[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/defense-of-affluenza-is-discussed-in-case-of-texas-teen-who-received-probation-for-dwi-wreck-that-killed-four\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/defense-of-affluenza-is-discussed-in-case-of-texas-teen-who-received-probation-for-dwi-wreck-that-killed-four\/","headline":"Defense of \u201cAffluenza\u201d is Discussed in Case of Texas Teen Who Received Probation for DWI Wreck that Killed Four","name":"Defense of \u201cAffluenza\u201d is Discussed in Case of Texas Teen Who Received Probation for DWI Wreck that Killed Four","description":"A high profile drunken driving case has made national headlines in Texas after a teen driver who killed four pedestrians while driving under the influence of alcohol, avoided jail time. The trial of 16-year-old Ethan Couch attracted a massive level of media attention after a psychologist argued he was suffering from \u201cAffluenza,\u201d a condition in...","datePublished":"2013-12-18","dateModified":"2023-06-08","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/author\/broden-mickelsen\/#Person","name":"Mick Mickelsen","url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/author\/broden-mickelsen\/","identifier":16,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/30690d9f76c45bf5d61434169e78762d673b1ac9b949489cf69f1c78d567fc27?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/30690d9f76c45bf5d61434169e78762d673b1ac9b949489cf69f1c78d567fc27?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Broden, Mickelsen LLP","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Broden-and-Mickelsen-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Broden-and-Mickelsen-Logo.png","width":378,"height":77}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/lawyer-team-about-us.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/lawyer-team-about-us.jpg","width":806,"height":668},"url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/defense-of-affluenza-is-discussed-in-case-of-texas-teen-who-received-probation-for-dwi-wreck-that-killed-four\/","about":["Criminal Defense","Manslaughter","News"],"wordCount":487,"articleBody":"A high profile drunken driving case has made national headlines in Texas after a teen driver who killed four pedestrians while driving under the influence of alcohol, avoided jail time.The trial of 16-year-old Ethan Couch attracted a massive level of media attention after a psychologist argued he was suffering from \u201cAffluenza,\u201d a condition in which children from rich families behave irresponsibly due to a sense of entitlement.Affluenza is not a recognized diagnosis nor is it widely used as a form of criminal defense. However, the judge in the case sparked controversy by sentencing Couch to 10 years of probation after hearing from a psychologist.Couch pleaded guilty to four counts of intoxication manslaughter and two counts of intoxication assault causing serious bodily injury.Investigators said Couch was driving a pickup truck between 68 and 70 miles-per-hour in a 40 mph zone in the Fort Worth area. The four people who died were standing on the side of the road outside their vehicles. Nine others were hurt.Before the sentencing, Dick G. Miller, a psychologist called by the defense, testified that the teen\u2019s life could be salvaged with one to two years\u2019 treatment and no contact with his parents.Miller explained Couch\u2019s parents gave him \u201cfreedoms no young person should have.\u201d He called the teen a product of \u201caffluenza,\u201d a condition whereby his family felt that wealth bought privilege and there was no rational link between his behavior and its consequences.In a subsequent story Associated Press quoted experts who said \u201caffluenza,\u201d should not be a criminal defense.The article explained the term was popularized in the late 1990s by Jessie O\u2019Neill when she wrote the book \u201cThe Golden Ghetto: The Psychology of Affluence.\u201dDr. Gary Buffone, a Jacksonville, Fla., psychologist said the term had subsequently been used to describe a condition in which children \u2014 usually from richer families \u2014 have a sense of entitlement, are irresponsible, make excuses fort their poor behavior, and sometimes \u201cdabble in drugs and alcohol.\u201d He said the term was never intended to be used as a defense in a criminal trial or to justify such behavior.Miller has said the boy grew up in a house where the parents were preoccupied with arguments that led to a divorce, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.AP also spoke to Dr. Suniya Luthar, a psychologist who specializes on the effect of affluence on suburban communities. She said her research at Columbia University in New York demonstrates that 20 percent of upper middle-class adolescents believe their parents \u201cwould help them get out of a sticky situation at school, such as being caught for the third time on campus with a bottle of vodka.\u201dThe case illustrates how unusual defenses are occasionally introduced to criminal proceedings and can even have an impact on DWI and manslaughter cases in which the defendant has admitted the charges. We zealously represent Texas defendants who are charged with DWI and intoxication manslaughter."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Defense of \u201cAffluenza\u201d is Discussed in Case of Texas Teen Who Received Probation for DWI Wreck that Killed Four","item":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/defense-of-affluenza-is-discussed-in-case-of-texas-teen-who-received-probation-for-dwi-wreck-that-killed-four\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]