Four people were charged with a hyperbaric room explosion that killed a five -year -old Michigan boy.
Thomas Cooper was killed on January 31, 2025, when the room where he received Hyperbaric oxygen therapy Treatment broke out in flames.
“A single spark, it seems, has ignited in a fully involved fire which won Thomas’ life in seconds,” Michigan’s prosecutor Dana Nessel said on Tuesday.
“Fires inside a hyperbaric room are considered a terminal event. Each fire is almost certainly fatal and that is why many essential security procedures and practices have been developed to prevent fire from occurring, “she said.
Tamela Peterson, founder and chief executive Oxford CenterWhere the boy received his treatments, is accused of second degree murder. The director of the installation, Gary MARKEN, 65, and the director of security Gary Mosser, 64, are accused of murder in the second degree and manslaughter.
The room operator during his explosion, Aleta Moffitt, 60, is accused of manslaughter and intentionally placing false medical information on a graph of medical records.
According to Fox2 Detroit, the boy’s family had paid US $ 8,000 for oxygen therapy treatments for the young boy, hoping that the sessions would have Help her sleep apnea and ADHD.
His mother was next to the room on the day of the explosion and was seriously injured.
“She rushed to the place where her son had to find him engulfed in the flames, and she was doing everything possible to get him out for Support significant burns By his arm, “said James Harrington last month, the lawyer representing the boy’s parents.
File – A hyperbaric room at the Oxford Center in Brighton, Michigan, was presented on February 8, 2024.
David Guralnick / Detroit News via AP
The lawyer for the Oxford Center told Fox2 that they were disappointed by the charges.
“The moment of these charges is surprising, because the typical protocol after an accident linked to the fire has not yet been completed. There are still questions unanswered about the way it happened. However, the Office of the Attorney General continued his accusations without these responses, ”said the declaration.
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“Our highest priority every day is the Security and well-being of children and families that we servewhich continues during this process. »»
On Tuesday, Nessel said that the defendants unscrupulously put the body of children in danger with non -accredited and demystified treatments, simply because it caused money through the door. She said that putting the boy in an oxygen chamber under pressure for the affections he had suffered “is not supported by medical science”.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) do not list Hyperbaric oxygen therapy as an effective treatment for sleep apnea or ADHD.
“Because these treatments were so medically unrelated, patient insurance policies would not cover the use of these rooms to deal with these conditions,” said Nessel. “This company was a pure and profit cash company.”
The second degree accusation of murder comes like “a total shock“Said Raymond Cassar, lawyer for Marken.
“For equity, he is presumed innocent,” Cassar told the Associated Press. “It was a tragic accident and our thoughts and our prayers go to the family of this little boy. I want to remind everyone that it was an accident, not an intentional act. We will have to leave this to the experts to find out what was the cause. »»
Moffitt’s lawyer, Ellen Michaels, also extended prayers and sympathy to Cooper’s family, while asking for “patience and equity as this process takes place”.
“This event had a deep impact on so many people, including my client, the community and the first speakers,” said Michaels in a press release. “I pray for healing for all those affected.
“Aleta Moffitt is a dedicated professional with many years of experience in the health care industry. She has always been a committed and hardworking person, joining all of the corporate policies and procedures while prioritizing the well-being of her patients. »»
Hyperbaric therapy offers pure oxygen to the body of a person inside the pressure chamber. It is up to five times the quantity of oxygen in a normal room, said Lieutenant de Troy Fire Keith Young after the explosion.
“The presence of such a high quantity of oxygen in an environment under pressure can make it extremely fuel,” said Young.
Nessel described Cooper’s death “an easily avoidable tragedy”.
A room maintenance check was not carried out that day, no doctor or supervisor was on site and the treatment was not carried out by an authorized technician. The annual inspections had not been carried out and “the essential strap of land put by a patient was not used,” she said.
The FDA has eliminated hyperbaric chambers to be marketed as safe and effective for a List of 13 disordersLike serious burns, decompression evil and non -healing wounds. The list does not include many of the other disorders announced by the Oxford Center.
The FDA also recommends that consumers only use hyperbaric centers inspected and accredited by underwater and hyperbaric medical society. The Oxford Center does not appear on February 2025 of the company List of accredited installations.
Nessel said that his office had widely consulted experts in hyperbar chambers and treatments.
“Horrible and simple conclusions have been drawn,” she said. “The Oxford Center regularly worked on sensitive and fatally dangerous hyperbaric chambers beyond their expected service life and without taking into account the vital safety measures and practices considered essential by medical and technical professionals.”
– With files from the Associated Press
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