Good Clergy, Part 7: "She Might Have Been Drunk When She Was Consecrated As a Bishop"

You ever wonder how deep the rabbit hole goes? That's what I'm wondering about the case on Heather Elizabeth Cook. 

I'm also wondering how many times I'll have to say "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?" when blogging about this story for someone to say, "Yeah, John. We're just fucking with you. No religious organization worth their salt would allow a person with this kind of history to hold a high office."

I wish I was wrong. 

So NOW it comes out that after the DUI arrest in 2010, during which she did several different kinds of therapy, Ms. Cook was recommended "without hesitation" by the Episcopal Church in Easton to the post of Suffragan. 

Then there was the 2014 meeting in which council participants were "unaware" of Ms. Cook having a DUI or a drinking problem. 

According to the official timeline that came out Monday, Bishop Eugene Sutton now says that he suspected Ms. Cook might have been drunk at her installation festivities last September. This was the party to celebrate her becoming a bishop, and well...she was likely drunk at it. IMAGINE THAT. 

In many organizations, being drunk for a work function would have been an immediate termination, or at the very least a suspension, but not a promotion.

The Washington Post article says that Bishop Sutton conveyed his concerns to the presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori, who in turn tells Sutton she's going to meet with Cook. A meeting did occur between them in October, but of course, the details are confidential. I don't have a problem with that; if I had a drinking problem I wouldn't want the world to know by googling it. Ms. Cook certainly has a right to her privacy.

But I'll be honest: I'm trying to wrap my head around this one, folks. I really am. And I'm not calling out the people involved because they're Episcopal, of course. This could and does happen to people of any faith or spiritual path. But it makes the Episcopal Church look pretty bad. 

The signs were ALL THERE, and people who could do something about the problem did NOTHING. You have TONS of evidence to work with, and despite the fact that she has a DUI and has been treated for alcoholism, and four years later is drunk at her installation festivities, Bishop Schori STILL decides it's a good idea to consecrate Heather Elizabeth Cook as a bishop.

Ms. Cook was likely very good at her job. Now I'm all for second chances and forgiveness, but she's no good to anyone as a drunk. The staggering lapses in judgment on the part of Ms. Cook may have been due to her alcoholism, but when all the "leaders" around her look out for themselves and their organization by assuming everything will be fine and not monitoring a recovering alcoholic, they're no longer fit leaders. 

I mean...did you just not SEE it? Or did you choose not to see it? 

Bishop Sutton's revelation--pun intended--pretty much destroys any credibility that the Episcopal Church of Maryland had left. None of Ms. Cook's empty promises in 2010 that her arrest was a major wake-up call or the hollow words of sorrow of Bishop Sutton can bring back Thomas Palermo.

Pray for them all, especially members of the Episcopal Church of Maryland, because they're being led by people who put the Church and their own convenience before the personal safety of others.

Good Clergy, Part 6: Episcopal Diocese Asks for Resignation of Heather Elizabeth Cook

Well, that took longer than expected. The Episcopal Church figured out that Heather Elizabeth Cook "can no longer function effectively as the Bishop Suffragan" in light of her involvement in the drunk driving hit and run death of Thomas Palermo. They've asked for her resignation of that post. 

Am I the only one that feels that they haven't gone far enough? Maybe I'm a little too outraged, but perhaps the Episcopal Church isn't outraged enough. 

This woman's ass should be fired. And not just from the Bishop Suffragan position. Unless the Church thinks she's going to be ministering from a Maryland prison, they need to defrock her completely. For the act alone of killing another human being, even by accident, and then leaving him to die, she should be so done as a member of the clergy. 

As of this writing, she hasn't said whether or not she will resign her post. The fact is that she shouldn't have been asked; she should have been told she was out. 

I'm glad the Church is praying for her, but I hope they're praying even harder for Thomas Palermo. And they should also pray that his widow doesn't go after the Church. I don't know that she'd have a case against them, but...it could be a continuing media feeding frenzy. 

Stay tuned. 

Good Clergy, Part 5: Baltimore Sun Reader Calls Out Heather Elizabeth Cook

This letter to the Baltimore Sun sums up perfectly how I feel about this case. A huge kudos to Ms. MacCuaig for having the courage to write it. I've included it here in its entirety.

Episcopal Bishop Suffragan Heather Cook and the tragedy of bicyclist Tom Palermo's accidental death at her hands are the subject of daily news articles, yet the incident has been conspicuously absent from The Sun's letters column ("Bishop Cook posts $2.5M bond, to be released," Jan. 15).

Perhaps there has been a desire, albeit misguided, to protect Ms. Cook given the agony we must assume she is in.

Nevertheless, the news that Judge Nicole Pastore Klein will not reduce her $2.5 million bail at least feels something like justice. The fact that Ms. Cook put herself in treatment at Father Martin's Ashley after the accident is unimpressive.

Ask anyone who has ever had a DUI or other drug offense and you'll find that such a ploy for clemency after the fact is just that — a ploy.

Ms. Cook should have put herself back into rehab years ago.

Instead, she has led what could be called a double, even duplicitous, life: On the one hand preaching and leading within the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, and on the other indulging alcohol abuse that resulted in extraordinary recklessness and the death of a man who, by all rights, should be alive today.

The carelessness and hypocrisy is overwhelming, and overwhelmingly discouraging. Jail is the appropriate place for her.

Myra MacCuaig, Towson

Good Clergy, Part 4: Heather Elizabeth Cook Posts Bail; Episcopal Church Considers Punishment and Election Process

I'm disappointed to report that Ms. Cook was released from jail on Thursday the 15th. Somehow she actually posted the $2.5 million bond and is on her way to a treatment facility. Luckily for all of us, part of the court's order was that she not drive while she is free, assuming she choose to abide by it. She'll be at a treatment facility and hopefully won't need to drive anywhere.

I disagree with the judge's decision...if it had been her 1st DUI maybe I could see letting her post bail. But for a second involving a fatality? She was also in a position of trust, and to me that merits a stronger punishment.

The Baltimore Sun also reports that the Episcopal Church is considering what punishment to hand down to Ms. Cook. To me this is a no-brainer: She should be defrocked. She killed an innocent person, for fuck's sake. She gave up her right to perform her duties as a member of clergy when she ran into a cyclist and left him at the scene to die. 

To me there's no "deliberation" required. I don't care if she was somehow found innocent of this crime in court, which isn't going to happen anyway; she's done enough damage to her own reputation and that of the Episcopal Church that she can no longer carry out her duties. She's unfit for the clergy. At least 7 people, half of them priests or deacons, will make a recommendation to a board of review, who will hand down the punishment. But honestly, any punishment less than "get the fuck out" is a slap on the wrist for me.

Finally, it appears that the Episcopal Church is looking into the election process. According to the Baltimore Sun, "Church officials say Cook disclosed the charges to a search committee. But they say delegates who voted in the election knew nothing of the charges." The same group that is investigating Cook's case will also be undertaking the review of her election. They will be doing interviews with those who took part in the election, and establish what they knew, as well as with people who worked with Ms. Cook during her time as a priest.

There needs to be complete transparency for there to be healing in this case. I wouldn't be surprised to hear the Episcopal Church put new standards in place to ensure that elections are not only done fairly, but that everyone involved has full knowledge of the facts, especially about the candidates.

Positive thoughts and prayers to them. This is going to be ugly no matter how you slice it. As long as they're open about what they find, and as long as they don't allow Heather Elizabeth Cook to minister to anyone ever again, I think they can be successful.

Good Clergy, Part 3: "...Reckless and Careless Indifference to Life."

More information surfaced yesterday about the case against Heather Elizabeth Cook. Judge Nicole Pastore Klein found a nice balance between the prosecution's request to deny Ms. Cook bail and the defense's request that it be lowered: She kept it at $2.5 million. Her reasoning: That the alleged crimes show a "reckless and careless indifference to life", and that Klein "cannot trust her [Cook's] judgment if released."

I am thrilled to see that Heather Elizabeth Cook will not be seeing the light of day before her trial. Her defense attorney wasn't pleased that his client will be staying in jail, but I'm sure that the family of Thomas Palermo and Maryland drivers are pleased with that at least.

Ms. Cook is most assuredly an addict. She spent six months in an alcohol abuse program after her 2010 arrest. The National Institutes of Health states that there is a high rate of relapse for those suffering from alcoholism. She went into another program after the accident, before her recent arrest. At least she sought treatment the first time.

Now I'm even more angry that Bishop Eugene Taylor Sutton, the head of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland and Cook's boss, continues to defend not disclosing Ms. Cook's condition to the council that chose Ms. Cook as the suffragan bishop. I know people make mistakes, and I know that her treatment for alcoholism is medical information, which should be handled sensitively. But she was in line for a very high post, one that likely has a higher level of stress and public scrutiny. I think that was not the right call. Aware of the initial arrest, Bishop Sutton could have said to Ms. Cook, "I have some serious concerns about you for this position, and if you're interested, you can apply. But I want you to disclose your arrest and subsequent treatment to the council."

One other not-so-nice scenario comes to mind. I'm no conspiracy theorist, but my Scorpio Machiavellian brain went in this direction. Ms. Cook, as the suffragan bishop, would be working directly for Bishop Sutton. With the understanding that I have no idea how much influence, if any, Bishop Sutton had over the process of selecting Ms. Cook, it would be easy to throw out the "forgiveness" argument so the Bishop could rationalize not mentioning Ms. Cook's addiction. Think about it: If the Bishop wanted Cook working for him, he could have easily made this argument to ensure that his preferred candidate didn't have any black marks on her record for the rest of the voting members to consider. As I've stated earlier, if Cook's addiction had been disclosed and I was voting, I'd pick someone else without an addiction because this person would be under a lot more stress and in a public position in the church. What easier way to make sure that didn't happen than to convince himself, and others around him, that they were acting as the Lord says they should and doing this candidate a major favor at the same time.

I hope they'll consider all four other candidates for the job now; if I had been one, I'd be really pissed off. Why do I think the council picking the next suffragan will give some thought to asking more pointed about other candidates? I certainly hope so.

Bishop Sutton made the wrong call on this one. Did he cause this accident to happen? Of course not. But is it possible that his choice of Heather Cook made her relapse more likely due to the additional pressure of being the #2 bishop, which may have caused this accident. We'll never know the answer to that, and we don't know how long ago Cook's relapse began. It might have happened in any case, but that's not going to give any comfort to Thomas Palermo's widow and children who are looking for answers.

No one who shows a "reckless and careless indifference to life" should be a member of clergy.

What is sadly incredibly ironic is that the video on the Baltimore Sun story shows Ms. Cook presiding over a service where at least 10 carafes of liquid--presumably wine, but that's not confirmed--are sitting on the altar. Well done, Baltimore Sun. Oh well...in vino veritas, right?

Good Clergy, Part 2

Ok, so there's been an update on the story involving Rev. Heather Elizabeth Cook, suffragan of the Episcopal Church in Maryland. She was allegedly involved in the hit and run death of cyclist Thomas Palermo on December 27th in Baltimore. It took quite some time, but the police have charged Cook with vehicular manslaughter, texting while driving, and…wait for it…driving under the influence of alcohol.  

You may recall from my earlier blog on this story that Rev. Cook was arrested in 2010 for driving while intoxicated. At that time, she was given a $300 fine and "probation before judgment". She never served any jail time, nor did she lose her driver's license.  

So we now have reports that confirm much of what was in newspaper accounts earlier, and more information, including:

• Rev. Cook hit Mr. Palermo from behind, causing damage to her passenger side windshield. Her blood alcohol level at the time of the collision was .22, nearly three times Maryland's legal limit. (The Episcopal Church of MD knew that she had been drinking before this incident but police asked them to withhold that information.)
• She left the scene and returned more than 30 minutes later. A cyclist did follow her until she arrived at a gated community. 
• A NFL reporter, Jason La Canfora, called 911 when he found Palermo. He did not see the police administer any sort of breathalyzer to Cook at that time.
• In addition to the charges listed above, Cook faces several others. They're listed at the end of the article linked above.  

All I have to say is, "Are you fucking kidding me?" You didn't think that God was trying to speak to you the first time when you got barely a wrist slap the last time you got caught for a DUI? That wasn't enough of a message?

I'm truly saddened by this revelation, but I shouldn't be surprised. We can't assume that Heather Cook is an alcoholic, nor do we know if she spent any time in treatment for alcohol addiction. It's exceptionally hard to break any addiction, and alcohol is, as I understand it, one of the most challenging to overcome. 

Whether or not she was an addict, she should NOT have been driving. There's no way to know if things would have been different if she had received a stiffer penalty for her first DUI. But I'm of the opinion that she really got away with one there. She was lucky she didn't hurt or kill herself or someone else the last time. 

Yes, members of the clergy are human beings who struggle with things every other human does, like alcoholism or taking responsibility for his or her actions. Yes, she did everything she was required to do last time. And yes, Heather Cook has done a lot of good for a lot of people. But she is not above the law. If she knew she had a problem with alcohol, she should have done the best thing for everyone and not gotten behind the wheel of that 2001 Subaru. But because of her irresponsible actions, she has caused the death of an innocent person. 

Honestly, Ms. Cook is not worthy of any religious title anymore. She was looked upon with respect because of her titles, but in my opinion they should be stripped from her immediately upon conviction. She has no right to call herself a member of the clergy anymore. 

I pray for the family of Thomas Palermo, who is understandably grieving and angry that he was taken from them so senselessly. I send positive thoughts to the people of the Episcopal Church of Maryland, at having lost someone who was by all accounts a good leader. And despite my anger, I pray for Heather Cook, who will have to live with what she's done for her rest of her days, hopefully in prison as a guest of the state of Maryland.

Causing a preventable death due to your own negligence is probably one of worst things I can think of. Karmically, I'm very glad I'm not in Heather Cook's shoes. 

Good clergy starts with good people. While Heather Cook is likely a good person, she's shown through her poor judgment that she's not good enough to be clergy anymore. 

Good Clergy Starts and Ends With Good Human Beings

I was saddened to read this news story in the Washington Post about an Episcopal bishop in Maryland who hit and killed a cyclist in Baltimore last weekend. Part of the title of an associated story really hit home for me: "Who's qualified to be clergy?"

With the understanding that we only have what's been reported in the media so far to go on, here's what we know about the driver of the automobile, Rev. Heather Elizabeth Cook, the 2nd in command or "suffragan" of the Episcopal Church in Maryland. 

• Rev. Cook was arrested in 2010 for DUI while assigned to Maryland's Eastern Shore. According to reports, she was so drunk she couldn't even complete field sobriety tests and had thrown up on herself when pulled over driving a car that was rolling on three wheels and one tire rim. She admitted drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana before getting behind the wheel. Her blood alcohol was .27, three times MD's .08 limit. (I remember learning in school that .25 is the point at which people become unconscious from drinking, so she must have been extremely impaired!) . She received "probation before judgment" and completed her probation. 

• She was placed on the short list for suffragan with four other women. While church leaders were aware of the 2010 incident, the larger group voting to install her as a bishop were unaware of it. Ultimately, she was selected this past spring after undergoing a psychological evaluation and background check. 

• Rev. Cook struck cyclist Thomas Palermo, 41, and left the scene, only to return "20 minutes" later. Unconfirmed reports on cyclist Web sites say that the only reason Cook returned to the scene was because she was being chased by cyclists. Palermo died. 

• Cook was placed on administrative leave, and the Diocese admits that she was involved in the accident, but no charges have been filed at this time. There is no mention of alcohol or drug involvement in this crash. 

This is a tough one. It's very easy to say "They never should have picked her for the job with her DUI," but I'm not sure that's realistic. Should that one mistake ensure that you rise no higher in your profession, despite your excellent qualifications? DUI is nothing to be trifled with. But Rev. Cook admitted her guilt and received punishment, whether you agree that it was too lenient or not. 

I will say, however, that there should have been full disclosure about her previous arrest so people could judge her fairly. Now it looks like the church was hiding something when likely they didn't mean to, but if I had been part of the convention that voted for the suffragan position, I'd ask what prompted church leaders to omit those details. Press reports indicate the leaders determined that "this one mistake shouldn't bar her as leader", but you do a disservice to your flock by not being up front about it.

Every person is different and every case is different. Based on what I've read, if I had been told about her arrest I don't think I'd have voted for her if other candidates were just as qualified. With that said, I don't think that the arrest alone should have prevented her from helping lead her church. We are all humans and have lapses in judgment, and unless there was a greater pattern of alcohol or drug abuse that the church discovered about Rev. Cook and did nothing to remedy, I don't think a reasonable person could have expected this.

What bothered me more than anything in this case was the apparent lack of compassion on the bishop's part. As I've said many times, spiritual leaders should be held to a higher standard, but to me, to just leave someone there dying after you hit them without trying to help is completely unconscionable. That's not even basic human decency, much less what we expect of a spiritual leader. It takes on an even greater significance when this person is not just any leader, but the #2 in the church in Maryland. What does it look like then?

My Scorpio senses are really heightened on this one. Why would you choose to leave a person there when you didn't know how injured they were, and with a heavily damaged windshield, as it said in the report? I'd expect a spiritual leader to stop and do everything they could to help that person, whether they were the one who hit them or not. She should have been on the phone to 911 immediately to get EMS rolling, even if it appeared the cyclist had suffered fatal injuries. (Full disclosure: I don't know that she didn't call 911; that wasn't included in the report, but I'd have thought if she had done something the Post would have included it.)

You know what? That last paragraph was incorrect. The third sentence should have read, "I'd expect any decent human being to stop and do everything they could to help that person." Hell, these days we all have cell phones and we routinely call in traffic accidents and aggressive drivers. Even people who don't normally call in accidents and other road incidents likely would have been moved to see a cyclist on the ground in need of medical treatment to call 911 or get out and see if the person was OK.

I'll be very interested to see what happens. I'll take a moment to repeat that we don't have the whole story on this one, but if it turns out that Rev. Cook hit this cyclist and left the scene without intervening in some way, she should go to jail for vehicular manslaughter and be removed from her position. If evidence comes to light that she was somehow impaired, the book needs to be thrown at her.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Thomas Palermo's family, especially his wife and two young children, as well as to Rev. Cook and the Episcopal Church of MD. This is an ugly situation and only with a strong faith and a desire to heal will they get through it.

As you go out this New Years' Eve, please party responsibly and be aware and safe. You don't want to be the next statistic. And let's be honest...I don't want to lose any readers. :)