Well...one can't help notice the crater in the windshield. Even if you were unsure of what had occurred, one would certainly be reasonable in desiring to know what it was that hit them and pull over, or even stop right then and there. Except for someone like Bishop O'Brien who has been publicly condemned in the press and internet forums, hounded by the prosecutorial arm of the law, and no doubt subjected to the criticism of the clergy in his charge and the laity he is to shepherd, if not his confreres. Could not have death threats been made to him? Certainly some of the bile as sampled on this thread could have made it's way in amplified form to the rectory of the bishop. O'Brien thought he was attacked! He didn't slow down or stop to render aid. He sped up to reach safety. If he wasn't aware of what he struck, it would be perfectly reasonable to believe that he was struck.
Of course, if that was his state of mind at the time, one would ask why he didn't report the incident to the police. I can only offer the response that he had been through a week dealing with the civil authorities, the following day, Sunday, was a busy one. The damage to the car can wait.
As far as the drunk charges: I don't know how far Buckeye was from the scene of this tragedy, but I don't know if the bishop would have had enough time to cop a buzz after mass. Those present at the mass, those who talked with him afterwards would be able to present a picture of his sobriety or lack of. An hour or hour and a half is not alot of time to get drunk beyond all sense of human responsibility IMHO. Does Bishop O'Brien have a reputation for drinking, Arizonans?
Anyway...just providing a plausable and charitable explanation.
As is your wont, which puts you heads and shoulders above me in the charity department.
This man, Bishop O'Brien, signed a consent agreement with the DA, in which he admitted to shielding, protecting, and transferring sexual predators and not informing new parishes of their histories, then came out on the court house steps and said he didn't admit to anything!
You know, when I go to confession, I'm pretty hard on myself, because I have every reason to be. I want these guys to ADMIT IN PUBLIC what they've done, and just say, "I'm sorry," instead of equivocating and trotting out every sorry excuse in the book for why they did what they did.
Just "I'm sorry," then shut up.
A Catholic bishop has killed a man with his car, and that Catholic bishop is finished as the bishop of Phoenix.
Castrillon-Hoyos needs to be lining up the next episcopabili for the American southwest.