Bishop sentenced to probation for leaving fatal accident
 |  Bishop Thomas O'Brien at his sentencing |
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PHOENIX, Arizona (CNN) -- A judge Friday sentenced Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas O'Brien to four years of probation for leaving the scene of an accident in the hit-and-run death of a jaywalking pedestrian last June.
O'Brien, 68, who stepped down as leader of the half-million-member Roman Catholic community in Phoenix after his arrest, is believed to be the first U.S. bishop convicted of a felony. He also was sentenced to 1,000 hours of community service.
A jury found him guilty February 17. O'Brien testified during his trial that he did not know he hit a person.
But jurors said O'Brien should have known he had driven into someone. The victim, Jim Reed, 43, was 6-foot-2-inches tall and weighed 250 pounds.
Police said Reed had been drinking and was jaywalking.
The pictures of the damaged car had a strong impact on the jury -- making it difficult for some to believe O'Brien's statements that he thought he had struck a dog or that a rock hit the car.
Police found O'Brien through a witness who wrote down the license plate number of the bishop's tan Buick sedan.
Earlier in June, O'Brien faced charges he had covered up allegations of sexual abuse by priests in his diocese. He avoided prosecution by agreeing to pay $700,000 for counseling for victims and investigative costs, and to create a Youth Protection Advocate's position to enforce diocese policy on sexual misconduct.
The agreement gave local authorities unprecedented oversight over how the diocese handled sex abuse allegations.
