joining me is ethan needleman and neil franklin., i want to start with you -- let's start with ethan. ethan, across the country, do you think that everyone's going to follow suit with colorado? and that's a good idea? >> well, it's going to take a while. look to oregon to go next, maybe alaska, california maybe. but the big news is outside the country where uruguay will be the first country to legalize marijuana and follow in the footsteps of colorado and washington. but when 58% of americans say theyry "r" in favor of legally regulating marijuana like alcohol. and when that support is coming from people who don't use marijuana and worry about their kids i think it's just a matter of time before we see marijuana become legally regulated around the country and in many parts of the world. >> neil, do you agree with ethan it will be legalized? many people think in 10 or 15 years many states will be similar to colorado especially with the support we are seeing with the recent poll? >> i agree with ethan, 100 percent. not just in states

ethan couch was diagnosed with so-called affluenza by his psychologist. have you ever heard of that term? do you buy that diagnosis? >> actually, anderson, i don't buy that diagnosis. i don't believe in the term affluenza. what i would like to do is take a step back, and that's a very, very short statement that was made in that courtroom, and as we said earlier, we don't have all of the notes from the courtroom. there were reporters in that courtroom, and i was in that courtroom. other things that dr. miller described was that a child that has been diagnosed with a substance abuse problem, alcoholism and addiction, someone who grew up in a dysfunctional family system with verbal, emotional and physical abuse, and a kid that started using substances at 13 years old, and so i would like to take a step back and say, you know, in a country where we allow alcohol and pharmaceutical companies to advertise and promote the use of drugs and alcohol, i really think we have it backwards if we keep sending kids to jail if they are simply acting in the way the popular

. >> money seems to keep ethan in trouble. i did ask for justice. >> that man lost his daughter and wife in the crash. he joins us live with the verdict for ethan. >> breaking tonight the president's broken health care promise becomes labelled the lie of the year. welcome to the kelly pile, everybody. so this news came just a short time ago from the polif fact web site. a journalism web site designed to fact check from our leaders. after 12 months they decided this was hands down the winner for what they call the lie of the year. >> first of all if you've got health insurance and you like your doctor, you like your plan, you can keep your doctor, you can plan. nobody is talking about taking that away from you. >> if you like your health care plan, you'll be able to keep your health care plan, yochld >> if you like your health care plan, you can keep that, too. >> if you like your current insurance, you keep that insurance. period end of story. >> end of story. do you remember those? saying the president's promise not only impo

>> i'm trying meet actor ethan hawke for a friendly game of pool. >> the important think not to sink the ball. important thing is to look good while you do it. >> he's no hustler, either. >> just kiss it right there, that's what you want to do. >> easier said than done. very well done. >> we met hawke at the players in new york city. a 125-year-old social club for people in the arts. which as you'll see is what hawke is all about. his portrait is on the wall next to members christopher plummer and carol burnett. >> how did they approach you about this? >> i don't know. i could do without. >> but at 43 hawke's earned his place there. it all began with an audition in manhattan not too far from his boyhood home near princeton, new jersey. >> my mother thought it would be nice to get experience. in fact a big fight erupted when i got one of these parts then my mother said, well, you can't do it. >> you convinced them, come on, let me do this. >> 13-year-olds can be very persuasive. making them unhappy is such a miserable experience. >> that was great. >

e ethan couch crashed his vehicle.na was riding in the back of that young man's vehicle. in the back of his truck in the back of couch's truck. he survived the accident. his life will never be the same, not for him or his family. >> reporter: this is the way sergio malina used to be a happyson son and bother who loved playing soccer. this is the way he is today. 16-year-old sergio with his mother. he can't talk and respond. it's what happened to him after he flew out of the back of the pickup just outside fort worth, texas. >> they told us that basically that's as much as he's going to rehabilitate, that that's -- that's all we can hope for is how he is right now for the rest of his life. >> reporter: the family hopes and prays that is not true, but in the meantime, they deal with realities. in the six months since the accident, what have your medical bills totals so far? >> over a million dollars. >> reporter: a million dollars. >> over a million dollars. >> reporter: sergio's family piled a multi million dollar lawsu

ethan couch's father, fred couch, had up to 23 police records.y included charges of criminal mischief, theft by check and assault. all the cases were dismissed. >> reverend, this story just keeps getting more interesting by the day, but in texas, we call it negligent entrustment. and faith's right, just because a child goes out and gets in a wreck and hurts someone, you can't just get the parent for that, because it may not be their fault, but if you show a history that these parents were on notice that their child was acting in this irresponsible manner then they've got a case. they've got a strong case. and this affluenza junctik scie case may backfire on them. >> thank you both for your time tonight. >>> still ahead, the election night video you didn't see, until now. what mitt romney said when he realized he'd lost. >>> but first, what's really behind the right wing's phony war on christmas? ho, ho, holy cow, you've got to see it. stay with us. we're going across america to let people try the deep sweep power brush by oral-b for the first tim

ethan, why this law that closes schools? >> i think it's a response by the legislature and the government to deal with ever increasing costs in education in alaska. we had boarding schools up until the 1970s, in which the case went to the supreme court and it was decided that the state had the responsibility to educate every child in alaska, and so high schools popped up in all of our villages, and now the state has enabled it so that if the population drops under 10, your school goes into closure over a four-year period. and lessens the budget thing because oftentimes the money is spread out throughout the district. but i think it's a response to save money because the state is not increasing dollars for education, especially in alaska. the costs keep rising consistently. our oil costs go up, and people need to put this all in perspective. they think we can go from one town to another and bus 50 minutes away. no, my community, i'm in average registerinanchorage. and the only way i can get there is to fly in an airplane, whi

ethan, you are responsible. at that point i'm sitting there thinking, okay. >> she's about to give it to him, right? >> this is the way it's supposed to go, absolutely. the next thing that comes out is that probated sentence, ten-years probated sentence. and that there would be further discussion, further approval with the court with regards to some level of rehab center which most of the viewers have probably seen. it's like a country club type of environment. >> the judge determined this child had no boundaries. so the judge didn't put boundaries on him either. he will learn a lesson because he's out with ten years probation. i do appreciate you being here. we'll follow this story. thank you very much for being here tonight. >> thank you, martha. >>. >> just weeks after the administration held up death benefits for military families congress votes on a budget with a painful surprise for those in uniform. that's next. >>> developing tonight, the house approves a two-year bipartisan budget plan, just happened a

. >> is ethan couch a rich kid who got a slap on the wrist? say they have no way to seek a tougher sentence against ethan couch. even though this young man of means was able to escape with probation for killing four. while countless others who aren't rich have been forced to do some heavy jail time for far less. the tragedy unfolded on june 15th on a road near fort worth, texas. couch was driving with a blood alcohol content three times the legal limit when his car careened out of control and cut four lives short in an instant. like that of 24-year-old brianna mitchell. her only crime that night, the fact that her car had broken down. brian jennings, a father of three, stopped to help her. and so did two other good samaritans. holly boyles and her daughter u shelby. all four were killed instantly leaving families shattered. >> we had over 180 years of life taken. future life. not 180 years lived, but 180 years of future life taken. and two of those were my wife and daughter. >> there's also anguish from the family of sergio molina. he was a ri

so what is the end result, punishment for ethan?ntoxication assault cases, judgment has not been rendered on those cases. prosecutors are actually asking for jail time for those two cases. hopefully going forward they will be able to argue he does deserve to be incarcerated for those cases and won't enjoy 10 years of probation and freedom in some posh california facility. jenna: the cases are very much not over. certainly with the national attention on this one wonders how that impacts. we'll talk a lot more about it in the future. fed, faith, thank you both. you're not going anywhere. you're talking to jon next hour. i like the double dose thing. it's a good thing. thanks, guys. >> talk to you in a bit. jon: there is a bit of connection between the case we're talking about next hour and that one too. >>> a man trapped on a crain high above the ground saved in a daring helicopter rescue. more of this incredible video, plus how the guy got stuck up there in the first place. >>> mandatory evacuation orders as a massive wildfire destro

ethan couch crashed his vehicle while driving drunk into these people. the lives of those victims' families are of course changed forever. it's not just them. sergio molina was riding in the back of that young man's vehicle, in the back of his truck, in the back of couch's truck. he survived the accident. his life will never be the same. not for him, not for his family. gary tuchman now reports. >> reporter: this is the way sergio molina used to be, a happy son and brother who loved playing soccer. this is the way he is today. 16-year-old sergio with his mother. he can't talk, he can't move. he's considered minimally responsive. it's what happened to him after he flew out of the back of ethan couch's pickup truck this past june. on the night that couch ran into and killed four other people just outside ft. worth, texas. alex limos is sergio's older brother. >> they told us that basically that's as much as he's going to rehabilitate, that that's all we can hope for is how he is right now for the rest of his life. >> reporter: the family hopes and prays th

so why isn't ethan couch behind bars? keep in mind, he's just 16, too young to legally drive with any alcohol in his system, and in this case, his blood alcohol measured .24, three times the legal limit in texas. eric boil's wife and daughter were both killed. >> we had over 180 years of life taken, future life, not 180 years lived but 180 years of life taken and two on those were my wife and daughter. >> reporter: surveillance tape shows couch and friends stealing beer in june, then they got drunk at a forty. leaving there, couch gunned his pickup going nearly 70 miles per hour in a 40. justbo 400 yards down the street, he slammed into holly and shelby boil whose stopped to help breanna mitchell fix a flat tire. youth pastor brian jennings was driving by and also stopped to help. all of them were killed. ethan couch was charged with four counts of intoxication manslaughter, and tried as a juvenile. in one of the most bizarre defense strategies we heard of, attorneys for couch blamed his parents for his behavior, all beca

ethan couch is his name.arently he has a history of being in trouble, including an arrest for alcohol just months before this car wreck. we're getting a look at notes from the trial showing the teen's so-called affluenza that made him think he could get out of anything. we'll hear from the psychologist that coined this term in just a moment. first, ac 360's randi kaye is going to start out our coverage. >> reporter: new details are emerging from inside the courtroom where 16-year-old ethan couch escaped prison time, despite killing four people and severely injuring others in a drunken car crash. his bizarre defense, affluenza, a lifestyle where wealth brought privilege and there were no consequences for bad behavior. we got our hands on notes taken during couch's manslaughter trial. they belonged to the attorney for eric boyles who lost his wife and daughter in the crash. according to that attorney, ethan couch was caught fleeing on foot, about a quarter mile from the accident scene. he could be heard at the

to keep ethan out of trouble. >> the 16-year-old was behind the wheel and drunk on stolen beer whene crashed a pick-up truck into four people on the side of a texan road, killing them all. he admits to being under the influence. prosecutors wanted him to spend 20 years and prison. his defense turned to a controversial defense called affluenza, meaning rich kids make poor decisions clouded by material things unguided by parents, making them susceptible to poor behaviour. the victims' families condemned it. the court may have been is it persuaded. in the end he was spared prison times. his attorneys say it was the rite sentence. >> we applaud judge boyd from having the courtrooming to issue a sentence that will allow ethan couch to develop into a proper citizens. >> eric boils, whose wife and daughter were killed in the crash says justice was denied. for probation, four lives, and the two serious injuries. i don't get it. >> the federal insurance plan for some of the nation's sickest patients will be extended. pre-existing condition plan was supposed to stop but will last until the en

because whatever else you think of ethan couch, he is a killer. four times over. he got drunk, extremely drunk, and rammed his father's pickup into a broken down car on a road in texas in june. he was three times over the legal limit. only in his case at age 16 he a new effort to put a killer behind bars. because whatever you else you think of ethan couch, he is a killer, he got drunk and rammed his father's pickup truck into a car in june. in his case, at age 16 he was not even legal to drink in the first place, he was convicted of manslaughter but sentenced only to probation and rehab and likely going to this $450,000 a year california facility paid for by his family. the judge, buying the psychologist's testimony, agreed that the youth was suffering from something called affluenza, saying that his family had had indulged his behavior, in other the first place. he was convicted of manslaughter but sentenced only to probation and rehab and likely going though $450,000 a year california facility paid for by his family. the judge, buying a psychologist's testimony

money always seems to keep ethan out of trouble. this was one time i did ask the court that -- for justice and that for money not to prevail. ultimately, today i felt like money did prevail. >> joining me now, former federal prosecutor and msnbc legal analyst kendall coffee. kendall, thanks for your time here. we heard from eric boyles there that money, in his opinion, prevailed here. the psychologist who testified, a defense witness, in addition to saying that ethan couch had affluenza, that the boy was brought up to never believe you apologize but instead you would give money as a substitute for even apologizing. as a defense attorney with a very successful career, prosecutor, as a very successful prosecutor, have you ever heard anything like this? >> never, and as astonishing as this sentence is, no jail time, four dead, one paralyzed, driving under the influence of alcohol, not under the influence of affluenza, this theory of a spoiled rich kid defense is truth truthfully appalling. it turns everything in our justice system upsi

because whatever else you think of ethan couch, he is a killer. four times over. he got drunk, extremely drunk, and rammed his father's pickup into a broken down car on a road in texas in june. he was three times over the legal limit. only in his case at age 16 he wasn't even legal to drink in the first place. he was convicted of manslaughter but sentenced only to probation and rehab and likely going though $450,000 a year california facility paid for by his family. the judge, buying a psychologist's testimony that young ethan was suffering from something called after flew enzarks the idea being that his wealthy parents had so completely endulged his prior bad behavior he was incapable of paying consequences for his actions. he killed four people, including eric boyles wife and daughter. >> the message has to be that money and privilege can't buy justice in this country, that it's not okay to drink and drive and kill four people, severely injure another and not have any consequences to that. that's not the american dream that we grew up to participate in. and i ju

. >> ethan couch is free tonight, a judge's decision that some say was based on income, not evidence. >> money always seems to keep ethane out of trouble. >> the 16-year-old was behind the wheel and drunk on stolen beer when he crashed a pick-up truck into four on the side of a road, killing them all. kouch admits to being under the influence. prosecutors wanted him to serve 20 years. his attorneys turned to a defense called affluenza. rich kids make poor decisions clouded by material things, unguided by inattendant parents making them susceptible to poor behaviour. the victims' families condemned it. in the end ethan couch was spared prison time, in the end getting 10 years probags. >> we applaud judge boyd for having the courage to issue this sentence that will give ethan couch a chance to develop into a productive citizen and try to make amends for his action. >> eric boyles whose wife and daughter were killed says justice was denied. >> for probation. for four lives. and the two serious injuries - i don't get it. >> and let's bring in attorney ms martin to discuss the affluenza de

this boy admitted to the crime like ethan couch admitted to it. he's 14 years old.on't know if he comes from a wealthy family. this is just a snapshot but here you have a boy who killed one person getting ten years behind bars and another boy who killed four people going to a swanky rehab center and ten years' probation so it's hard to figure out. >> it really is, and caused another boy to be paralyzed for the rest of his life. >> that's right. unbelievable. >> randi kaye, thanks so much. >>> still to come in "the newsroom," all eyes on this year's heisman ceremony, mired in controversy after allegations of sexual assault against the leading candidate, jameis winston. rachel nichols has the story from new york. >> jameis winston about as sure a thing as you can get for tomorrow night's heisman trophy ceremony but coming up in the next hour, the accuser in his sexual assault case, her lawyer is going to speak. we'll have the whole story for you. there's a saying around here, you stand behind what you say. around here you don't make excuses. you make commitments. and

the careers will come naturally. >> that was ethan. ethan, julie, carol, welcome to all of you. great have you here. >> an honor to be here. >> ethan, that was a powerful speech, and i appreciate the i thought incredible articulate of what ought to be the passion of every person to learn. but should there be standards, some goal so that we know how well students are doing? >> absolutely. you have to have standards. you can'tust throw kids into school and hope they figure out whatever. you have to have a guideline. the problem is when we try to make staards 100% of what happens in the classroom because that turns into test prep. and so oeducation is reduced to something that is not engaging students and while test scores may go up. it's not a indicative of what we need thave happen in education, which is to free people's mines. >> everybody would agree that the bestic purpose of school is to learn how to learn, not just to learn certain things but to learn how to learn so that could be applied to anything. obviously the big challenge is, how do you measure whether or not the stud

so ethan's dad didn't see anything the matter with him. he made the indication, he's a great driver at 13. so he gets to 15. there are absolutely no consequences for what occurred that day. the primary message has to absolutely be that money and privilege can't buy justice in this country, that it's not okay to drink and drive and kill four people, wound -- severely injure another and not have any consequences to that. that's not the -- that's not the american dream that we grew up to participate in, and i just don't understand it. >> neither do i. >> the term came up during this whole thing of affluenza and you first have to listen, did i hear what? because i've never heard that term before, but after it was used several times, i think it's either a perfect for webster's dictionary. you're just talking about an indication where money, power, influence, affluenza has taken place through this whole process. >> seems like nobody on that side is taking responsibility for it, not this young man, not his parents certainly. and i know it's diffi

. >> reporter: the truck was being driven by 16-year-old ethan couch. and the 911 caller is his friend, one of seven friends in the pickup. the group had been drinking heavily before crouch plowed down four people on the side of the road. multiple 911 calls capture the chaos. >> listen to me. is it just one vehicle? >> no, ma'am. there's four or five. there's another child in the ditch. they're gone! >> and how many people need ems? >> ma'am, i'm telling you it's dark. there's four or five kids. kids laying in ditches an streets. >> come here. come here. come here. >> oh, my god. >> come here. i need you to sit here and i need you guys to pray. >> in the end, four people dead and two thrown from the bed of the pickup. including this man, who is now paralyzed. his parents we've learned are suing ethan couch, his parents and the family business which owned the ford f-350 pickup truck that he was driving. the comb plantd points out that couch had a history of arrests, including one where he pleaded no contest to charges of possessing and drinking alcohol.

as you will see here, he could barely concede that ethan couch killed four people. >> if you commit a crime, you can't use that as an excuse, can you? >> no, and the term, when you used the word "killed" and people out in america hears t t that, it implies there is motive. the motive was not good. >> are you saying he didn't murder four people, kill four people? >> yes, he did not murder four people. it is a legal term. >> okay, but he slammed his truck. >> first degree homicide and involuntary manslaughter are different things, anderson. >> he killed four people, yes? >> four people died. >> four people died, he says as if they slipped away quietly at home in their beds, in fact, four people died because ethan got drunk and got behind the wheel and killed them. four people were in the back of the pickup and begged him to slow down reportedly, sergio molina was paralyzed, can only communicate by blinking his eyes, gary tuckman communicated with him recently. >> tell me about him. >> he was the best, he was that kind of boy with a lot of dreams. he was -- well, his first dream was to b

four people died because ethan couch got drunk, drove and killed them. texas authorities are trying to put him in prison in connection with the two other people who did not die in the incident. they were in the back of the pickup truck. they begged him to slow down reportedly, and instead, he sped up. sergio molina and mohamed. sergio can only communicate by blinking his eyes. >> tell me about sergio, what kind of boy he is. >> he was the best. he was that kind of boy with a lot of dreams. he was -- well, his first dream was to be a soccer player. he was sweet. i mean, he was -- >> he's lucky he has you. you need to hear that from people like me, outsiders. do you realize that? >> yeah. >> he's lucky he has you and his siblings to take care of him, right? >> yeah. >> sergio and solomon's story will be the focus of the new legal effort. so clearly, the d.a. is looking for anyway possible to have couch spend some jail time here. do people you have spoken with today think this will actually work? >> well, what the d.a. in fort worth, texas is trying to do i

"he could be heard at the scene, yelling to one of his passengers, quote, "i'm ethan couch, i'll gete some consequences that are possible. >> though clearly he understands there's consequences. he obviously was impaired that night. but here the judge at sentencing instead accepting the expert's testimony that this child was so rich that he didn't understand and wasn't responsible for his actions. the judge should have put a stop to that right there and could have had a balanced sentence. one in which included incarceration and rehabilitation. that's not what o cccurred here and where the breakdown in the system is. >> but this same judge, this same judge last year sentenced a 14-year-old african-american to prison for killing one person with a powerful punch to the ground. same judge. >> we should note, rerverend al it wasn't just prison but a ten-year sentence for this african-american teen. that's the problem with this sentence. >> ten years. >> ten years. it's to the just about money, it's about the disparity in the criminal justice system based on race. we know african-americans,

ethan couch was the 16-year- old driver in a crash that killed four people this past summer.ice say his blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit. couch was sentenced to 10 years probation -- with no road for appeal. the district attorney is now turning his attention to two teens who were severely injured in the crash. >> reporter:dark tarrant county road. a horrific crash. 4 lives lost. many others changed forever - including sergio molina and solimon mohmand.they were riding in the back of ethan couch's truck the night he admits he drove drunk and caused this scene. >> reporter:mohmand's body lies broken, with internal injuries. molina now paralyzed. blinking is his only way to communicate. >> reporter:six months later - juvenile district judge jean boyd sentenced couch to 10 years probation - drawing outrage from far and wide. >> reporter:tarrant county prosecutors told cbs 11 they could not find a legal reason to appeal. attorney joe shannon said. >>"during his recent trial, the 16-year-old admitted his guilt in four cases of intoxication manslaughter and two ca

. >> we applaud the judge boyd for having the courage to issue the sentence to give ethan a challenge to develop in a product you have citizen and try to make a mends for his actions. >>> there is more from the sign language interpreter in nelson mandela's memorial. he has faced charges for rape and breaking and entering and many of the charges were dropped because he was deemed mentally unfit for trial. and the government said 100,000 people signed up to file past the casket. that line stretched for miles before a state funeral is held in the hometown. >>> the outrage builds. a texas teenager getting probation for a drunk driving crash that killed four people. the judge bought the argument that 16-year-old ethan couch didn't realize he would have consequences because he was so wealthy and privileged. eric lost his wife and daughter when couch plied in a group of pedestrians. >> we anyhow it was a maximum 20 year sentence. ethan would be eligible for parole in two years and while recognizes that that is kind of the circumstances that we are dealing with. i was not happy with those cir

on tuesday a district judge in texas sentenced ethan couch for a decade of probation. he and buddies got drunk and got behind the wheel. they killed four people and injured nine. the defense used the psychologist who diagnosed the teen with because he had come from privilege, he didn't know any better. here's what the husband who lost his wife and daughter that night had to say. >> i was -- i'm back to week one. we have accomplished nothing here. my healing process is out the window. the primary message has to absolutely be that money and privilege can't buy justice in this country. that it's not okay to drink and drive and kill four people, wound the -- severely injure another, and not have any consequences to that. >> i don't know if we can adequately convey, greg, how outrageous it is in words. he was on valium, four people dead. -- four people with him. four dead and others injured. is this the worst failing of a judge you've ever seen? >> it's bizarre. in a weird way as parents you want to provide for your kid every kind of advantage that they can have is in life,

ethan. your organization advo case for drug policies grounded in science, compassion, health and human rights. in the end does it mean trying to get legalisation of drugs across the board? >> no, a third or a little more of our work focuses on ending marge prohibition in the u.s. and around the world. beginning with medical marijuana, and now, of course, with 58% of men's saying let's regulate. that's the focus. with the other drugs some membership would say legalize it all. most would say legalize marijuana, tax and regulate it. stop criminalizing people for drug possession. make a commitment to treating it. for those determined to get their drugs. they'll get it from the black market. look at what the europeans have done, allowing heroin addicts getting heroin from clinics. that's not legalisation, it's a policy advancing public safety. >> if prohibition and punishment as the main punishments is breaking up, why is that happening now? >> there are many reasons. now we are seeing the public

the family is now suing ethan couch and his family for $20 million. >> how is he going to be free to walk, you know? not even one night in jail, county, you know. yet, my brother's got a life sentence. >> reporter: the case has triggered an online recall petition aimed at the judge in the case, jean boyd, and a growing crowd of critics of the justice system that tilts towards the rich. >> unfortunately, the wounds that it opened only makes the healing process that much greater. >> reporter: a child of affluence who unlike others who confessed to the same crime is not heading to prison. mike taibbi, nbc news, los angeles. >>> and when we come back, honoring those who served. hundreds of thousands of them at this special time of year. >>> the scene at arlington national cemetery today as volunteers remembered those who served by placing wreaths at their graves. more than 100,000 of them. there were similar scenes in new jersey and at military cemeteries throughout the country. all part of a nonprofit program called wreaths across america. it expects to provide almost half a million thi

where ethan got everything he wanted from his parents.ash, the d-a wants justice for the victims. >> two others who were riding in the back of ethan's truck also suffered major injuries in the crash. one has internal injuries. and the other is paralyzed. we've also learned his parents have a long criminal history. ethan's dad was arrested for d-w-i and assault in the 90's. and his mom was charged with reckless driving in 2003. >> facebook is about to roll out a new strategy. this may upset a lot of users. i will tell you more about this on the tech report sprea [ male announcer ] some things are simply better at home. like the enticing aroma and distinctive taste of nespresso. elegant capsules meet masterfully crafted machines, and one touch creates the perfect coffee, cappuccino, and latte. ♪ tempt all your senses with one extraordinary coffee. [ penélope cruz ] nespresso. what else? [ male announcer ] available at these fine retailers and nespresso-us.com. with my united mileageplus explorer card. i've saved $75 in checked bag fees. [ d

it is what happened to him after he flew out of the back of ethan couch's pickup this past june.t couch ran into and killed four other people outside fort worth texas. alex is his older brother. >> they told us that basically that's as much as he's going to rehabilitate, that that's all we can hope for is how he is right now for the rest of his life. >> the family hopes and prays that's not true. meantime, they deal with realities. >> in six months since the accident, what have medical bills totalled? >> six months since the accident, over a million dollars. >> a million dollars. >> over a million dollars. >> sergio's family filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against ethan couch, his family, and his father's company because it was the company owned truck ethan was driving. an attorney for the driver's family told cnn the judge made the appropriate disposition in this case. but sergio's family says testimony in the trial revealed the teens in couch's truck pled with him to slow down, drive safer before the horrifying accident occurred. >> and how many people need ems? >> ma'am,

ethan came out again this time since he returned to the indian parliament and the prime minister's office. the mining data protection to be mean the government to keep the full exchanges into the milk giving get more strength and the delhi government increased policing in the booklets box the situation ginny into. i see an existence. at the top and that the uae the day because you'll want to paint that he'll be out of the succession flood protection and the safety of the men and that adding a baby at his action packed fun you can think. but beyond that. he teased him what's up with the kidney and so she got me meant that daddy built in desk. east timor's to block them out. statistics released by the government still had one thousand two hundred to team teach with interested in getting to do so but this year as compared to seven hundred and sixteen on a frosty a demanding baby c b don't feel any safer today and the statistics to back. but the event of the last year had me dreaming more confident about to put in crimes against them. hence the nice even number of duplicate kinds of me and so

the family is now suing ethan couch and his family for $20 million. >> how is he going to be free toalk, you know? not even one night in jail, county, you know. yet, my brother's got a life sentence. >> reporter: the case has triggered an online recall petition aimed at the judge in the case, jean boyd, and a growing crowd of critics of the justice system that tilts towards the rich. >> unfortunately, the wounds that it opened only makes the healing process that much greater. >> reporter: a child of affluence who unlike others who confessed to the same crime is not heading to prison. nbc news, los angeles. >>> and when we come back, honoring those who served. hundreds of thousands of them at honorin[ female announcer ] you get sick, you can't breathe through your nose... suddenly you're a mouth breather. a mouth breather! how do you sleep like that? you dry up, your cold feels even worse. well, put on a breathe right strip and shut your mouth. cold medicines open your nose over time, but add a breathe right strip, and pow! it instantly opens your nose up to 38% more so you can breath

could we actually see ethan couch go to jail? >> i have so many problems with this and i'll tell you in order. any plea agreement -- it should have been understood that all of the open cases, all of the open transcripts should have been consolidated and dealt with at once. i have to believe that at least couch believed they were being dealt with all in one instance. the second thing is, too, this raises some double jeopardy issues. i love the d.a.'s comment, due to the juvenile code, we can't make any other comments. he's saying everything else he plans on doing to this child. but at its core, this undermines trying to send couch to jail undermines the entire idea of the juvenile system. if we want to send juveniles to jail, let's get rid of the juvenile delinquency courts but we don't do that. juveniles are different. they develop differently. >> i appreciate that. not every case is the same. and that's the issue that so many people have with this kid and this particular sentence. i only have a couple seconds left. but tell me t

ethan couch was charged with four counts of intoxication manslaughter and tried as a juvenile. in one of the most bizarre defense strategies ever heard of, attorneys for couch blame the boy's parents for his behavior that night all because of how they raised him. psychologist and defense witness testify that the boy suffered from something called affluenza, a lifestyle where wealth brought privilege and there were no consequences for bad behavior. he cited one example where couch, then 15, was caught in a parked pickup with a naked 14-year-old girl, who was passed out. couch was never punished, according to the psychologist. he also testified that couch was allowed to start drinking at a very early age, even drive when he was just 13. prosecutors fought for a 20-year sentence, but the defense argued couch needed treatment, not prison. the judge agreed and gave couch ten years probation, plus time in alcohol rehab. no prison. she told the court she believes couch can be rehabilitated if he is away from his family and given the right treatment. he will likely end up at this price

now we learn more about ethan and his parents.lain fox news anchor megyn kelly is here right after the factor. tell me about the parents. >> so now we are learning that they have had several run-ins with the law themselves. and, you know, all that stuff was true. i mean, the parents from all accounts were really sort of absentee and let the kid do what he wanted and then held him to account. there was no personal responsibility held to him doesn't excuse anything. but it is true. >> what is the father holding. >> couch 48, charged with theft twice. once in '89 and once in '95. charge with now assaulting now ex-wife. charge with evading arrest. never convicted for those crimes. the wife on the other hand tonya couch 46 was charged with reckless driving in 2003, stopped for speeding with three kids who weren't secured in the car under age 17. looks like she was convicted on that and had to do six months of community service. so they have had more than the average brushes with the law. >> the kid lives with whom? >> now kids sent to

let's go to the case of ethan couch, the teen who some say was too rich to jail. jail time by claiming affluenza, but the civil lawsuits are piling up. there are currently five civil cases being filed including one for $20 million from the family of sergio molina. molina was severely injured by the accident and can no longer move or talk. in the criminal case, couch claimed he suffered from av lens is a and that his parents did not place limits on his behavior. now in the civil laws, couch's parents are also named. in addition, so is the company family. ethan had been driving the company-owned f-350 pickup truck at the time of the crash. faith, what do you expect from the civil suits. >> i think the cure of affluenza is to deprive him of his wealth. i think his parents should be prepared to write out a check and the question is how many zeros to add to the end of it. there is a good case here to get to these parents and the money and that company because ethan was driving the company's truck. the parents knew he had a propensity to drink. he'd been stopped for dri