Defrocked bishop takes plea in DUI case over fatal bicycle accident
The day before she was to go to trial, a defrocked bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland has taken a plea in a criminal case over a fatal bicycle accident.
Heather Cook admitted initially leaving the scene of the Dec. 27 crash and pleaded guilty Tuesday to driving under the influence and vehicular manslaughter, according to the Washington Post (reg. req.).
“We didn’t want to put the victim’s family through a trial and we wanted closure for them and for us,” said attorney David Irwin, who represents Cook. “We thought it was the best way to proceed.”
The government will seek a 20-year term, with 10 years suspended, when Cook is sentenced next month. The judge overseeing the Baltimore case has agreed not to give her more time than this but could give her less, the Baltimore Sun reports. She is currently free on $2.5 million bail.
Cook was first female bishop in the history of the diocese. She had recently begun her position as its No. 2 official at the time of the accident. Authorities said she had been texting while driving and had a blood-alcohol level of .22, nearly three times the legal limit, when she returned to the scene about a half-hour after the crash. Cook also was arrested for drunken driving in 2010 and tested over three times the legal limit. She pleaded guilty and got one year of probation.
She was defrocked in May, about four months after she was charged in the most recent case.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Baltimore bishop faces DUI and texting-while-driving charges in hit-and-run death”
