New Baltimore — A Macomb County judge ordered Kim Mathers behind bars Thursday afternoon after a prosecutor said she repeatedly violated terms of her bond, citing alerts from her GPS tether.
Kim Mathers, the former wife of rap superstar Eminem, had originally been set for sentencing Thursday morning for a drunken driving charge and to respond to a show cause order for failing to appear at an earlier court appearance in June.
Judge William Hackel of New Baltimore’s 42-2 District Court said Thursday afternoon he’d hoped Mathers would seek treatment while free on bond. Details of the alleged “numerous” violations were not discussed in court, but the prosecutor and Mathers’ defense attorney stipulated to them.
Hackel told Mathers she can’t “unilaterally” decide on the rules of her release and continue behaviors that violate the court-imposed terms of her bond. He did say she can be granted release to an inpatient treatment program if she finds one to take her.
“I’m not seeing a real correction at this point, so I’m going to revoke the bond,” Hackel said in a brief hearing.
Mathers, 51, who lives in Chesterfield Township, failed to appear at a hearing in late June in New Baltimore’s 42-2 District Court for a sentencing and a hearing in two separate drunken driving cases, according to the court.
She was set to be sentenced for a hit-and-run crash in February during which she was drunk. She pleaded no contest on May 11 to operating while impaired and failure to stop after a collision, which are punishable by no more than 93 days in jail.
Mathers appeared in court wearing a white button-down shirt and jeans. She did not speak during the hearing, but could be heard after it concluded asking her attorney, Camilla Barkovic, how long she’d have to stay in jail.
Mathers has faced a series of legal issues this year involving drunken driving.
She was arrested May 13, two days after entering her plea in the first case, for allegedly crashing into a parked car in a Chesterfield Township residential neighborhood and registering a blood-alcohol content more than twice Michigan’s legal limit, according to police body cam footage from the incident. She now faces up to a year in jail or up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000 for allegedly operating while intoxicated, third offense, which is a felony.
Macomb County Assistant Prosecutor Joseph McCarthy said during Thursday’s hearing he was “seriously concerned” about Mathers’ repeated violations.
“She poses a risk to herself and to our community, and I’d ask that she be immediately remanded today,” McCarthy said.
“Judge, I vehemently disagree with the assertions advanced by the people, and I’ll leave it at that,” Barkovic said. After the hearing, she only told reporters Mathers is a “wonderful young woman, and she’s being victimized by the Macomb County Court.”
After pleading no contest to a third offense of operating while intoxicated, which is a felony, earlier this year, Mathers later failed to show up in court.
A new hearing date for Mathers was not immediately set in court Thursday.
Mathers has had other run-ins with the law. In October 2015, Mathers drove a Cadillac Escalade into a utility pole and ultimately into a ditch at 23 Mile and Card roads in Macomb Township. The court case records were sealed.
In May 2016, she told a Detroit radio show host during an interview that the crash was a suicide attempt. Mathers also admitted to drinking a fifth of Malibu rum before the crash. A district court judge later denied her request to throw out evidence and dismiss the case.
Mathers was sentenced to a fine and probation in November 2016.
In 2003, Mathers was arrested on charges of possession of a controlled substance of less than 25 grams, driving with a license suspended, revoked, or denied, and failure to use due care while passing a stationary emergency vehicle. And in 2004, she was found in violation of probation on the drug charges and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and 90 days in a drug rehab program.
jcardi@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Kim Mathers sent to jail after judge finds ‘numerous’ bond violations
Reporting by Julia Cardi, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Julia Cardi, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
