The housing change was confirmed Friday via corrections department records which now list Couch as being held in custody at the Tarrant County Correction Center.
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In juvenile detention, Couch shared space with other detainees, some much younger, and many much bigger. Couch, Anderson said, has been soft-spoken, very respectful and has asked for no special treatment or accommodations.
Couch now has a cell to himself in the Tarrant County Lon Evans Correction Center, Anderson said.
The judge is expected to hear arguments on February 19 to move Couch’s case from juvenile court to adult court, where prosecutors said he would face harsh punishments if he violated his probation again. He said officials are “taking the precautions we can to make sure that doesn’t happen”. Couch had been at the juvenile facility since being deported last month from Mexico, where authorities believe he and his mother fled while prosecutors investigated whether he’d violated his probation in the 2013 drunken-driving case.
A judge hasn’t decided if Couch, 18, will be prosecuted in adult or juvenile court for probation violation, Anderson said.
Couch is still under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and his case is still continuing under the original judge’s order, Anderson said.
Sheriff Dee Anderson said his office received a “only a few minutes warning” that Couch was being transferred.
Couch was deported from Mexico on January 28, after initially fighting extradition from the country. The sentence came after a defense expert testified that Couch had been coddled into a sense of irresponsibility by his wealthy parents, calling the condition “affluenza”, which isn’t recognized as a medical diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association. Couch turns 19 in April.
Tonya did not attempt to fight deportation and within days was back in Texas where she posted bail of $75,000 and is now awaiting trial for hindering the apprehension of a felon.
A bond amount has not been set for his release, however.
Couch’s mother, Tonya Couch, is facing a separate investigation. They were apprehended in Mexico on December 28, after a call for pizza delivery tipped off authorities.
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Meanwhile, Couch launched an appeal against deportation and has been held in Mexico until today.
