Texas Sheriff To "Affluenza" Mom: This Is Jail, Not A Resort
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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Today the mother of "affluenza" teen Ethan Couch went before a Tarrant County judge to be arraigned. Tonya Couch was brought into Criminal District Court #2 to stand before Judge Wayne F. Salvant.
Couch is charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon. Friday's hearing took all of abut 10 minutes, during which Judge Salvant gave some of the details of the complaint filed and said it stated, in part, that Tonya Couch intended, "to hinder the arrest, detention, adjudication or disposition of a child, Ethan Couch."
According to the complaint, the Judge said the mother had taken the action after Ethan, "...had been adjudicated for having engaged in illegal conduct that violated a penal law of a grade of felony." Judge Salvant further said the court papers claimed Tonya Couch had been, "Providing him with means of avoiding arrest or affecting escape, by financing and transporting Ethan Couch and his flight from this jurisdiction and the court of the State of Texas."
Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson was at the hearing and actually spoke with Couch before the proceeding. Anderson said he did not talk to her about her son Ethan and only discussed her experience at the Tarrant County Jail.
Tonya Couch apparently commented about being held in a single cell and having limited contact with others. Sheriff Anderson said, "She expressed a slight bit of displeasure about her accommodations, and I explained to her that this was a jail, not a resort."
Anderson said the job of his staff was to make sure Couch was being housed in conditions that are the most secure and safe for her and staff at the facility.
Tonya Couch did not have official legal representation at Friday morning's hearing, because her attorney apparently got caught in traffic, so she did not enter a plea. But when asked about who would be representing her she said, "I've hired an attorney -- Stephanie Patton."
The Judge went on to detail her legal rights and gave her a Miranda warning. When he asked if she understood that any statement could and might be used against her in court she asked, "Is that starting now?" The Jude explained that she was just at her arrangement and that those statements mainly applied to statements to police, law enforcement or the press.
Couch's bond had already been set at $1 million. But Judge Salvant said, "You're lawyers filed a habeas corpus motion asking that the bond be reduced and I've set a hearing on this for Monday." The Judge also had some information for Couch if she is released from jail. "Whatever bond you make I'm gonna have certain restrictions. One of them is that you will have to wear an ankle monitor."
Judge Salvant also told Couch, "It's my understanding you have a passport, or a temporary passport, now I need that… to take that passport from you." But Couch claimed not to be able to comply, because her property was seized in Mexico and not transported with her to Los Angeles or to Tarrant County.
While the 48-year-old mother is finally back in North Texas, getting her here was anything but simple. After fleeing to Mexico and getting caught after a worldwide manhunt, Couch and her fugitive son tried to fight being deported back to the United States.
While Ethan remains in a detention center in Mexico, Tonya Couch waived extradition and was deported from Mexico and transported to Los Angeles on December 30.
Moving Tonya Couch from LA to North Texas turned out to be easier. She landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, surrounded by law enforcement officers, on Thursday. A motorcade then escorted her to the Tarrant County Jail.
Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson said having Tonya Couch back in Texas really isn't justice served since it cost the county considerable time and taxpayer money to get her back.
Despite everything Anderson said Tonya Couch has cooperated since being in their custody. "To say she was apologetic, I can't say that. But she was, cooperative. She wasn't angry. She wasn't short with me. She was overall, strangely appreciative of what had happened and the way she'd been treated."
While Tarrant County officials have stated again and again that Tonya Couch's intent was clear, attorney and former prosecutor Toby Shook said the state will have a lot to prove in court. "She left the country, it looks like, before there was any problem. And no warrant was issued by the time they made it out of Texas," Shook said before asking what he believes is the ultimate question, "Was there a law violation because of that?"
Tonya and her son spent nearly a month hiding out in Mexico and evading the law. Still in Mexico, the now 18-year-old Ethan is being kept in a facility with basic living conditions. Mexican authorities say he's under 24-hour surveillance, and sleeps in a room with four other people, on a thin foam mattress. While the facility has common showers, we're told the hygiene habits are not like ours here in the U.S.
Ethan and his mother left north Texas after video surfaced online that appeared to show Ethan Couch in violation of his probation. When the pair was found in Puerto Vallarta the teen's hair had been dyed jet black, as opposed to his normal blonde look.
Mexican immigration official say Ethan Couch's legal process there could last for several weeks or even months.
Ethan was 16-years-old when he was driving drunk, with a vehicle full of other young people, and slammed into a disabled SUV parked on the side of the road. The crash killed four people.
After being convicted of four counts of intoxication manslaughter, and two counts of intoxication assault causing serious bodily injury, Ethan was sentenced to therapy and 10 years probation.
Ethan Couch's lawyers had argued that the teen suffered from "affluenza" – an irresponsible attitude that was the result of his rich parents not setting any limits for him. The so-called condition is not a medically recognized diagnosis.
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