teen who killed 4 people on the run with his Mum

Police have launched a manhunt for a wealthy
Texas teenager described as suffering from
“affluenza,” after he apparently violated the terms
of his probation for causing a deadly drunk-
driving accident in 2013.
Ethan Couch was 16 when he crashed his pickup
truck into a group of pedestrians and another
vehicle, leaving four dead and several seriously
injured. He had a blood-alcohol level of nearly
three times the legal limit.
The son of millionaire parents, Couch made
headlines during his trial when a psychologist
testifying on his behalf claimed he suffered from
“affluenza” — a neologism coined from affluence
and influenza, implying that financial privilege
made him unable to understand the consequences
of his actions.
The manhunt began after the now 18-year-old
missed a mandatory meeting with his probation
officer last week.
The teen was sentenced to 10 years probation for
intoxication manslaughter for the 2013 incident.
A psychologist who testified on the youth's behalf
at his trial claimed his condition of "affluenza"
shielded him from responsibility for his actions
but is not recognized as a diagnosis by the
American Psychiatric Association.
Grisham said sheriff's deputies tried to search the
home he shared with his mother and found the
place cleaned out except for a pinball machine.
"This is a family that knows how to game
the system and has done so from the start,"
said Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson.
The FBI and US Marshals Service, which
specialises in chasing fugitives, joined the search
after authorities put Couch on the country’s most
wanted list.
“You can run, but you’re always going to be
looking over your shoulder,” Tarrant County
Sheriff Dee Anderson told CNN on Thursday.
“We’re not going to give up. We’re going to
come after you. We’re going to find you,
wherever you are,” he added.
Prosecutors had sought 20 years in prison for
Couch, but judges handed him a surprise
sentence of mental-health treatment and a
decade of probation.
The leniency shocked many Americans, especially
because the teen expressed no remorse and spent
not even a night behind bars.
The controversy reignited this month after the
emergence of a video showing Couch at a party
taking part in a drinking game, which violated the
terms of his probation.
Police showed up at his home to find it empty
with no forwarding address.
The teenager’s flight, apparently with his mother,
has prompted outrage across the country.
“This is egregious. ‘Affluenza’ aside, Ethan
Couch appears to show blatant disregard for
the law, and he must be held accountable,”
said Colleen Sheehey-Church, president of
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), in a
statement.
Sheriff Anderson admitted the young man had
slipped through the net.
“He got a big jump on us because he was
gone before any of us knew that he was
missing,” he said. “This is a family that
knows how to game the system and has
done so from the start,” he added, saying
Couch may have fled the country.