'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
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Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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