Tonya Couch: Mother of ‘affluenza’ teen arrives back in US

The mother of the “affluenza” Texas teen is back in the United States after she and her son fled to Mexico.

Ethan Couch and his mother were apprehended Monday in the Mexican resort town of Puerto Vallarta.

Mexican authorities and the U.S. Marshals service were coordinating their return, which had been was slated for Wednesday. We are uncertain how long the legal process in Mexico will take or how it will ultimately be resolved.

She arrived Los Angeles International Airport early Thursday, walking through the airport in cuffs as she was flanked by U.S. Marshals.

Attorneys for Ethan Couch used an “affluenza” defense during the sentencing phase of his trial for the fatal 2013 drunken-driving accident, arguing that his wealthy parents coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility.

Mexican authorities would accompany Ethan and Tonya Couch on the flight and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol would take over once they land.

Currently, she remains in the custody of the Los Angeles Police Department in California. Mexican authorities said they had been working with the U.S. Marshals Service since December 24 to locate them.

Authorities believe Ethan Couch, who was sentenced only to probation for the wreck that killed four people, fled to Mexico with his mother in November as prosecutors investigated whether he had violated his probation.

“I’ve learned at this point to not surprised by what these people will do and how far they will go to not face justice”, Anderson said.

Nabbed… Tonya Couch was found hiding out in Mexico with her fugitive son, Ethan Couch.

Violating his probation by fleeing to Mexico may earn Couch a maximum of 120 days in jail, said Tarrant County District Attorney Sharen Wilson.

Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Samantha Jordan said Thursday that Tonya Couch has formally been charged in Texas. A judge sentenced him in juvenile court to 10 years’ probation and a stint in a rehabilitation centre.

Even if a Mexican immigration court does decide to send Couch back to the United States, he might not face much time behind bars. The terms don’t expire until he turns 19 in April.

Two people riding in the bed of the teen’s pickup were tossed in the crash and severely injured.

Tonya Couch, who with her son Ethan were captured Monday in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, was deported Wednesday evening.

Couch had been ordered to stay away from drugs and alcohol for the duration of his probation.

The local CBS affiliate reported that both Tonya and Ethan Couch had retained legal counsel in Mexico, but only Ethan Couch had his stay come through in time. The Couches then moved to an apartment, and the agents set up a surveillance operation in the surrounding streets.

Couch was apparently trying to lie low, and even disguise himself; a photo distributed by the Jalisco state prosecutor’s office show him in detention with his blond hair dyed black and his normally blondish beard a light brown.

The official with Mexico’s National Immigration Institute tells The Associated Press that the teen will be held in the nation’s capital during a judge’s temporary injunction that has delayed his deportation to the U.S.

She and Fred Couch bought the property in 2000, but the deed was transferred into Tonya’s Couch’s name only in 2007, according to deed records.