Affluenza Defense: Rich Texas Teen Gets Probation For Killing 4 Pedestrians While Driving Drunk by Niki2

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Affluenza Defense: Rich Texas Teen Gets Probation For Killing 4 Pedestrians While Driving Drunk

POSTED BY: NIKI2
UPDATED: Thursday, February 6, 2014 15:15
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Friday, December 13, 2013 12:54 PM

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

Quote:
A teenager who killed four people while driving drunk has been sentenced to probation.

Prosecutors were pushing for 16-year-old Ethan Couch to spend 20 years in prison. However, State District Judge Jean Boyd sentenced Couch to a decade of probation.

There was no debate about who was behind the wheel last June, when Couch plowed into and killed four people. Couch has admitted to being the driver, and court records show his blood alcohol level was .24 at the time of the crash, three times the legal limit for an adult. Prosecutors also presented evidence that Couch and some friends stole beer from a Burleson Walmart on June 15, the night of the crash. After consuming the alcohol, Couch and seven others got back into his pickup to go to another store. During the trip, he hit four pedestrians, killing them. Two teens riding in Couch’s pickup were thrown from the truck and severely injured.

Couch’s attorneys argued his parents were responsible for the teen’s actions that night because of the way he had been raised. Defense attorneys put a psychologist on the stand who testified Couch was a product of wealth and got whatever he wanted. The psychologist also testified the teen was allowed to drink at a very young age and began driving at 13 years old. Defense attorneys argued Couch needed treatment, not jail and suggested a facility that costs almost half a million dollars a year.

Couch’s family did not comment on the sentence. Couch was not allowed to go home with his parents. He will be housed at the detention center until he can be placed at a treatment facility. http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2013/12/10/teen-sentenced-to-probation-for-dea
dly-dwi-crash/]

District Judge Jean Boyd said the programs available in the Texas juvenile justice system may not provide the kind of intensive therapy the teen could receive at a rehabilitation center near Newport Beach, Calif., that was suggested by his defense attorneys. The parents would pick up the tab for the center, at a cost of more than $450,000 a year for treatment.

Eric Boyles, who lost his wife and daughter, said the family's wealth helped the teen avoid incarceration.

"Money always seems to keep you out of trouble," Boyles said. "Ultimately today, I felt that money did prevail. If you had been any other youth, I feel like the circumstances would have been different."

Shaunna Jennings, the minister's widow, said her family had forgiven the teen but believed a sterner punishment was needed.

"You lived a life of privilege and entitlement, and my prayer is that it does not get you out of this," she said. "My fear is that it will get you out of this."

A psychologist called as an expert defense witness said the boy suffered from "affluenza," growing up in a house where the parents were preoccupied with arguments that led to a divorce.

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Friday, December 13, 2013 1:12 PM

SIGNYM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

So the parents treated this kid too soft, and the answer is more of the same?

Comments after this article were interesting. There was one I agreed with: That being punitive about crime - even this one- doesn't stop crime and doesn't solve the problem. I guess when we hear about something like this, which is horrific, we want vengeance but call it "justice". But a non-punitive approach to crime shouldn't be predicated on how much money you have. Although, clearly it is, because if it weren't GWB and Obama would both be in jail for war crimes far worse than this drunk-driving teenager.

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Friday, December 13, 2013 1:32 PM

SIGNYM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

BTW- If you think I've jinked thru several viewpoints on this topic, you would be correct. Just trying to point out that both automatic punitive outrage and thought-out non-punitive policies have their weak points. Presumably, the trick is to develop policies which would both respond adequately to misdeeds at ALL levels, and prevent them in the future.

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Friday, December 13, 2013 1:44 PM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

I certainly agree, Sig, and am truly aware of all the greys involved. What galls me is that some rich kid can get off, and go to half-million-dollar "retreat", after killing four people because of HIS "background" and because his parents can afford it, while we throw thousands in jail daily with no recognition of how THEIR background contributed to their crimes, and that there are no alternatives for them.

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Friday, December 13, 2013 1:55 PM

NEWOLDBROWNCOAT

Isn't Texas one of those states where they try juveniles as adults for serious felonies?

I guess maybe that only happens if you're POOR, or BLACK. If you're a rich white kid, you get the most soft-core, pinko liberal justice on the planet.

Hell, even out here in California, we wouldn't let somebody just walk away from that one.

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Friday, December 13, 2013 1:57 PM

SIGNYM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Justice should be blind to both power and money. Clearly, it isn't, as the wealthy (bankers who brought down the entire financial structure in 2008 because of widespread fraud; insurance executives who create internal policies to deny payouts to people being treated for serious illness) and the powerful (politicians who order the military to kill hundreds of thousands of people in pointless -or even counterproductive- wars) continue on their way, worry-free. In fact, lionized and feted. If anything deserves proportionate outrage; it's that. (I know I don't have to point this out to you, as you were active in the Occupy movement.)

But there are two points to this article, the one which points up the wildly disparate treatment by the so-called justice system, and the nature of justice itself. What IS justice? Is it only punishment, as we in the USA have been trained to believe?

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Friday, December 13, 2013 2:47 PM

GEEZER

Keep the Shiny side up

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:

What IS justice? Is it only punishment, as we in the USA have been trained to believe?

The Illustrated Guide to Criminal Law has a discussion on the reasons for punishment, starting here.

http://lawcomic.net/guide/?p=60

"When your heart breaks, you choose what to fill the cracks with. Love or hate. But hate won't ever heal. Only love can do that."

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Friday, December 13, 2013 4:08 PM

STORYMARK

Stories like this make me wish this guy existed for real:

"Goram it kid, let's frak this thing and go home! Engage!"

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Friday, December 13, 2013 6:10 PM

MAGONSDAUGHTER

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Justice should be blind to both power and money. Clearly, it isn't, as the wealthy (bankers who brought down the entire financial structure in 2008 because of widespread fraud; insurance executives who create internal policies to deny payouts to people being treated for serious illness) and the powerful (politicians who order the military to kill hundreds of thousands of people in pointless -or even counterproductive- wars) continue on their way, worry-free. In fact, lionized and feted. If anything deserves proportionate outrage; it's that. (I know I don't have to point this out to you, as you were active in the Occupy movement.)

But there are two points to this article, the one which points up the wildly disparate treatment by the so-called justice system, and the nature of justice itself. What IS justice? Is it only punishment, as we in the USA have been trained to believe?

It was kind of lunatic for the prosecutors to ask for 20 years, though. I think that was not an option either. The deaths were caused by criminal negligence, so he should have some custodial time, but also some treatment as well.

And yes, the US hands out too many harsh custodial sentences. Someone needs to look at some research into the effacacy of custodial sentences in reducing crime ... ie it doesn't work.

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Friday, December 13, 2013 8:01 PM

OONJERAH

"District Judge Jean Boyd said the programs available in the Texas
juvenile justice system may not provide the kind of intensive therapy
the teen could receive at a rehabilitation center near Newport Beach,
Calif., that was suggested by his defense attorneys. The parents would
pick up the tab for the center, at a cost of more than $450,000 a year
for treatment." <-= Assume that "intensive therapy" means actual
therapy and not Hell Camp.

Oonj takes the bench to sentence the kid: 60 Days in county jail.
6 Months at the nice Rehab center near Newport Beach. During this
time, must remain clean & sober. He must also remain clean & sober
until the age of 30. If he fails, his ass is grass.

When you kill 4 people (or even 1), it's instant graduation to Adult
responsibility. Kinda like it's always been for girls: Get knocked up
at 13, you're now an adult.

I have always felt rehab & recovery are better than punishment.
It's 'cause I figure we're all down here on a Karma ticket. Not
necessarily a bad thing.

====================== :>
The further a society drifts from truth the more it will hate those who speak it. ~George Orwell

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Friday, December 13, 2013 8:21 PM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

"It was kind of lunatic for the prosecutors to ask for 20 years, though. I think that was not an option either. The deaths were caused by criminal negligence, so he should have some custodial time, but also some treatment as well." Agreed.

But I'm also with Oonj that he should have to serve SOME time for killing four people. Twenty years is ridiculous, but to see no jail time at all is equally ridiculous, in my opinion.

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 12:10 AM

GEEZER

Keep the Shiny side up

Apparently the family of kid in the truck with young Mr. Couch has already filed a $20 million lawsuit against him, his parents, and his dad's business. I expect that more will follow.

http://www.heavy.com/news/2013/12/ethan-couch-affluenza-drunk-driving/

BTW, the petition these folks filed lists the names and addresses of young Mr. Couch and his mom and dad, if anyone would like to send them a Christmas card.

"When your heart breaks, you choose what to fill the cracks with. Love or hate. But hate won't ever heal. Only love can do that."

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 2:07 AM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

In FL, we had the case of the pretty blonde female teacher, caught having relations w/ one of her students,and the lawyer said her client was too pretty to go to prison.

And now we have this.

I wish I were more shocked.

Fathom the hypocrisy of a government that requires every citizen to prove they are insured... but not everyone must prove they are a citizen

I'm just a red pill guy in a room full of blue pill addicts.

" AU, that was great, LOL!! " - Chrisisall

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 5:05 AM

MAGONSDAUGHTER

Do minors normally get custodial sentences in adult prisons? Don't they normally get lesser sentences? Do you normally send someone to jail for 20 years for deaths which although caused through negligence, were unintentional.

What cause would be served by him spending 20 years locked up?

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 5:32 AM

AGENTROUKA

Quote:
Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
Do minors normally get custodial sentences in adult prisons? Don't they normally get lesser sentences? Do you normally send someone to jail for 20 years for deaths which although caused through negligence, were unintentional.

What cause would be served by him spending 20 years locked up?

I think an adult who killed four people driving drunk WOULD be sent to jail, potentially for 20 years. Don't you? He was driving drunk!

I agree that harsh sentencing isn't the top solution, but I suspect people are indeed more upset about the fact that his wealth likely played a role in getting him that result and that in other circumstances he would have faced jail, minor or not.

It's the unequal application of this more or less reasonable sentence (though it's potentially debatable) that is disturbing.

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 7:17 AM

FREMDFIRMA

Quote:
Originally posted by AgentRouka:
It's the unequal application of this more or less reasonable sentence (though it's potentially debatable) that is disturbing.

^THIS.

The moment you introduce such differences, you re-create a caste/class system, and shit on everything "America" even MEANS.

-F

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 5:19 PM

MAGONSDAUGHTER

Quote:
Originally posted by AgentRouka:

I think an adult who killed four people driving drunk WOULD be sent to jail, potentially for 20 years. Don't you? He was driving drunk!

I agree that harsh sentencing isn't the top solution, but I suspect people are indeed more upset about the fact that his wealth likely played a role in getting him that result and that in other circumstances he would have faced jail, minor or not.

It's the unequal application of this more or less reasonable sentence (though it's potentially debatable) that is disturbing.

I'm not sure. I think 20 year sentencing tends to be for intentional murders here. Just checking - truck driver gets 5 years for death of 3 people - no drink involved, just stupidity. That would probably be pretty standard. Our sentencing tends to be less harsh here.

I agree the problem is perceived as being one rule for rich etc, but I do think that if the prosecutors had sought a reasonable sentence in the first place, the outcome would be different.

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Saturday, December 14, 2013 9:17 PM

JONGSSTRAW

The only thing better than the "Affluenza" defense is the "Kennedy" defense. With that one you get all charges dropped, AND you get elected to Congress for the rest of your life.

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Sunday, December 15, 2013 12:21 AM

OONJERAH

^ Well, not Totally.

If you are a Kennedy nephew who apparently commits murder,
they screw around for years before they finally prosecute you.
Then you serve a decade or so in the Tourists' Deluxe prison,
and are finally let out on bail. Prob'ly because they are still not
sure if you done it or not. Or you did it while drunk and don't
remember doing it, so it sorta doesn't count.

Seems awfully ambiguous to me. Ain't money supposed to talk
better than that?

====================== :>
The further a society drifts from truth the more it will hate those who speak it. ~George Orwell

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Monday, December 16, 2013 5:10 AM

SHINYGOODGUY

Affluenza!!!! Are you fucking kidding me!

Kid is old enough to drink, and old enough to drive a car while drunk; then he's old enough to face the consequences.

Give him a rifle and send him to Afghanistan, be a fucking man!
That should be his punishment.

SGG

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Monday, December 16, 2013 5:18 AM

SHINYGOODGUY

Following the logic behind "Affluenza" then it stands to reason that any poor person currently incarcerated can argue "Povertyitus" -

The two extremes within our society - rich and poor - cause criminal/anti-social behavior and we need to "treat" the poor bastards who suffer from the dreaded ailments.

Whatever happened to the conservative battle-cry: Personal responsibility

"This town needs an enema!"

SGG

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Thursday, February 6, 2014 3:25 AM

OONJERAH

Fort Worth judge declines to add jail time to Couch sentence
http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/02/05/5544125/judge-declines-to-add-
jail-time.html

"FORT WORTH — Ethan Couch, the teenager who drove drunk and caused
a crash that killed four people last summer, will not have any jail
time added to his sentence of 10 years’ probation, an extra punishment
that Tarrant County prosecutors asked state District Judge Jean Boyd
to impose on Wednesday.

"Boyd declined that request. She ordered Couch, 16, to enter a “lock
down” addiction treatment facility and to not drive or use alcohol
or drugs for 10 years, according to a news release from the Tarrant
County district attorney’s office. She ordered his parents to pay
for his treatment. ... "

====================== :>
The further a society drifts from truth the more it will hate those who speak it. ~George Orwell

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Thursday, February 6, 2014 8:03 AM

RAHLMACLAREN

"Damn yokels, can't even tell a transport ship ain't got no guns on it." - Jayne Cobb

So, all and all, Ethan gets a slap on the wrist for getting 4 people killed, and his chauffeur gets punished with more work by to having haul his pampered ass around more.

Wonderful system.

Find here the Serenity you seek. -Tara Maclay

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Thursday, February 6, 2014 3:15 PM

OONJERAH

"and to not drive or use alcohol or drugs for 10 years,"

I agree with the Judge about that part.
He also needs to work with someone who'll keep him honest.
That is the tricky & unlikely part of it.

While Couch killed 4 & injured several more, some of them are
his friends with families who know his family. He may serve
the rest of his life for this.

OtOH, maybe he's one who can just shine it on. "No worries!"

====================== :>
All I suggest is a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest. ~Paul Simon

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