James Bishop, played by actor Mark Pellegrino, is the leader of vicious vampire legion in Boston. He made Aidan a vampire approximately 230 years ago.
History
He was made by a vampire by Carlo in England in the 1600's and traveled to the New World to make his bones. [source?] During the American Revolutionary War Bishop served as a solider in the United States Continental Army. In 1779 while feeding on dead soldiers Aidan encounters him and turned him. (There Goes the Neighborhood: Part 1}
Carlo eventually became the owner of Sapp & Sons funeral home. It is a working funeral home comforting the love ones of the deceased, but it is also the headquarters of the Boston sect of Vampires. Bishop was his number two. Carlo was destroyed in 1955 by Heggeman, Dutch a vampire that is 1,010 years old for tolerating the abomination of allowing one of his vampires to carry on a relationship with a human. Bishop was given the chance to replace that vampire on the condition of killing his human lover Jane, a nurse at a hospital (the same one Aidan and Josh currently work in today) who knew Bishop was a vampire but didn't want to be turned into one. He was also given a choice to get rid of the human woman or loose his respect and take that vampires place as leader. He made his choice and strangled her to death instead of turning her to respect her humanity but also for him not to be tempted by her. (Dog Eat Dog)
Bishop is currently a lieutenant on the Boston police force. Since killing Jane and assuming the leadership of the Boston sect of vampires, he has re embraced his vampire nature actively discouraging Aidan from making the same efforts to reconnect to his humanity as Bishop himself did 56 years before. However, he has let Aidan indulge his friendship with the werewolf Josh despite vampires and werewolves normally being deadly enemies (to the point of they staging Gladiatorial "dog fights" to the death between them every full moon). (Dog Eat Dog)
While outwardly tolerating Aidan's defiance in staying away from the family, Bishop has resorted to deviounsness in manipulating Aidan to show the "futility" of being human. His deviousness in getting Aiden back into the family included the time when Aidan, in a moment of weakness killed Rebecca without turning her in a vain attempt to have a loving sexual relationship with a human without killing her but he could not control his nature and so bit and fed on her, killing her. Guilt racked Aidan called Bishop to dispose of the body, but instead Bishop turned Rebecca without Aidan's knowledge. (There Goes the Neighborhood: Part 2}
He also framed [[Bernie {Syfy}|Bernie]], a child vampire turned by Rebecca after he was struck and killed by a car, for the deaths of two children that picked on him in life. In truth they were killed by Bishop's right hand man Marcus. Operating on this belief Aidan, to his heart ache staked and killed Bernie. (I Want You Back (From The Dead))
He eventually got Aidan back to the family by agreeing to free Josh from the vampires werewolf gladiator games in exchange for his return. (Dog Eat Dog)
Bishop is the undisputed leader and knows how to use it for his nighttime dalliances. His devoted cronies cater to his every whim, but Bishop wants to lure Aidan back into his fold of thirsty blood hunters to join the campaign to expand the legion by turning not just societies outcast that no one would miss, but people in actual power, for the eventual take over of the Earth by the vampires and they no longer have to live in the shadows.