'Affluenza' teen Ethan Couch booked into Texas juvenile detention center


Ethan Couch, the so-called "affluenza" teen who was sentenced to 10 years probation in 2013 after killing four people and injuring several others in a drunken driving crash, was booked into a Texas juvenile detention center Thursday after being extradited from Mexico.
Authorities say the 18-year-old and his mother fled Texas for Mexico in early December after prosecutors began an investigation into whether he violated his probation by allegedly appearing in a video showing people with alcohol. His probation prohibits him from drinking and from leaving Tarrant County, Texas. Couch and his mother were detained in Mexico in late December. Couch is scheduled to appear in court on Friday for a hearing on whether he will be moved to an adult jail. If he is transferred out of the juvenile system, he could spend 120 days in jail and finish the rest of his probation as part of an adult sentence, The Associated Press reports.
During Couch's origional trial, a defense witness said he suffered from "affluenza," because his wealthy parents never set any boundaries for him. Upon Couch's return to Tarrant County, Sheriff Dee Anderson said: "We've reached a great milestone. This is a day we've looked forward to, when we have them both here and back under the jurisdiction here. We're hoping that the day comes for justice for the families and four victims that were killed." Catherine Garcia
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Confessions of a Brain Surgeon: an 'exceptional' documentary
The Week Recommends Retired neurosurgeon Henry Marsh reflects on his pioneering work with exquisitely 'raw honesty'
-
A new subtype of diabetes was found and it may require different treatment
Under the radar It is prevalent in Black Africans and Americans
-
Sudoku medium: August 20, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
The countries around the world without jury trials
The Explainer Legal systems in much of continental Europe and Asia do not rely on randomly selected members of the public
-
The Supreme Court case that could forge a new path to sue the FBI
The Explainer The case arose after the FBI admitted to raiding the wrong house in 2017
-
ABC News to pay $15M in Trump defamation suit
Speed Read The lawsuit stemmed from George Stephanopoulos' on-air assertion that Trump was found liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll
-
Judge blocks Louisiana 10 Commandments law
Speed Read U.S. District Judge John deGravelles ruled that a law ordering schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms was unconstitutional
-
Swearing in the UK: a colourful history
In The Spotlight Thanet council's bad language ban is the latest chapter in a saga of obscenity
-
ATF finalizes rule to close 'gun show loophole'
Speed Read Biden moves to expand background checks for gun buyers
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security law
Speed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitution
speed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right