‘Affluenza’ Mother Set for Arraignment in Fort Worth

As reported by USA Today, she faces a charge of hindering apprehension of a fugitive and her bond has been set at $1 million. Salvant did not rule on the bail reduction.

The judge said if she is released on bond, she would be required to surrender her passport and wear a monitor on her ankle.

On Friday, Tonya Couch appeared before a judge wearing a bright yellow jail jumpsuit.

Patten was not present at the arraignment.

She confirmed that she has hired a lawyer. Couch’s lawyer, Stephanie Patten, missed the hearing this morning as she was stuck in traffic, but when she arrived, she said she was concerned that Couch spoke to the sheriff without legal representation. It is believed that she and her son, who was being sought for violating the terms of his probation, escaped from Texas.

“It’s jail”, Anderson told reporters after the hearing.

Couch and her son were arrested December 28 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, in connection with his alleged probation violation stemming from a deadly drunken- driving crash in Texas. The case drew renewed rancor when the mother and son fled to Mexico after a video surfaced that appeared to show Ethan Couch, fresh from a rehabilitation center, at a party where people were drinking.

According to the Denver Post, Ethan Couch is still being held in Mexico City, awaiting deportation.

Tonya Couch made an initial appearance in a Texas courtroom Friday on a charge of hindering the apprehension of a felon. Sheriff Dee Anderson told KDFW 4 (Fox) that this was the first time in his career he personally escorted a prisoner to jail to ensure everything “went well” in the process “with the eyes of the world upon us”.

The recommended bail bond amount on a third-degree felony is $2,500, according to the Tarrant County Bond Schedule.

The sheriff hopes that Tonya Couch will encourage Ethan to quickly return from Mexico, but did not say Thursday whether she’d agreed to do so. They argued that he was raised in such a privileged environment that he was unable to distinguish right from wrong. At the time, many were outraged that a judge sentenced him to probation instead of jail time, slamming his now-notorious “affluenza” defense: Trial testimony suggested he was too rich and spoiled to understand the consequences of his actions.