Gallup, N.M., Jul 31, 2007 / 08:49 am
Over a week ago, Bishop Donald Pelotte of the Diocese of Gallup was taken to the hospital after sustaining severe head injuries in a fall. However, when he arrived at the emergency room, the doctor on call noted that his injuries were not consistent with a fall and called the police.
According to Deacon Timoteo Lujan, Pelotte's assistant and the chancellor of the diocese, the severity of Pelotte's injuries caused the emergency room physician to wonder if the 62-year-old bishop had possibly been a victim of a violent assault.
However, according to the Gallup Independent, Bishop Pelotte has insisted that he was not assaulted by anyone and that his injuries are the result of a fall down a staircase at his home. The Bishop remains in the intensive care unit at the John C. Lincoln Hospital in Phoenix.
The Bishop's accident was discovered by Lujan on Monday afternoon when Pelotte failed to show for a 2 p.m. appointment at work, causing a concerned Lujan to drive to the bishop's home. Lujan had a key to the house and let himself in. When he entered he discovered blood on the tile floor at the bottom of the carpeted stairway, which leads up to Pelotte's bedroom, and became alarmed.