OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. – The four workers charged in the death of a 5-year-old boy who was killed in a hyperbaric chamber explosion at a health care center in Oakland County were back in court on Wednesday.
Tamela Peterson, 58, of Brighton, Jeffrey Mosteller, 64, of Clinton Township, Gary Marken, 65, of Spring Arbor and Aleta Moffitt, 60, of Rochester Hills, were charged after Thomas Cooper was killed when the hyperbaric chamber he was receiving treatment in exploded at the Oxford Center in Troy on Jan. 31, 2025. His mother was also injured in the explosion.
The four workers appeared before 52-4 District Court Judge Maureen McGinnis for a probable cause conference on Wednesday, May 28.
Mosteller, Marken, and Moffitt appeared in court in person, while Peterson appeared via Zoom due to a scheduling miscommunication.
McGinnis said that she had asked the defendants and attorneys to attend this hearing in person so they could schedule dates for future hearings.
During this short hearing, McGinnis scheduled a preliminary examination for Sept. 15 and Sept. 16, but said it could be rescheduled if witnesses are unavailable on these days.
The judge also said there are a few motion hearings that need to happen before the examination, which is part of the reason it was scheduled a few months out.
At this time, the bond conditions for all four defendants will continue as is.
This hearing comes after the four employees appeared in court virtually for a probable cause conference on Wednesday, April 30.
During that hearing, the attorneys and Assistant Attorney General Chris Kessel agreed that they needed to conduct an inspection of the Troy center and the hyperbaric chamber where the explosion happened before a preliminary examination could be scheduled.
They told McGinnis that a civil case had been keeping them from entering the location, and she agreed to wait on setting a preliminary examination and had adjourned the probable cause conference.
Charges
Peterson, the Oxford Center’s founder and CEO, along with Mosteller, the safety manager, and Marken, the primary management assistant, were charged with second-degree murder.
They were also given the alternative charge of involuntary manslaughter, which means that a jury will decide which charge accurately fits their conduct.
Moffitt, who was allegedly operating the hyperbaric chamber at the time of the explosion, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and falsifying medical records.