Judge gives ‘affluenza teen’ Couch four 180-day jail sentences

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram

April 13, 2016 10:50 AM

Judge gives ‘affluenza teen’ Couch four 180-day jail sentences

Ethan Couch has first court appearance as adult

Judge orders “assessments”

Judge to reconvene to possibly reconsider sentence in two weeks

By Ryan Osborne
[e-mail]

FORT WORTH —

Ethan Couch, who killed four people in a drunken driving crash in southern Tarrant County in 2013, was given four consecutive 180-day jail sentences by a judge Wednesday.

“You're not getting out of jail today," Judge Wayne Salvant told Couch at his first court appearance as an adult. Couch turned 19 Monday.

Salvant says he'll reconvene with attorneys in two weeks to possibly reconsider the decision.

Couch has been in Tarrant County Jail’s maximum-security facility since Feb. 5, when he was returned to the U.S. after fleeing to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/fort-worth/article71554987.html

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Judge orders Texas 'affluenza' teen to nearly 2 years' jail

Nomaan Merchant, Associated Press

Updated 12:18 pm, Wednesday, April 13, 2016

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — The Texas teenager who used an "affluenza" defense in a fatal drunken-driving wreck must serve nearly two years in jail, a judge ordered Wednesday.

Ethan Couch, who turned 19 Monday, was making his first appearance in adult court.

Initially, state District Judge Wayne Salvant said he would not immediately rule on how much longer Couch would spend in Tarrant County jail. But he reconsidered his ruling after hearing an argument from prosecutors that Couch should be sentenced not to a maximum of 120 days in jail, but for 180 days for each of four counts of intoxication manslaughter under a separate part of Texas code.

The terms will be served consecutively. It was not clear if that would include the time Couch has already spent in jail.

[leftynyc]

1. 2 years for murdering four people

Not nearly enough.

[lark]

4. Reconsideration in this case should be a huge increase in days spent in jail.

The original non-sentencing was ridiculous in every way and he's proven to be a menace and won't follow rules either - lock him up for a looong time.

[AtheistCrusader]

5. It's not enough, but it's better than what it was.

The wheels of justice grind slow.

Sucks, but that's the reality.

[Kensan]

6. If only the police had found some pot in his car...

then we'd see him do some real time. Justice denied again.

[hamsterjill]

9. AND breaking the requirements of his suspended sentence the first time.

What else does this asswipe need to do to prove he needs to be in jail? No, 2 years is not nearly enough.

[MADem]

11. A relative of mine was killed in similar fashion.

The perp did less than 90 days in jail. He did get some hella probation, though--some of the most onerous on the books to date.

One of my goals in life is to change the law re: vehicular homicide in MA. Penalties for leadfoots and drunks need to be much greater.

[elljay]

18. Agreed

I checked to see what the original sentences were. A probation violation does not add to the statutory maximum for an offense. In other words, if the max sentence one can receive is 1 year and the person is sentenced to 6 months in jail and then probation, he can only receive the remaining 6 months for probation violations. Judges will often not sentence for the full term on a first probation violation because they want to have some leverage in case there is a second. In this case, Couch was sentenced to no jail time and 10 years probation. The judge has just used up two of those 10 years. Personally, I would have given at least 5 and held back the rest for a subsequent violation. Certainly 2 years is light considering how he skated on the underlying crimes.

[George II]

2. Good to see, but still not enough. Any word about his mother?

[closeupready]

3. Sounds fair.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017355188

Meanwhile, steal a pizza in California, and go to jail for life. Our justice system is so fair.

[beastie boy]

7. If this were a black kid in Michigan, he would have been shot 50 times

at close range before he had a chance to exit the car...

[OnlinePoker]

8. Why county jail and not prison?

His sentence is almost 2 years. I read jail is for less than a year.

[MADem]

12. County in MA is for < 2 years. Also, each "sentence" is six months. nt

[Thor_MN]

20. Or people who would not survive prison.

Much as I don't like the thought of him getting any special treatment, putting him in prison would be painting a target on his back.

[Javaman]

10. and the slapping of the wrist continues. nt

[Contrary1]

13. Not to worry...

The little asshat will get more time added, as he learns that he can't disregard prison rules.

[left-of-center2012]

14. Locally, a 20 year old got 3 years

A high profile case here involved a 20 year old who drove drunk, crashed his car, killed his passenger and an unborn child.
He got three years in the state pen.

Seems too light to me, but his brother told me the young guy was getting raped in prison almost daily.

Sad all around.

[Duppers]

16. This is crap when folks are still serving more time on

Simple weed charges.

[Warpy]

17. Too bad it's jail. Prison would be better, there are AA meetings in prison

but I suppose hizzoner realizes this little putz would be a prime target of sexual predators in the joint.

Shit still just got real for this little punk. I hope he learns from it but I doubt he will.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

19. This case is significant because the court recognized morality is absent in the rich.

[4bernie28]

21. come on

Come on, judicial system, where is the justice in all this?

[question everything]

22. 'Affluenza' teen's rehab cost taxpayers nearly $200,000 after wealthy parents

'financially unable to pay'

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/affluenza-teen-parents-paid-fraction-200k-rehab-bill-article-1.2598964

[mahatmakanejeeves]

23. Same story, from the local paper

April 12, 2016 12:47 PM

Rehab costs for ‘affluenza’ teen Ethan Couch total about $200,000

Highlights
New documents available this week

Couch case transferred to adult court Monday

In 2014 and 2015, he spent time at facilities in Vernon and Amarillo

By Ryan Osborne
[e-mail]
817-390-7684
@RyanOsborneFWST

FORT WORTH —

Before he violated his probation and fled to Mexico, Ethan Couch received about $200,000 in “residential care and support” for more than a year, with the state picking up most of the tab, according to costs outlined in court documents made available this week.

Couch’s case was transferred to the adult court system Monday, when he turned 19. He became known as the “affluenza” teen after a witness used the term during trial to describe the consequence-free life that prosecutors said Couch led as a result of having wealthy parents. ... As a 16-year-old in 2013, he killed four people in a DWI crash and was sentenced to 10 years’ probation.

Judge Jean Boyd also ordered Couch to undergo rehabilitation at the North Texas State Hospital in Vernon, where his daily cost was $673, or about $20,000 a month, according to case documents. ... Couch’s parents, Fred and Tonya Couch, were found to be “financially unable to pay” for the full cost of their son’s stay, according to the documents. They were ordered to pay a monthly cost of $1,170 from February 2014 through the end of Couch’s stay in Vernon, the documents say.

Couch left the Vernon facility in November 2014. He was then placed in The Next Step Program in Amarillo at a daily cost of $103.08, according to case documents. ... Couch’s parents were ordered by the court to pay for the full cost of Couch’s stay in Amarillo through February 2015, totaling about $11,000.