TROY, Mich. (Scripps News Detroit/Court TV) — Three people have been arraigned on second-degree murder charges, and one person with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the explosion of a hyperbaric chamber that killed a 5-year-old boy who was inside it.
Thomas Cooper (Photo by: Family of Thomas Cooper/ Scripps News Detroit)
The explosion happened the morning of Jan. 31, when Thomas Cooper, 5, was at the Oxford Recovery Center in Troy receiving treatment in a hyperbaric chamber, which is something Thomas had done before for his ADHD and sleep apnea.
Four employees of The Oxford Center in Troy were arrested on Monday, Troy police said.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced the charges on Tuesday morning.
Oxford Center CEO Tamela “Tami” Peterson, safety director Jeff Mosteller and primary management assistant Gary Marken have been charged with second-degree murder.
Aleta Moffitt, the operator of the hyperbaric chamber, has been charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter and intentionally providing false information on a medical record.
“This was an unscrupulous business operating powerful machines beyond their manufacturers’ intended use on children’s bodies over and over again to provide unaccredited and debunked so-called treatments chiefly because it brought cash into the door,” the Michigan AG said.
All four people are currently being held and had plans to be transported to the Oakland County Jail after their respective arraignments, pending bond.
Tamela Peterson (Court TV)
At the 58-year-old founder’s arraignment, the judge stated concerns with Peterson’s actions in the days following the hyperbaric chamber explosion, saying she ran from investigators as well as used still photographs from the CCTV footage of the incident “inappropriately.”
The judge set a $2 million bond with conditions that she remain on house arrest with a GPS tether, have no contact with other defendants or either of the two treatment center locations, and surrender her passport.
Other allegations were lodged at Peterson’s arraignment by the State prosecutor, who said Peterson destroyed evidence on her laptop and instructed other employees to do the same following the explosion. The prosecutor also noted that other Oxford Center employees have said that Peterson “bullied, threatened, harassed, humiliated and filed lawsuits against those who, for lack of a better phrase, stood in the way with whatever she has wanted to do.”
After cooperating with multiple investigations starting immediately after the tragic accident in January, we are disappointed to see charges filed.
The timing of these charges is surprising, as the typical protocol after a fire-related accident has not yet been completed. There are still outstanding questions about how this occurred. Yet, the Attorney General’s office proceeded to pursue charges without those answers.
Our highest priority every day is the safety and well-being of the children and families we serve, which continues during this process.
At Tuesday’s press conference, Nessel revealed a series of “sensitive and lethally dangerous” violations that The Oxford Center failed to uphold, including:
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Daily maintenance checks were not performed on the hyperbaric chamber.
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The pre-dive safety check was not performed before this deceased patient.
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No medical doctor or safety supervisor on the premises.
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A licensed technician didn’t perform the treatment.
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Yearly inspections on the hyperbaric chamber were not performed.
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The essential patient-worn grounding strap was not used.
James Harrington, managing partner at Fieger Law, represents the Cooper family. Harrington told Scripps News Detroit in February that Thomas had received 35 treatments and the explosion happened during his 36th treatment.
While Thomas Cooper’s parents have yet to speak publicly since their son’s death, Harrington said the child’s mother, Annie Cooper, sustained injuries while trying to save her baby boy.
“She was in the waiting room and was alerted that something was going wrong and rushed back, and he was engulfed in flames and she was trying to get him out and sustained significant burns to her arm.”
A portion of this story was published by Scripps News Detroit, an E.W. Scripps Company.
