Ethan Couch and his mother Tonya have been detained in Mexico after video of the teenager that showed a suspected probation violation surfaced and apparently prompted the two to flee the country. They were detained in the popular resort town of Puerto Vallarta and are currently being held by Mexican authorities before they will likely be sent back to the United States. This case came to national prominence when the teenager’s lawyer successfully argued that his wealthy background and parents lack of boundary setting made him unable to understand the nature of his crime and resulted in 10 years probation even though he was driving drunk on stolen beer and attempted to flee the scene after killing four people and seriously injuring two others. No word yet on what additional penalties the teen will receive or if his mother will be charged for assisting him free the country. However, the national outrage has lead to calls for a stiff sentence to be imposed with many crying foul over the perceived disparate treatment the teen received in sentencing due, in no small part, to his parents wealth.
See, Texas ‘affluenza’ teen who killed four detained in Mexico after disappearance, The Guardian, December 28, 2015.
