How a spoiled teen avoids jail time after killing 4 people
Man who lost wife, daughter in accident hoped for a different outcome
A Texas man whose wife and daughter died after they were hit by a 16-year-old drunk driver told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum Thursday he is angry the teen got probation in the case after claiming he suffers from “Affluenza.”
Eric Boyles lost his wife Hollie and his 21-year-old daughter Shelby in the June crash. They were two of the four people killed when Ethan Couch lost control of his vehicle and struck a group of pedestrians.
A juvenile court judge Couch to 10 years of probation after he confessed to intoxication manslaughter in the crash. His defense team had argued Couch suffered from “Affluenza,” a psychological malaise that affects young people who may come from families with money, and that caused his reckless behavior.
Boyles said on “The Kelly File” he was not even satisfied with the maximum sentence Couch could have received because he was charged as a juvenile, which was 20 years in prison. Couch would have been eligible for parole after two years.
“And while recognizing that that’s, you know, kind of the circumstances we were dealing with, I wasn’t really happy with those circumstances,” Boyles said. “You look at 180 years of future life taken from the four individuals; you look at Mr. Molina, who, you know is lying in his bed basically paralyzed…”
Boyles said he is disappointed Couch is essentially headed now to a rehab “country club” instead of prison, as he is expected to head to a California facility for treatment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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