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

[LolaMoon08]

I really hope he was being seen by his probation officer on a regular basis. This wasn't a minor crime... he killed FOUR people. I will be livid if it comes out that there was not much contact with the probation officer. I just watched the 20/20 show (I had never seen it) and didn't realize he had a prior incident with the police that involved alcohol/driving and a half naked 14-year-old in his car. When I heard the mother say he had not only not finished his court ordered community service, but that he did NONE of it. Is there any explanation as to why he was not hauled back to jail for non-compliance?

This case just makes my blood boil. The parents probably have money stashed in Grand Cayman that cannot be traced. I would not be against them freezing all the known accounts though. Might force them to make a mistake.

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

I just re-watched the 20/20 episode....thank u Sonya for posting that for us!

I now remember how furious I was the first time I saw it. Now I am absolutely outraged at all the pain & suffering this jacka$$ has caused for so many. Can u imagine how the families of EC's victims must feel now?

I know I am being blunt, but as i viewed this video again I kept thinking to myself "a$$holes breed a$$holes".

No wonder the judge retired after this case. Don't even get me started on her.

 

[Everyday Grace]

Federal agencies Thursday formally joined the search for Ethan Couch, the Tarrant County teenager who killed four people in a 2013 drunken-driving crash.

Tarranty County Sheriff Dee Anderson tweeted about 3 p.m. Thursday that he had just learned that the U.S. Marshal’s Service and the FBI are participating in the search.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/crime/article50341175.html#storylink=cpy

Sheriff Anderson said at present no warrant has been issued for the mother, but charges will be filed if it is determined that she has aided the brat in avoiding detention.

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

We can only hope!

 

[Port80]

#EthanCouch

 

[KaaBoom]

I hope they throw his butt in prison. He STILL is proving he does not give a rat's behind about anything.

This needs to b e off the street before he kills/ injures anymore people.

jmo

If they didn’t send him to prison for killing four people, I think it is highly unlikely they will send him to prison for a probation violation.

He got off once, he will get off again. Thats the way the American justice system works.

 

[KaaBoom]

When Probation Is Violated -- What Happens Next?

Warning or Request to Appear in Court

There is no set rule as to what happens immediately after a probation violation is reported. Probation officers have broad discretion to issue a warning, or require you to appear in court for a probation violation hearing. In deciding, a probation officer may consider the severity and type of condition violated, past probation violations or warnings, and other considerations. If you are requested to appear in court, the probation officer will request some form of penalty, which may potentially include jail time.

Determination of Probation Violation

During a probation hearing, a sentencing judge will hear your case to consider whether you violated any terms or conditions of your probation. The prosecuting attorney will need to prove a violation occurred by a "preponderance of the evidence" standard, or by a likelihood of more than 50 percent. Factors a judge might consider include the nature, type, and seriousness of the violation claimed, as well as a history of prior probation violations and other aggregating or mitigating circumstances.

Sentencing

If you are found guilty of probation violation, sentencing will occur shortly after the probation hearing, at which time the court may extend your probation, impose additional probation terms, order you serve a brief time in jail, or revoke your probation altogether and require you to serve out any remaining time of your original sentence in prison. Factors a judge may consider in determining your sentence may include the nature and manner of the offense and whether the offender was a "first-time" or "repeat" offender, among other considerations.

Probation Violation

 

[LillyP]

This is just unreal how much this whole family has gotten away with over the years. The parents never got in trouble for letting him drive himself to school at 13?? Or letting him live in his own house by himself at 16??

It really sickens me to learn that in 2004, judge Jean Boyd sentenced a sixteen-year-old black male from a poor family to 20 years imprisonment for killing one person while driving drunk.
Yet she gives spoiled rotten Ethan only probation for killing 4 people?? Granted in the 2004 case that teen was also driving a stolen truck but still, what a difference in the sentencing!

If I was a member of one of Ethan's victims family, I would be very happy right about now. They may finally see some real justice happen when he is caught. He is now an adult fugitive on the run so I think he will finally go to prison, hopefully for a very long time. I think this brat is in for a very rude awakening soon.

 

[LillyP]

If they didn’t send him to prison for killing four people, I think it is highly unlikely they will send him to prison for a probation violation.

He got off once, he will get off again. Thats the way the American justice system works.

Isn't it different now though that he decided to make a run for it? If he was only caught violating his probation by being at that beer pong party, I can see him maybe getting off again. But he decided to make a run for it so is it really still likely that nothing will happen to him?! He's made a run for it as an adult now that he is 18.

 

[deoneta]

Per Fox News, his mom is also missing. There is speculation that the mother and son may have left the country.

 

[KaaBoom]

Isn't it different now though that he decided to make a run for it? If he was only caught violating his probation by being at that beer pong party, I can see him maybe getting off again. But he decided to make a run for it so is it really still likely that nothing will happen to him?! He's made a run for it as an adult now that he is 18.

The family has already proven that they have enough money to thumb their nose at the justice system. I don’t see where anything that has changed.

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

The Worst Parents Ever

http://www.dmagazine.com/publicatio...a-the-worst-parents-ever-ethan-couch?single=1

 

[Sonya610]

I'm watching this airing on Nancy Grace right now.
They said the dad is worth millions and makes around 15 million dollars per year.

Then they could have set up bank accounts and purchased a house in a country with no extradition treaty.

The news article I read said they think they have fled the U.S.

 

[LillyP]

Then they could have set up bank accounts and purchased a house in a country with no extradition treaty.

The news article I read said they think they have fled the U.S.

Yes on Nancy Grace yesterday she said she thought him and his mom probably left the country in a private jet. She even had on a guest who was the owner of a private jet company to ask him how easy it would be to get on a private jet and leave the country without showing an id or passport. She said what would your company do if two well dressed individuals showed up looking nice with loads of Louis Vuitton luggage and tons of money - would you really think these were criminals on the run? The answer was that yes it would be extremely easy to take a private jet and escape the country with no id or passport required.... of course as long as you have the money to do so.

Also - apparently the dad has no idea where they are and has not spoken to either one of them.

I wish I could find a video of the Nancy Grace segment I watched last night where they were discussing all this but I can not find one. Did anyone else see it?

 

[SCHMAE]

I think this case has been mis-represented by the media and the defense lawyers. It's not like these people are the Kennedys or something. Both parents have criminal records, they're both jerks, and it's not like they have a LOT of money. They have an attitude that they're above the law, and they have a little money, and a spoiled brat kid who was given access to a car and has never felt remorse for all those deaths, nor have his parents.

I think they have a lot LESS money now than they did before they began trying to keep Ethan out of jail. In the 20/20 episode on the last page, it says they spend 100k for a ' rehab' resort place he went to immediately after the crash. I guess they thought that would keep him out of trouble to say he was in rehab ? Also, note to parents, that 100k rehab did not rehab your boy since he's still partying last month with his friends.

 

[LillyP]

The family has already proven that they have enough money to thumb their nose at the justice system. I don’t see where anything that has changed.

Maybe but the thing that has me really confused is why they ran then? If him and his mom thought they were so above the law and thought Ethan could get off yet again then why run?

I wonder if he has done other things in the meantime that they are scared of anyone finding out??

It just doesn't make sense to me why they would take such a huge risk and go on the run simply because Ethan was caught at a beer pong party violating his probation. That's not a major crime so why turn something so minor as that into something major by going on the run and becoming a wanted adult fugitive??

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

'You will always be looking over your shoulder': Sheriff fires warning to 'affluenza' teen on the run with his mom after appearing to violate his probation by drinking - as FBI joins the hunt

Ethan Couch, 18, killed four people in a DUI smash in 2013 but dodged jail

Lawyers convinced court he is so privileged he can't take responsibility

Got probation instead - but video seems to show him breaching terms

After it emerged, Couch and mother fled home in Tarrant County, Texas

Sheriff Dee Anderson warned Couch he will not escape

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...on-drinking-FBI-joins-hunt.html#ixzz3ugFbfWe1

 

[JeannaT]

The Worst Parents Ever

http://www.dmagazine.com/publicatio...a-the-worst-parents-ever-ethan-couch?single=1

Thank you. That was a very interesting read, and left me more empathetic with Ethan himself. He does seem affected by the crash, and his responsibility. His parents, I still maintain, are not 'rich'. These are suburbanites, although the parents don't act like it - this tragedy and level of neglect could have happened in a trailer park or section 8 housing. After being in rehab for a broken neck, Ethan was pulled out early because his dad was "running out of money" after paying the $90K bill. That's not wealth - this dad is a construction business owner who happens to run a successful business, and his mother was a high school drop out who had 2 kids and no partner at 18. And yes, trucks full of teenagers are careening about on weekends, with the drivers drunk and stoned. Usually, they don't cause so very much damage. Prayers for all the victims in this tragic case.

 

[JeannaT]

Maybe but the thing that has me really confused is why they ran then? If him and his mom thought they were so above the law and thought Ethan could get off yet again then why run?

I wonder if he has done other things in the meantime that they are scared of anyone finding out??

It just doesn't make sense to me why they would take such a huge risk and go on the run simply because Ethan was caught at a beer pong party violating his probation. That's not a major crime so why turn something so minor as that into something major by going on the run and becoming a wanted adult fugitive??

They aren't above the law, and they weren't when he was sentenced to probation until he was 26, which as I understand it is not an unusual punishment for a juvenile. His mother knows - and she's right - that he won't get way with violation of probation - that's what probation is about. It gives teen offenders the chance to learn the lesson and get their lives back on track. They fled because of what she knows - after that video was published, Ethan is headed for prison.

 

[faw720]

Maybe but the thing that has me really confused is why they ran then? If him and his mom thought they were so above the law and thought Ethan could get off yet again then why run?

I wonder if he has done other things in the meantime that they are scared of anyone finding out??

It just doesn't make sense to me why they would take such a huge risk and go on the run simply because Ethan was caught at a beer pong party violating his probation. That's not a major crime so why turn something so minor as that into something major by going on the run and becoming a wanted adult fugitive??

JMO, but I think they ran because a couple of weeks ago it was published that a motion was going to be filed before a new judge to have Ethan serve the remainder of his probation as an adult once he reached his 19th birthday in Feb. 2016. That possibility along with the recent video surfacing of him at a beer pong party probably spooked them into running. Now that U.S. Marshals & FBI are on his trail, hopefully he & his parents will finally be held responsible.