Affluenza

I think the "Affluenza" is pretty ridiculouos......but that sentence is pretty common for that crime....especially for young people.

On the other end of the spectrum, it leaves the "Pofluenza" defense in play I guess.

Those were my thoughts exactly.  A large percentage of crime can be explained by Pofluenza - including almost all property crimes.

My daughter probably suffers from affluenza.  Not a reason get away with DUI.  I love my kids, but this is BS.

I could never get on board with that.

I think it's a little extreme to say he never will see the light of day again....HOWEVER....  If it were a kid of mine or my wife that was killed in this I would have a hard time not making someone pay for what they did.  I really can't believe that the guy got off on probation.  He should be tried as an adult and sentenced to a long, long, long time. 

Sometimes you wonder if vigilante justice needs to take place....I do.

I'm really just speechless after reading this article.  Speechless.

All the affluenze BS aside, it is still a minor who did something incredibly stupid. Assuming he has a clean record before this, the punishment seems to fit the crime far better than "never seeing the light of day again"

Also to the families that are outraged over the sentence, destroying someone else's life won't bring back the lives of your loved ones.

I agree 100%.

Lilke I said, his sentence is really very typical for that crime.  I don't think he knows more than anyone else who kills someone while driving drunk, regardless of family wealth.

He did not get away with murder. He has been given a punishment for manslaughter. There is a difference.

I'm sure you are more aware of the typical sentence on this sort of thing than I am, but just a local story to share. A kid here did the same thing. Always a straight kid, no record, no driving record, wasn't a drinker. His friends convinced him to try drinking, he had a few then got in the car and drove home. Ran into a ped and killed them. He got 5 years in jail for that.

In the OP case I could understand a 10-15 year probation, but he needs to serve at least 5 in prison IMO. He killed 4 people, that shouldn't be taken lightly.

If this "Affluenza" crap is really a defense, he essentially has free license to continue to drink and drive. If he is rich and the courts have already given him a huge pardon like this how is he to know it is wrong in the future?

That is the FIRST thing I thought of.

I think it's easy for us to sit in judgement on something like this, but you'd likely be surprised at the devastation that is usually unleashed on the person who caused the deaths as well.....some of it externally, and alot of it internally. 

I guess for me it comes down to how much of a threat to society is the offender?  At 16, I'd say he deserves to go on with his life, with some very serious monitoring and counseling.  Maybe you can save that life, because there is nothing you can do about the other 4.  I think if it were my family that he killed I could live with that.  Then again, I'm pretty soft when it comes to kids who make mistakes.

How old was the kid in your scenario? 16 or 17 makes a HUGE difference here in sentencing.  16 is a juvenile who must be certified as an adult....and that doesn't happen very often in cases with no history.... 17 and you are an adult, and subject to adult sentences.