Ethan Anthony Couch (born April 11, 1997) killed four people at the age of 16 while driving under the influence on June 15, 2013, in Burleson, Texas.
Couch, while intoxicated and under the influence of drugs, was driving on a restricted license and speeding in a residential area when he was involved in a fatal crash as a young man.
In December 2013, Judge Jean Hudson Boyd sentenced Couch to ten years of probation, subsequently ordering him to undergo therapy at a long term inpatient facility.
[7] Couch's sentence, judged by many as outrageously lenient, set off what The New York Times called "an emotional, angry debate that has stretched far beyond the North Texas suburbs".
[2] On January 2, 2020, Couch returned to jail for an alleged probation violation, failing a mandated drug test for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
[15] Couch then withdrew from Anderson and began attending a co-op based in nearby Watauga until age 15, when he enrolled in a community college.
[19] On August 19, 2014, he was arrested for impersonating a police officer, allegedly displaying a fake badge during a disturbance call,[15][20] and was later found guilty and sentenced to a year of probation in December 2016.
[17][24] In 2013, Tonya Couch was sentenced to a $500 fine and a six-month community supervision order for reckless driving when she used her vehicle to force another motorist off the road.
[25] On the evening of June 15, 2013, according to authorities and trial testimony, Couch was witnessed on surveillance video stealing two cases of beer from a Walmart store,[26] driving with seven passengers in his father's red 2012 Ford F-350 pickup truck, and speeding at 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) in a designated 40-mile-per-hour (64 km/h) zone.
Couch's truck swerved off the road and into Mitchell's sport utility vehicle, then crashed into Jennings' parked car, which in turn hit an oncoming Volkswagen Beetle.
[28][29] G. Dick Miller, a psychologist hired as an expert by the defense, testified in court that the teen was a product of "affluenza" and was unable to link his actions with consequences because of his parents teaching him that wealth buys privilege.
Although the daily rate for the treatment facility is $715, Couch's parents were ordered to pay just $1,170 per month for his stay there, based on the state's sliding-scale payment schedule.
Suniya S. Luthar, who specializes in "the costs of affluence in suburban communities"—maintains that research shows feelings of entitlement among affluent youth are a social problem, and that "we are setting a double standard for the rich and poor."
An offender without his means would end up in the overcrowded, publicly supported Texas juvenile justice system where (the judge noted) Couch "might not get the kind of intensive therapy in a state-run program that he could receive at the California facility suggested by his attorneys".
In February 2004, Boyd sentenced Eric Bradlee Miller, who stole a truck and killed a 19-year-old father,[39] to 20 years telling him, "the court is aware you had a sad childhood ...
"[40] Eric Bradlee Miller had killed one person, not four, and had a much lower blood alcohol level (0.11% compared to Couch's 0.24%), but was from a much poorer family.
"[I]t is not uncommon for minors involved in serious drunken-driving cases and other crimes to receive probation instead of prison time", and the sentence may be part of "a growing trend of giving a young person a second chance through rehabilitation instead of trying him as an adult".
[43] At a February 5, 2014 hearing, Eric Boyles, who lost his wife and daughter in the crash, said "Had he not had money to have the defense there, to also have the experts testify, and also offer to pay for the treatment, I think the results would have been different.
[69] Couch, having dropped his fight to avoid being deported from Mexico, was flown back to the United States on January 28, 2016, and was held in custody before appearing at a hearing on February 19 regarding his original juvenile probation case being transferred to the adult court system.
He is permitted to drive and has a video-equipped ignition interlock device installed in his vehicle, which will prevent him from starting his car without passing a breathalyzer test, according to Mike Simonds of the Tarrant County Sheriff's Office.
[79] Couch was released one day later, on January 3, 2020, because authorities could not determine if the positive test result for THC came from illegal marijuana or CBD oil.