The family of Ethan Couch, 17, - the Texas teen who killed four people in a DUI crash last year to pay $2 million settlement Award goes to Sergio Molina, 16, who was left paralyzed in the Fort Worth crash last year that left another 12 injured The liability insurer of Ethan Couch's parents agreed to pay more than $1 million in cash and the rest in annuities to a trust established for Sergio Molina Molina, who was riding in the back of Couch's pickup when it flipped, can now only smile and blink, according to his parents. His older brother, Alexander Lemus, said his family was disappointed Couch's case drew national attention because his defense argued his wealthy parents had coddled him A condition that the defense expert called 'affluenza.'
By James Nye
The family of a Texas teenager who blamed a condition they termed 'affluenza' for the deadly drunken car crash that killed four and injured 12 has reached a $2 million settlement with the family of one of his victims.
Attorneys for Sergio Molina, who was paralyzed in the deadly smash, have secured the payout from the parents of Ethan Couch to settle for the injuries he sustained when he was thrown from the back of the pickup truck that Couch, 17, was driving in June 2013.
Couch's parents have agreed to pay out $1. 638 million in cash and the rest into a trust established for Molina, 16, in the aftermath of the Fort Worth wreck.
His older brother, Alexander Lemus, said his family was disappointed in the settlement.
'We're not happy about it, but we just have to take what we got and strive for better days,' he said Tuesday.
Couch's case drew national attention after his attorneys argued that his wealthy parents coddled the then-16-year-old into a sense of irresponsibility, which one witness termed 'affluenza.'
He was sentenced to 10 years of probation and ordered to a rehab facility.
Molina, who was riding in the back of Couch's pickup when it flipped, can now only smile and blink, according to his parents. He has been in the hospital since the June accident.
Along with the cash payment, the Couches' insurer will buy two annuities to make monthly payments of $1,515 and $1,837 to the trust starting in July, and another annuity to cover attorneys' fees, according to Tarrant County court documents.
Molina was in the back of Couch's pickup truck on June 15, 2013, when Couch swerved and hit a stranded motorist and three people who had stopped to help her. All four were killed.
The pickup also rammed a parked car, sending it into another car traveling in the opposite lane, before the truck rolled over and smashed into a tree. Molina was tossed out and landed on his head.
Molina's parents sued Couch and his parents after the accident. Five other families of the injured or killed also have settled with the Couches, pending court approval.
Details of those settlements haven't been released. One family is seeking a jury trial.
Randy Nelson, the attorney representing Couch's parents, Fred and Tonya Couch, declined comment to The Associated Press on Tuesday.
Before today's payout, Couch's parents were ordered to pay for just a fraction of Molina's medical treatment.
His parents were to be charged $1,170 a month for his treatment at the North Texas State Hospital in rural Vernon. That amount would cover less than two days of treatment, which costs $715 a day, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.
Couch admitted to causing the wreck and received 10 years' probation from State District Judge Jean Boyd rather than prison time, as prosecutors and Couch's victims wanted. Several of his victims have since sued the Couch family, with most of them reaching confidential settlements.
Debbie Spoonts, placement supervisor for Tarrant County Juvenile Services, said the facility decided what Fred and Tonya Couch would pay based on a sliding scale.
A message from The Associated Press seeking comment from Spoonts on the facility's payment policy was not immediately returned Friday.
The teen's family previously had offered to pay for Couch to go to a $450,000-a-year rehabilitation center near Newport Beach, Calif. Boyd rejected that request.
Ethan Couch's attorney, Reagan Wynn, and Fred and Tonya Couch did not speak to the media after the hearing.
Lance Evans, the attorney for Couch's parents, said after the hearing that the family 'respects the decision of the facility and of the court, and will honor the payment system that the court has put in place.'
Kevin McConnell, the father of a child who was injured in the wreck, declined to comment after the hearing on whether the amount the Couches will pay is fair.
'That's not my call,' McConnell said. 'We have a criminal justice system and a legal system. That's not my call to make.'
McConnell's family is suing the Couches. He said they will not accept a settlement and instead want a jury trial.
Mr & Mrs Couch have paid undisclosed sums to the families of three who died.
Couch was speeding at around 70mph and he hit the group - killing all three and Mrs Boyles's daughter Shelby who was with her at the time.
He also seriously injured two of his friends who were sitting in the back of the truck that he was driving at the time of the crash. Sergio Lemuus who was left paralyzed after the accident.
It was revealed during the trial that Couch's blood-alcohol level was 0.24 - three times the adult limit, though minors aren't allowed any alcohol in their system - and that he was also on the prescription drug Valium.
The case spurred calls for potential changes. Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst, has asked for a study of sentencing guidelines in intoxication manslaughter cases.
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