“Affluenza teen” Ethan Couch, infamous for using a privileged lifestyle to defend a 2013 drunk driving accident, will probably stay in jail until April. He’s likely waiving his right to all detention hearings in an attempt to remain jail-free once his adult probation starts.
‘Affluenza’ teen Ethan Couch likely to stay jailed until April birthday https://t.co/P7GBLhzoZg pic.twitter.com/3YhIalEo8H
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) March 3, 2016
The Dallas Morning News reports that on Friday, Couch, 18, waived his rights to a bail hearing, also known as a detention hearing, which gives juveniles the right to request bail while awaiting sentencing. Detention hearings take place every 10 days in Texas for minors, but it all likelihood, Couch intends to waive all hearings and stay in jail until his birthday on April 11.
According to Tarrant County district attorney spokeswoman Samantha Jordan, the “affluenza teen” is expected to have a hearing next week which outlines the details of his adult probation. Although time served now isn’t allowed for transfer over to his adult sentence, the judge overseeing Couch’s case will probably take the teen’s time served into account during his hearing. If not, Couch could face another 120 days in jail.
Denton attorney Seth Fuller, who isn’t involved in the case, surmised that Couch’s lawyers are placing bets on the judge forgoing a jail sentence if the teen remains incarcerated until his sentencing.
“They’re betting the judge won’t put him in jail at the beginning of probation because of the time he’s already served.”
Dallas-based attorney Peter Schulte, also uninvolved in the case, agrees with Fuller. Schulte said that the chance of Couch actually serving jail time once his adult probation starts is highly unlikely, but a lot will depend on his behavior.
“I don’t see that happening since he’s been in jail for so long. I think it all kind of depends on how he behaves in juvenile lockup.”
Couch was sent to a maximum-security adult jail last month, where he spends most of time in solitary confinement. According to Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson, it’s for the teen’s own protection, since his case is high-profile.
“With a notorious, high-profile inmate, you have to worry about someone else trying to hurt him.”
However, should Couch violate his adult probation, he could face up to 10 years in prison for each person he killed. Couch, who gained notoriety for getting probation and therapy after a drunk driving incident that killed several people and injured numerous others, returned to headlines in December, 2015, after fleeing the country with his mother. Under his 10-year-probation sentence, Couch was not allowed to leave the country, yet heleft for Mexico after allegedly violating his probation by drinking alcohol.
‘ #affluenza ‘ Teen’s Mom #Tonya #Couch #Posts #Bond #Teens https://t.co/APwxyDbsKF pic.twitter.com/D8jEbNXzkY
— NewsVideos (@newsinvideos) March 1, 2016
While the teen awaits his adult probation hearing, his mother Tonya Couch, 48, remains on house arrest for taking her son to Mexico, in an alleged attempt to help Ethan evade punishment. She now faces a felony charge of hindering the apprehension of a felon. If convicted, she could face anywhere from two to 10 years in prison.
Sheriff: Ethan Couch a ‘model prisoner’ in adult jail https://t.co/OlwAUfNx8K #KHOU #Texas pic.twitter.com/iJqknSSP9e
— KHOU 11 News Houston (@KHOU) February 10, 2016
Meanwhile, Anderson indicates that Ethan Couch is being a model citizen while locked inside the Lon Evans Corrections facility. The 18-year-old, according to Anderson, spends his time in a small cell, equipped with a steel sink and toilet, and a flimsy twin-sized mattress that sits atop a white, concrete bench.
“This is what we call an isolation cell. This gives us the ability — if we need to — to leave a person in here 24 hours a day. We don’t have to move them at all.”
Couch doesn’t even leave his cell for food; it’s passed through a chute that’s built into the jail cell’s steel door. In fact, inmates rarely, if ever, interact with each other at Lon Evans. The lonely setting, according to Anderson, gives Ethan Couch time to think about his actions and hopefully realize the impact of his actions.
[Photo by the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department]
