Tarrant County Judge Wayne Salvant advised Tonya Couch at the hearing Friday that she has been charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon.
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Couch’s bond is set at $1 million and a bond reduction hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Monday. Salvant asked her if she understood the charges brought against her and explained some of the details of the complaint, including that she intended “to hinder the arrest, detention, adjudication or disposition of a child, Ethan Couch”.
Ethan Couch was given 10 years probation in 2013 after he killed four people in a drunk driving incident.
Ethan Couch missed a required check-in with Texas authorities earlier this month after video surfaced showing him at a party where drinking was occurring.
Tonya Couch was extradited to Texas and is now being held in a Texas jail cell while her son remains in Mexico.
Tonya Couch faces a charge of hindering the apprehension of a felon.
Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson, who was in the courtroom Friday with several sheriff’s deputies, said Couch “expressed a slight bit of displeasure about her accommodations”.
The mother of the “affluenza” teen has not entered a plea during her arraignment in a Texas court. “And I’ve said over and over, we’re patient, we’ll wait, we’ll be here”.
Patten later issued a statement criticizing the public manner in which Anderson has handled the case and questioning why he spoke to Couch in court without her attorney present.
The mother-son duo moved into a condo in Puerto Vallarta without notifying staff at the hotel they were leaving.
She confirmed that she has hired a lawyer. She flew to Los Angeles with the help of some U.S. Marshals on New Year’s Eve and agreed not to fight returning to Texas on Tuesday.
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– The mother of the infamous affluenza teen has arrived in North Texas and will spend Thursday night at the Tarrant County Jail. Ethan Couch became infamous as the “affluenza teen” after he was sentenced to 10 years probation for the accident, which also seriously injured others. The condition is not recognized as a medical diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association, and its invocation drew widespread ridicule.
