Morgan Wingeier, 32, broke down in tears in court today as the charges of involuntary manslaughter and unlawful imprisonment that she faced were dismissed by a judge. Wingeier had been letting her friend, Corinne Abosamra, 33, live in her Broadmoor Self-Storage unit in Kentwood, Michigan. Abosamra's body was found after a fire broke out on November 7, 2024.
However, it was argued that the fire did not cause her death. Kent County Medical Examiner Dr. Stephen Cohle ruled that Abosamra died of an overdose of meth and that she had used meth within an hour of her death. Based on this evidence, Kentwood District Judge Amanda Sterkenburg ruled that it was a “tragic accident,” but not a crime.
Abosamra was homeless and Wingeier began letting her stay in her storage unit on November 4, providing her with blankets, food, gloves, and a bucket. The two had once dated, but Wingeier said she ended the relationship because of Abosamra’s mental health issues.
Surveillance video shows Wingeier and her mother at the unit at 12:26pm on November 7. Wingeier locks the unit and leaves with her mother. Wingeier later told detectives that her mom had questioned her about leaving the unit unlocked, and because she didn’t want her to know Abosamra was living in it, she locked it and planned to return in a few hours to unlock it. However, she told detectives “things she was doing took longer than she expected.”
Left, Abosamra; Right, Wingeier
Surveillance video shows flames shortly after 9pm that same day, about 8.5 hours after Wingeier and her mother left. Firefighters arrived just before 11pm and noticed that unit 454 was padlocked from the outside. They cut the lock and later discovered Abosamra’s body inside. Police said they located Wingeier at a hotel the next day.
Prosecutors argued that if Wingeier had returned when she said she would, Abosamra “neither would have died in the fire, nor would she have suffered from a fatal overdose.”
Wingeier’s defense attorney argued that prosecutors failed to show that Wingeier unlawfully confined her or that she committed involuntary manslaughter, and the judge has now agreed, stating, "These are tragic circumstances... The defendant made a poor choice locking her friend in the storage unit, but is it better to leave a friend in the wind with no roof over her head?”
Ultimately, she concluded that Abosamra willingly stayed in the unit and was not restrained.
Feature image courtesy of WoodTV 8
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