The owner of Oxford Center in Troy, where a 5-year-old boy died in a fire Jan. 31 while undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy, was ordered to spend two days in the Oakland County Jail after selling a firearm in June instead of surrendering it to the court as part of her bond conditions.
Tamela Peterson, 58, of Brighton, switched out her black heels for a pair of flat shoes before a deputy escorted her out of 52-4 District Court, her hands cuffed behind her back, after a hearing Sept. 30 in Troy.
She was booked into the jail at 6:27 p.m. that night and released at 12:16 a.m. the next day, according to online jail records. Stephen Huber, public information officer for the county sheriff’s office, told the Detroit Free Press that the sheriff’s office doesn’t consider a day served to be 24 hours. Instead, he said, it is counted by calendar days.
When Peterson was booked into the jail Sept. 30, that is considered one day. The 16 minutes on Oct. 1 counts as the second day. By the sheriff’s office’s accounting, Huber said, she served her time.
Peterson and three workers are criminally charged in the death of Thomas Cooper. She waived a hearing on the bond violation matter and pleaded guilty Sept. 30. She is not to possess or own any firearms as part of her bond conditions in the criminal case.
Her attorney, Gerald Gleeson, told the court that Peterson was to surrender all firearms in her possession. He had no comment after the hearing.
District Court Judge Maureen McGinnis sentenced Peterson to two days in the county jail, saying this was “very concerning to the court” and warranted a short jail sanction.
Peterson is charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the boy’s death. She was out on a $2 million bond with conditions, including an ankle monitor that was visible on her leg during the hearing.
The possible bond violation was raised in August, with McGinnis saying the matter was brought to the court’s attention based on information obtained by the Michigan Attorney General’s Office, which is prosecuting the criminal cases.
Peterson told McGinnis that she failed to notify the court of a firearm that she possessed with her husband and it was sold rather than surrendered to the court.
McGinnis said while she is aware Peterson posted a significantly high bond and there are other conditions in place since her prior release from jail, including home confinement, this was “very concerning” as it was “a very simple expectation.”
“Out of all the things that had been placed upon you in terms of conditions, this one seems, to me, the easiest to comply with,” McGinnis said, adding: “This is a valid and very clear contempt of court issue.”
McGinnis said she was not modifying any of Peterson’s bond conditions at this time. She told Peterson she will see her immediately if there are any additional issues regarding compliance with the bond conditions. She told Peterson that she hoped to get to the next court date without issue.
McGinnis also ruled on a separate matter, that she will allow testimony via video conferencing for a witness from the manufacturer of the hyperbaric chamber when the preliminary exam resumes in December. The witness is in California, Assistant Attorney General Chris Kessel told the court.
(This story has been updated with new information.)
Free Press staff writer Kristen Jordan Shamus contributed to this report.
Contact Christina Hall: chall@freepress.com. Follow her on X: @challreporter.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Owner of hyperbaric chamber where boy died in fire sent to jail on bond violation
Reporting by Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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