--- description: The family of a wealthy Texas teenager who killed four people in a drunk driving accident will pay one of his victims $2 million, according to court documents released on Tuesday. title: Affluenza Teen's Family Will Pay $2 Million in Compensation to Victim image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99a57b5d9b7474c5/69868e21169ab0b4242792d7/ap821099924244.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Law](/tag/law/) ## Law Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Family of Drunk Driving 'Affluenza' Teen to Pay Millions to Paralyzed Victim  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 6, 2014 7:27 PM CUT  Ethan Couch is seen during his court hearing in Fort Worth, Texas in this December 2013 image taken from a video by KDFW-FOX 4. Ethan Couch is seen during his court hearing in Fort Worth, Texas in this December 2013 image taken from a video by KDFW-FOX 4.KDFW-FOX 4/AP  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 6, 2014 7:27 PM CUT The family of a wealthy Texas teenager who [killed](http://time.com/5304/no-jail-for-affluenza-teen/ "undefined") four people in a drunk driving accident will pay one of his victims $2 million, according to court documents released on Tuesday. Ethan Couch’s parents have agreed to pay $1 million in cash and establish a $1 million trust fund in the name of Sergio Molina, a boy who was left paralyzed by the accident, the Associated Press [reports](http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/affluenza-teens-family-pay-victim-2m-23608799 "undefined"). The accident gained national attention when the teen’s defense lawyers [called](http://time.com/72227/affluenza-bill-gets-killed/ "undefined") an expert witness who argued that the teen might be suffering from “affluenza,” a condition of irresponsibility brought about by extreme spoiling. \[[_AP_](http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/affluenza-teens-family-pay-victim-2m-23608799 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/89742/family-of-drunk-driving-affluenza-teen-will-pay-millions/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/89742/family-of-drunk-driving-affluenza-teen-will-pay-millions/"},"headline":"Family of Drunk Driving 'Affluenza' Teen to Pay Millions to Paralyzed Victim","datePublished":"2014-05-06T19:27:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:41:09.654Z","description":"The parents of wealthy Texan Ethan Couch, who killed four people in a drunk driving accident and gained notoriety after one of his attorneys used the teen's extreme privilege as part of his defense strategy, will compensate a victim who was paralyzed","url":"https://time.com/89742/family-of-drunk-driving-affluenza-teen-will-pay-millions/","keywords":["Law","Crime","Accident","Courts","Drunk-driving","Settlement","justice"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99a57b5d9b7474c5/69868e21169ab0b4242792d7/ap821099924244.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dan Kedmey","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99a57b5d9b7474c5/69868e21169ab0b4242792d7/ap821099924244.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Ethan Couch","caption":"Ethan Couch","creditText":"KDFW-FOX 4/AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/law/","name":"Law"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/89742/family-of-drunk-driving-affluenza-teen-will-pay-millions/","name":"Family of Drunk Driving 'Affluenza' Teen to Pay Millions to Paralyzed Victim"}}]}] ```