GUILTY TX - Ethan Couch 'Affluenza Teen' DUI driver who killed four gets probation, 2013 #1

[JeannaT]

btw - A few days ago I posted about how the judge who gave Ethan 10 years probation for killing 4 people driving drunk is the same judge who gave a "poor, black teen" in 2004 20 years in prison for killing one person while driving drunk.
I apologize, I guess the teen who was sentenced for 20 years prison was not black. I only wrote that because that is what I saw written on another website and I just copied and pasted that sentence. I have never actually seen that teen etc. I should have done more research prior to posting that so I apologize.

I just saw that he is not black (not that it even matters - I just wanted to correct myself from my previous post) but he is indeed poor. Apparently in his case his public defender (of course he didn't have the $ for top notch attorneys) also told the judge that he should get a bit of a break - raised this way, it's all he knows, it's his upbringing etc (similar to Ethan's defense but the opposite since he was from a poor, troubled family).

Anyways, his family is of course telling the media they are outraged that this judge gave him 20 years prison at the age of 16 for killing one person and Ethan had 0 days in prison. How is that fair?

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...e-miller-outraged-couch-lam-article-1.2471292

It is a concern, that it's the very same judge hearing both cases. Inequities occur all over the criminal justice system, but when you see it occurring in the same courtroom it's a concern. On the other hand, these cases were 9 years apart. I wonder if she learned, during that time, that being lenient on 16 year old wild boys will sometimes turn them around. Maybe she actually changed philosophy during that nearly decade of hearing juvenile cases.

 

[iluvmua]

I read in an article about that young teenager, from what I read, they tried to find him a probation center he could go to but no one would take him, so she had no choice but to sentence him to prison.

 

[iluvmua]

good points but then again let's look at Ethan. No mention of any previous convictions - yet plenty of mentions of criminal activity that he was involved in that it seems he was never even charged for?

Such as the article listed a few pages back that mentions Ethan being caught urinating outside a gas station with a half naked 14 year old girl in his vehicle. Or what about the theft/robbery that was captured on film at the Walmart the night of this tragic drunk driving incident when he and his pals went to go steal cases of beer from Walmart? Ethan was the getaway driver in that store theft/robbery and it looked like they even had it on camera. Was he ever even charged with any of that?

unfortunately, Walmart is not going to charge anyone with stealing beer. unless it was thousands of dollars worth of said product in store.

jmo

 

[iluvmua]

good points but then again let's look at Ethan. No mention of any previous convictions - yet plenty of mentions of criminal activity that he was involved in that it seems he was never even charged for?

Such as the article listed a few pages back that mentions Ethan being caught urinating outside a gas station with a half naked 14 year old girl in his vehicle. Or what about the theft/robbery that was captured on film at the Walmart the night of this tragic drunk driving incident when he and his pals went to go steal cases of beer from Walmart? Ethan was the getaway driver in that store theft/robbery and it looked like they even had it on camera. Was he ever even charged with any of that?

This is one of the reasons why he was not sent to prison. He was 16 at the time, he had no priors, he committed manslaughter etc.

He would have been sent to a detention center until he was 21 and then be released and have his record cleaned and it be perm. sealed.

 

[faw720]

http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2015/12/22/author-it-shouldnt-take-long-to-track-down-ethan-couch-mom/

I sure hope this guy is right about finding the Couch gang soon. I especially like his idea that this was not a well planned flight.

 

[steelman]

These two could also be heavily disguised. With his blonde hair and goatee, you could get him clean shaven and dye his hair black and the average citizen would look right at him and not see who they're looking for. I doubt if that would fool the Marshal's searching for him, but it would most likely fool the general public and maybe even local LE.

I still think they had an escape plan in place for a situation just like this. They vanished on 12/11, today is 12/23, so it will have been two weeks tomorrow. I think they went on the run even prior to that though. No sign of them, no sign of the truck, no paper trail, no electronic breadcrumbs that we know of.

They have access to private aircraft, they have access to private buildings and garages. Her pickup could be parked inside a storage building a 1/2 mile from her house and nobody would be the wiser. The fact that it hasn't been seen or spotted by anyone is the reason I'm thinking like that. Of course, none of us are privy to what LE knows or the tips that have come in from the public, so I should preface all theories with "as far as it's been reported".... and....."as far as we know".

Knowing what a little useless spoiled brat they raised, I'm sure both parents knew that there was a high probability that their special child wouldn't be able to coast through ten years as a teenager and young adult without screwing up and blowing his probation. He's already killed 4 people and cost his folks a small fortune in civil suits, why would a leopard change its spots ?? No......I think they had a plan in place for when little Chucky blew his ride.


He's lucky he didn't have my parents, they'd turn me in for acting like a total creep and ruining their name, and then they'd take the reward money and go on a cruise while I was standing trial. They wouldn't pitch in a nickle for a defense attorney either.

 

[Tulessa]

These two could also be heavily disguised. With his blonde hair and goatee, you could get him clean shaven and dye his hair black and the average citizen would look right at him and not see who they're looking for. I doubt if that would fool the Marshal's searching for him, but it would most likely fool the general public and maybe even local LE.

I still think they had an escape plan in place for a situation just like this. They vanished on 12/11, today is 12/23, so it will have been two weeks tomorrow. I think they went on the run even prior to that though. No sign of them, no sign of the truck, no paper trail, no electronic breadcrumbs that we know of.

They have access to private aircraft, they have access to private buildings and garages. Her pickup could be parked inside a storage building a 1/2 mile from her house and nobody would be the wiser. The fact that it hasn't been seen or spotted by anyone is the reason I'm thinking like that. Of course, none of us are privy to what LE knows or the tips that have come in from the public, so I should preface all theories with "as far as it's been reported".... and....."as far as we know".

Knowing what a little useless spoiled brat they raised, I'm sure both parents knew that there was a high probability that their special child wouldn't be able to coast through ten years as a teenager and young adult without screwing up and blowing his probation. He's already killed 4 people and cost his folks a small fortune in civil suits, why would a leopard change its spots ?? No......I think they had a plan in place for when little Chucky blew his ride.


He's lucky he didn't have my parents, they'd turn me in for acting like a total creep and ruining their name, and then they'd take the reward money and go on a cruise while I was standing trial. They wouldn't pitch in a nickle for a defense attorney either.

You must be my long lost brother lol.

 

[Irisha]

For some reason I can't get the direct link to work but for anyone interested, there is a large front page story in the Dallas Morning News about the massive manhunt for Ethan & Tonya Couch.

http://www.dallasnews.com

Wow that new pic of Tonya looks, to be honest, icky. It looks like her rotten son and possibly her pill use has really aged her from 2 yrs ago. She looks totally different. That's only the 2nd time I have seen that pic it needs to be more widely distributed.:moo:

 

[faw720]

These two could also be heavily disguised. With his blonde hair and goatee, you could get him clean shaven and dye his hair black and the average citizen would look right at him and not see who they're looking for. I doubt if that would fool the Marshal's searching for him, but it would most likely fool the general public and maybe even local LE.

I still think they had an escape plan in place for a situation just like this. They vanished on 12/11, today is 12/23, so it will have been two weeks tomorrow. I think they went on the run even prior to that though. No sign of them, no sign of the truck, no paper trail, no electronic breadcrumbs that we know of.

They have access to private aircraft, they have access to private buildings and garages. Her pickup could be parked inside a storage building a 1/2 mile from her house and nobody would be the wiser. The fact that it hasn't been seen or spotted by anyone is the reason I'm thinking like that. Of course, none of us are privy to what LE knows or the tips that have come in from the public, so I should preface all theories with "as far as it's been reported".... and....."as far as we know".

Knowing what a little useless spoiled brat they raised, I'm sure both parents knew that there was a high probability that their special child wouldn't be able to coast through ten years as a teenager and young adult without screwing up and blowing his probation. He's already killed 4 people and cost his folks a small fortune in civil suits, why would a leopard change its spots ?? No......I think they had a plan in place for when little Chucky blew his ride.


He's lucky he didn't have my parents, they'd turn me in for acting like a total creep and ruining their name, and then they'd take the reward money and go on a cruise while I was standing trial. They wouldn't pitch in a nickle for a defense attorney either.

Even if they did have a good escape plan in place, don't you suppose that by now LE has all their phone records going back quite a long time? Of course by now, they have very likely ditched their cell phones & have throw aways. I wonder if LE is able to tap the dad's phones or is that even legal? I also wonder if LE is aware of all relatives with whom they might try to get into contact? LE has said that dad has been cooperating but somehow I just can't see him cooperating completely.

Like you say, we don't know exactly what LE knows & I do hope it's a lot more than they're telling us.

 

[Archangel7]

Ethan and his Mom had a head start and as such it takes some time for LE to catch up /follow up from when they fled until our current time frame.

There are lots of tips, flight/cruise manifests, border crossings, state license plate queries, phone data, etc. to peruse.

Also about this time in the process, many of the public are becoming aware that they may have seen or transported the two prior to the manhunt beginning and becoming public knowledge.
They would be coming forward.

Plus there are always people that will knowingly help them, thinking that they can effectively deny aiding and abetting Ethan and his Mom.

The process to locate and find them is slow, methodical and comprehensive.

 

[faw720]

Archangel, I always enjoy your posts which are from a LE standpoint. I especially like it when you the search process will be comprehensive!

 

[iluvmua]

I'm wondering if LE does know where they are and they are saying they do't know where they are in fear they may run once again.

jmo

 

[D H-J]

Doesn't LE almost always know more than they let out to the public? And there's something this whole mother/son relationship that creeps me out.

 

[faw720]

Doesn't LE almost always know more than they let out to the public? And there's something this whole mother/son relationship that creeps me out.

I'm very sure LE knows more than they're saying. After all, they would never be able to catch anyone if the media knew what they knew.

I agree about the mother/son relationship.........it is definitely weird. I wonder if any of this family has ever lived anything resembling a normal life?

 

[Cubby]

No mention was made of past known criminal history. The kid that got 20 years had also stolen the truck, had he been convicted of various other things up until that point? Other car thefts? Burglary? Etc...?

Without knowing the history it is impossible to judge. Often groups with an agenda post numbers saying "Look how unfair, this group gets longer sentences than that group" without EVER trying to make sure it was an apples to apples comparison.

Using this post as a springboard. You bring up a good point. However, in an apples to apples comparison, I can't help but think if it weren't for the loaded parents CPS/DCFS might have been involved. If your average family were to allow their underage child to drive a car and parents were to leave an underage child alone in a home withput supervision child protective services would be investigating.

It's amazing to see just how out of control this situation has been allowed to happen with little to no intervention.

I can't say the possibility of a murder/suicide as a possible outcome in this situation hasn't crossed my mind.

 

[Ray_of_hope]

These two could also be heavily disguised. With his blonde hair and goatee, you could get him clean shaven and dye his hair black and the average citizen would look right at him and not see who they're looking for. I doubt if that would fool the Marshal's searching for him, but it would most likely fool the general public and maybe even local LE.

I still think they had an escape plan in place for a situation just like this. They vanished on 12/11, today is 12/23, so it will have been two weeks tomorrow. I think they went on the run even prior to that though. No sign of them, no sign of the truck, no paper trail, no electronic breadcrumbs that we know of.

They have access to private aircraft, they have access to private buildings and garages. Her pickup could be parked inside a storage building a 1/2 mile from her house and nobody would be the wiser. The fact that it hasn't been seen or spotted by anyone is the reason I'm thinking like that. Of course, none of us are privy to what LE knows or the tips that have come in from the public, so I should preface all theories with "as far as it's been reported".... and....."as far as we know".

Knowing what a little useless spoiled brat they raised, I'm sure both parents knew that there was a high probability that their special child wouldn't be able to coast through ten years as a teenager and young adult without screwing up and blowing his probation. He's already killed 4 people and cost his folks a small fortune in civil suits, why would a leopard change its spots ?? No......I think they had a plan in place for when little Chucky blew his ride.


He's lucky he didn't have my parents, they'd turn me in for acting like a total creep and ruining their name, and then they'd take the reward money and go on a cruise while I was standing trial. They wouldn't pitch in a nickle for a defense attorney either.

Hey are we related? We had the same parents!

 

[faw720]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articl...nger-in-the-affluenza-kid-s-deadly-crash.html

Here is a first hand account from a teen who was in the crash. It seems Ethan started the party by firing a Roman candle at another kid.

This article also contains comments of one of the mothers of a teen who was a passenger. I suppose wealth is a relative thing, but she portrays Burleson as a town of wealth & her hometown, Keller, as less wealthy. Respectfully, I do not agree with her. Both towns have affluent homes & other homes that are not so affluent. Her comments about the scene at the hospital are quite interesting.

 

[JeannaT]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articl...nger-in-the-affluenza-kid-s-deadly-crash.html

Here is a first hand account from a teen who was in the crash. It seems Ethan started the party by firing a Roman candle at another kid.

This article also contains comments of one of the mothers of a teen who was a passenger. I suppose wealth is a relative thing, but she portrays Burleson as a town of wealth & her hometown, Keller, as less wealthy. Respectfully, I do not agree with her. Both towns have affluent homes & other homes that are not so affluent. Her comments about the scene at the hospital are quite interesting.

I find Goodsell patently offensive. "When my son is out, I leave my phone on". Like, hello mother of the year. Other mothers know where their kids are, (or at least think they do, by checking) and they wait up for their 15 year olds to come home. I have no sympathy for the teens who were also involved, and uninjured. I have great sympathy for the one who is now paralyzed, but none for those who were also involved in the beer theft from Walmart, the frequent drinking and partying, and then getting into his truck knowing this boy was blind drunk. Where is the reality? Where is the mother of the girl who needed tampons who should publicly apologize for her daughter not having the sense to call Mom or a friend or an older sister, etc? Where are the apologies from the other guilty parties - the other kids and their parents - rather than everyone acting like only Ethan and the Couch family is at fault?

 

[iluvmua]

I hope they crossed state lines. More charges for him

 

[faw720]

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/comm...en-and-mom-both-helps-hurts-search-effort.ece

Wealth both helps & hurts search efforts for Tonya & Ethan Couch.