KFOR.com:
A Texas judge on Friday recommended that “affluenza” teenager Ethan Couch‘s probation for a 2013 fatal drunken-driving crash be transferred from juvenile court to adult court – a long-expected move that prosecutors said could see him serve more jail time.RELATED: Mother of teen paralyzed by Ethan Couch speaks out: ‘We’ve been in hell’
At its core, the decision in Tarrant County juvenile court should ensure that Couch’s eight remaining years of probation won’t evaporate when he turns 19 in April.
But, Couch, already jailed after he and his mother were arrested in Mexico in December on suspicion of trying to avoid a probation hearing, should serve a minimum 120 days extra days behind bars, prosecutors said.
That’s not punishment for the Mexico arrest but a provision of state law for certain young probationers moving to the adult system, prosecutors said.
“We have been waiting for this day for the last two years, and we’re very pleased with the court’s ruling,” said Tarrant County Prosecutor Riley Shaw on Friday.
The case of Couch, convicted of manslaughter in the deaths of four people in a drunken-driving crash in 2013 when he was 16, made national news when a judge sentenced him to 10 years of probation instead of jail time.
During the trial, his lawyers cited the now notorious “affluenza” defense, suggesting he was too rich and spoiled to understand the consequences of his actions.
On Friday, Couch, wearing a red jail jumpsuit, said little as Judge Timothy Menikos recommended that an adult court take over the supervision of his probation when he turns 19 on April 11.
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