Teens DUI Wealth Defense Elicits Controversy

 Posted on December 03, 2013 in DUI

A DUI verdict that was delivered in a small juvenile court has reverberated across the country. A judge in a Fort Worth Juvenile Court recently sentenced a 16-year-old boy to 10 years of probation after he confessed to charges arising out of a fatal drunk driving accident that occurred on a rural road. Four people were killed in the accident, and at the time of the crash, the teenager tested positive for a blood alcohol concentration level that was at least three times the legal limit of .08.

His defense lawyers brought to the stand a psychologist who testified in his defense that he suffered from a condition called affluenza. According to the psychologist, this was a syndrome that prevented children like this teenage boy, from learning that bad behavior can have serious consequences. As a result of the syndrome, the boy failed to realize that bad behavior and breaking the rules can have serious consequences, and hence, his poor judgment in driving under the influence of alcohol. The psychologist also brought attention to the fact that the boys parents had failed to punish him for equally poor behavior in the past.

Prosecutors understandably are livid at the judgment, especially since they had sought the maximum sentence in this case, which would have amounted to 20 years in prison. However, the lawyers were very successful in convincing the judge that what the boy needed was not time in prison, but rehabilitation.

Already, criticism of the verdict has emerged from around the country, and many have been calling for the verdict to be rescinded. In fact, considering that the boy is a juvenile, many media outlets have actually gone out and used his name and identified him outright, which is unfortunate. The boy has also been sentenced to undergo counseling at a rehabilitation center in California.