Ethan Couch, the young man who was convicted and sentenced to probation after killing four people and injuring two others in a June 2013 DUI accident near Fort Worth, Texas, was arrested January 2, 2020, for violating the terms of his probation. This may be the second time Couch has possibly violated his probation.

Original Case

In June 2013, Couch (who was 16 at the time) drove his truck into a crowd of people who had stopped to help a disabled vehicle. He was found guilty of four counts of involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutors had pushed for a 20-year prison term, but after a psychologist testified that Couch suffered from “affluenza,” a juvenile court judge sentenced him to just ten years of probation.

“Affluenza” is a term to describe someone who is the product of wealthy, privileged parents who never set limits for their child, leaving the child unable to know the difference between right and wrong. The psychologist had testified that irresponsible parenting had enabled the accident. Couch's probation outraged the families of the victims and anti-drunk-driving advocates.

First Probation Violation

Couch made headlines again when he attended a party in 2015 where alcohol was served, which violated the terms of his probation. He and his mother fled to Mexico so he could avoid punishment, but they were extradited back to the United States. He was then sentenced to 720 days in jail, 180 days for each victim in the accident.

Couch was released from jail in April 2018.

Current Probation Violation

According to Tarrant County District Attorney Sharen Wilson, Couch, now 22, recently had a “weak positive” THC result on a drug patch. Even probation officials said they “did not have confidence in the result.” But even so, Couch was jailed for one day for possibly violating his probation. Probation officials have not determined whether the “weak positive” result was caused by legal CBD oil or actual marijuana so they will perform additional testing.

Couch's attorneys released a statement, saying,

We are optimistic the additional testing will verify Ethan has not knowingly and voluntarily used alcohol, THC, or any other prohibited substance since being released from custody more than 20 months ago. Ethan is committed to his sobriety and to remaining with all the terms and conditions imposed by the Court.

Sigal Law Group

Hiring an experienced attorney right away if you have been charged with a crime is imperative. First, your attorney will work to get any charges against you dropped or at least reduced. Second, if you are on probation and then accused of violating your terms because you used perfectly legal CBD oil, your attorney will fight to get the accusations dismissed. Call the Sigal Law Group at 818-325-0570 or fill out our contact form today.