texted someone that he was sitting in his backyard with “my laptop and a Bloody Mary.” That suggests Burnside is not telling the truth when he claims he had not been drinking since the night before or early morning hours, Thompson said.

Also, Burnside’s blood-alcohol content was still 0.12 percent at 5 p.m. when his blood was drawn at a hospital, she said. Given how the body processes alcohol, that suggests the level was probably around 0.15 percent at roughly 2:45 p.m., the time of the crash, or nearly twice the legal limit, she said.

Thompson showed drawings of how Burnside sped away from the crash scene, rammed another vehicle with a 12-year-old passenger, drove in the wrong lane for a stretch, and ended up at the convenience store, where other drivers tried to block him with their vehicles.

Ultimately, strangers took his keys until police arrived, she said.

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/crime_and_courts/former-lutheran-bishop-sentenced-to-years-for-killing-woman-while/article_fc719a73-36d3-56ca-a73b-bd36a1c6eac7.html

[frylock]

3. I'm shocked she received any kind of penalty

[hibbing]

5. If she wasn't drunk she probably would not have even got a ticket

[NonMetro]

4. About 20 Years Ago, I Knew A Guy Who Got 5 Years In A Similar Incident.

The sentences have kept growing more severe for decades.

[valerief]

6. Drunk AND texting. And she'll probably go to fancypants prison AND

get out early for being a Jesus promoter.