Following an assessment, psychologists concluded that the teenager was suffering from ‘affluenza,’ a condition that supposedly manifested itself following a privileged upbringing.
Ethan was on trial for a drink driving incident that led to a fatal car crash, leaving four people dead.
It was reported that Couch’s parents gave him ‘freedoms no young person should have.’
It was alleged that the teenager was brought up with no knowledge of the link beween his behaviour and consequences, which was then blamed on his family’s wealth.
Rather than a jail sentence, Ethan was given 10 years probation and recommended to enter a rehab facility to overcome his ‘affluenza' with psychologists describing Ethan as ‘emotionally flat’ due to his privileged upbringing.
Eric Boyles’ wife and daughter were lost in the accident. He said on the outcome: ‘Ultimately today, I felt that money did prevail. If he had been any other youth, I feel like the circumstances would have been different.’