Back in 2013, there was big news about something called the “affluenza” defense. This defense was used when a sixteen year old boy was convicted of drunk driving and causing an accident that killed four people. He was sentenced to 10 years probation for the offense.
Late last year, there was news that he had possibly been seen in a Twitter picture with other teens, drinking alcohol at a party. This would have been a violation of his probation. After this, he and his mom disappeared in December, missing his probation meeting for that month.
Tonya Couch, the mother of the “affluenze” teen Ethan Couch, was released on bond last Tuesday. In order to secure her release, her bond needed to be lowered from $1 million to $75,000. The woman had been extradited to the United States from Mexico after allegedly helping her son flee there.
There were conditions that came with Tonya Couch’s release. State District Judge Wayne Salvant ordered Couch to be tracked with an ankle monitor. She will have to reside with her other son, Ethan’s half-brother, Steven McWilliams. McWilliams reportedly testified that his mother’s bank statement read “- 99 billion.”
Couch will only be allowed to leave the home for doctor’s and lawyer’s appointments. She will also be required to take routine drug and urine tests.
Couch is charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon. Her defense team is building a case that Mrs. Couch is not fit to stand trial. Tarrant County Magistrate Judge issued a mental exam for Mrs. Couch, believing that she may have a “mental illness or is a person with mental retardation.”
Couch will have to reimburse the Tarrant County Police Department the money they spent bringing her from Los Angeles to Texas. She will also have to pay a portion of her monitoring costs.
Ethan Couch is still in custody in Mexico after a judge issued a temporary stay.
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