Ethan Couch's mother couldn't remember the last time she punished him, deposition tapes reveal

Home Top

Khloe is a 'shell of herself': She gets a visit from her best-friend during 24/7 vigil at Lamar's bedside in hospital - after he finally woke from his coma and said 'Hey Baby' three days after bender
Deadly sea snakes wash up on California beaches for the first time in THIRTY YEARS as El Nino plays havoc with Pacific climate
Could this be the beginning of the end for McDonald's? Franchisees say all-day breakfast is a disaster as company struggles to find its way
The pointlessness of the long distance runner: You can run as many marathons as you like but you'll still be fat, say scientists
Dreaming of a white OCTOBER? Early snowstorms hit the Midwest and New England as coldest air mass of the season sweeps across the United States
'A raging river of mud': Shocking photos of the hundreds of cars and trucks completely CONSUMED by 6ft-deep California mudslide
Get ready for 'The Monster': Forecasters reveal El Niño will bring a cold and wet winter but say it WON'T be enough to ease California's drought
Spain's King Juan Carlos branded Queen Letizia a 'common divorcee' and joked she was 'just the maid' before she became his daughter-in-law
Gunman provokes shootout with police in parking lot near a Pennsylvania Wal-Mart
Uber driver who raped a woman in the back of his car, and was linked to five others, is sent to jail for a decade
Hero Bronze Star combat dog who suffered from PTSD is shot and killed by cyclist 'who felt threatened'
American Horror Story branded 'vile' by parent watchdog over 'unbelievable explicit combination of sex and violence'
Pictured: The two suspects who stabbed train hero Spencer Stone in the chest in fight outside bar and left him fighting for life
'He pointed the gun right at my face': Oregon shooting hero speaks for the first time to tell how gunman shot him as 'punishment for calling the cops' - but let him live after he pleaded for his life
Jeb Bush hits back at Trump's 'pathetic' attempt to blame George W. Bush for 9/11 - 'Say what you want, the World Trade Center came down during his time'
Israelis shoot dead another three Palestinian 'knife attackers' as violent clashes continue in Hebron and Jerusalem
New York mayor Bill de Blasio meets with counterparts in Israel amid escalating violence in the region which has left 40 Palestinians and seven Israelis dead
Obama to announce 'drone registry' as concerns mount about the numbers flying and possible collisions with aircraft
A picture of heartbreak: After her split from stockbroker boyfriend Nico, how lonely Pippa shows she can't hide the pain...or escape from her sister's shadow
Incredible video shows foolhardy Ukrainians listening to the radio - just by touching WEEDS against a 50,000-watt transmitter station
Forget a detox, now there's a cake cleanse: The new diet that lets you eat dessert for breakfast, lunch and dinner - and STILL lose weight
CBS bans advertising for film The Truth which is based on a discredited 60 Minutes story - saying it is 'filled with inaccuracies'
Ebony editor defends controversial Cosby Show cover... and says that she did not sleep for two days because of image choice
Texas man, 29, who randomly knocked out an African-American senior citizen in race-hate attack is jailed for six years

Ethan Couch killed four people after drunkenly crashing into a stranded car
Boy, 16, was let off with 10 years' probation despite 70mph horror smash
Legal team argued he did not understand responsibility because of his wealthy upbringing - calling it 'affluenza'
Deposition tapes from a civil case reveal his mother could not remember the last time she punished him
Tonya Couch did not tell Ethan's father their son was drunk when police caught him urinating in public just months before the fatal crash
She insisted under oath she had never seen her son drink but a friend of Ethan's said Ms Couch saw them drinking a week before the tragedy

Published: 19:12 EST, 16 October 2015 | Updated: 00:38 EST, 17 October 2015

View
comments

The mother of 'affluenza' teenager Ethan Couch - who killed four in a DUI crash but was let off with probation - said she could not remember the last time she punished him, deposition tapes revealed.

Couch, who was 16 at the time of the crash in 2013, had seven friends in his father's pick-up truck when he plowed into a vehicle on the side of the road.

Despite four people being killed and several others injured by Couch, who was three times over the blood alcohol limit, he was not jailed and was instead given 10 years' probation after his legal team argued his millionaire parents coddled him into irresponsibility, using the term 'affluenza'.

Scroll down for video

The mother of Ethan Couch - who killed four in a DUI crash but was let off with probation - said she could not remember the last time she punished him, deposition tapes revealed

Recordings of Ethan's parents' out-of-court testimony reveal that his mother Tonya Couch (left, with Fred Couch) could not remember the last time she disciplined her son

Recordings of his parents' out-of-court testimony, obtained by ABC News, have now revealed that his mother Tonya Couch could not remember the last time she disciplined her son - who never apologized to the victims.

She and Fred Couch did not testify before court so this is the first time the public has heard them speak under oath.

When asked how she punished her son when he did wrong, she said: 'Sometimes ... take little things away from him or we would just discuss the problems.'

But when she tried to recall the last time she disciplined Couch, she said: 'I don't remember.'

During the trial, Couch's legal team argued that he suffered from 'affluenza' as his wealthy parents had given him so much freedom he did not understand how to be responsible for his actions.

Couch's parents admitted during deposition that they allowed him to stay in their second home in Burleson, Texas, alone for the night and let him drive on his own from the age of 13.

Ms Couch testified that she had never seen her son drink, but this contradicted evidence from a friend of the then 16-year-old who said they had been drinking alcohol in front of his mother a week before the crash.

Friend Starr Teague added that Ms Couch knew her son was drinking on the night of the crash. She said 'she was like, "well just don't drink and drive"'.

During the trial, Couch's legal team argued that he suffered from 'affluenza' as his wealthy parents had given him so much freedom he did not understand how to be responsible for his actions

Killed: Hollie Boyles, 52, and her daughter, Shelby Boyles, 21, were helping out the driver of a broken down SUV when they were struck and killed by Couch's out-of-control pickup

Four months before the 70mph horror crash, Couch - then just 15 years old - was stopped by officers who found him drunkenly urinating in a parking lot.

He was given a summons but Ms Couch admitted during deposition that she never told Mr Couch the 'whole truth' about their son being drunk that night.

Mr Couch said he made Ethan walk to work for a month as punishment for the summons, but Ethan said during deposition that did not happen.

He was made to complete an alcohol awareness course but never completed eight hours of court-ordered community service.

Ms Couch said under oath that she should have realized her son would not stop drinking and driving unless he was punished properly.

'I should have known that. I really didn't think that that would happen again,' she said.

During his deposition, Ethan's father said: 'I don’t even know that I believe affluenza is real.'

He insisted he and Ms Couch had never taught their son that he was above the law.

Victims: Breanna Mitchell and Brian Jennings, 41, were both killed in the horrific crash in 2013

Scene: The accident happened on the night of June 15, 2013 on this road in Burleson, Texas

Ethan also reeled off a list of drugs he had taken as a teenager, adding that 'most of the time' there was alcohol at the second home he often stayed in.

'I've taken Valium, Hydrocodone, marijuana, cocaine, Xanax and I think I tried ecstasy once, pretty sure that was it,' he said.

The tapes are from a civil suit brought against Couch, his parents and their sheet metal company Cleburne Sheet Metal - where Couch now works - in 2013.

The fatal DUI crash killed Hollie Boyles, 52, her daughter,Shelby Boyles, 21, pastor Brian Jennings, 41, and Breanna Mitchell.

The Boyles and Mr Jennings were helping Ms Mitchell after her car broke down at the time of the tragedy.

Couch pleaded guilty to four counts of intoxication manslaughter and two counts of intoxication assault, but was not given a jail sentence.

He has never apologized to his victims. The families of those who died have received undisclosed payouts from Couch's parents, as has the family of a man left severely disabled following the crash.

After Couch's sentencing, Eric Boyles, whose wife and daughter were killed, spoke of his fury at the leniency of the judge.

He said: 'You look at 180 years of future life taken from the four individuals. Even a two year deal, a two year sentence before he's eligible for parole, didn't seem exactly fair under those circumstances.'