Local nurse accused of pot smuggling released from U.S. custody
An Amherstburg nurse employed by Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit was released on bond Friday following a brief court appearance after being charged Wednesday with attempting to import a large quantity of marijuana into the U.S. over the Ambassador Bridge.
Terri Leanne Maxwell, 48, was released on a US$10,000 unsecured bond with orders to return to Canada and to only return to the U.S. to meet with her attorney or for court appearances, said Gina Balaya, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorneys office. No exception for employment in the U.S. for Maxwell was provided, Balaya said.
The Canadian nurse was arrested Wednesday wearing her nurse’s scrubs, lab coat and Henry Ford work badge at the bridge following an inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at around 9 a.m. after they noticed an odour of marijuana in her vehicle, said Balaya.
U.S. customs officers found 143 sealed bags of suspected marijuana with a total weight of 153.69 pounds (68 kg) in the trunk of her Ford Fusion, according to the criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court obtained by The Star on Friday.
Maxwell is facing federal charges in the U.S. of importation of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, according to the criminal complaint.
She is facing a maximum 20-year sentence in federal prison.
During Maxwell’s court appearance on Friday, evidence was presented by federal prosecutors that Maxwell had been on leave from her nursing job at Henry Ford since March 17, Balaya said.
But prosecutors told the court the nurse — thanks to a special placard in her windshield that allowed her entry into the U.S. despite a border shutdown during the COVID-19 crisis — continued to enter the U.S. an additional 17 times after taking her leave.
A hospital spokesman at Henry Ford told the Detroit Free Press that Maxwell was suspended from her job pending the outcome of her criminal case.
Maxwell’s next appearance in U.S. District Court is scheduled for May 14 for a preliminary hearing, Balaya said.
Maxwell graduated in nursing from the University of Windsor in 1999, according to Ontario College of Nurses’ records. She was employed at Windsor Regional Hospital between 2014 and 2017, according to those records. That was confirmed Friday by hospital CEO David Musyj who declined further comment.
Maxwell then worked as a nurse at the South West Detention Centre for about a year. In mid-2018, she accepted a nursing job at Henry Ford Hospital.
Maxwell was previously issued a “zero tolerance penalty” from U.S. Customs and Border Protection on May 7, 2007, for being in possession of 5.80 grams of marijuana, according to the criminal complaint.
U.S. customs officers found 143 sealed bags of suspected marijuana with a total weight of 153.69 pounds (68 kg) in the trunk of her Ford Fusion, according to the complaint.