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'Affluenza' teen may delay deportation with human rights law (w/video)

 
Published Jan. 2, 2016

FORT WORTH, Texas — Lawyers for a Texas teen who cited "affluenza" as a defense in a deadly drunken-driving wreck may be attempting to stall his deportation to the United States by claiming that Mexican authorities violated his human rights, according to legal experts.

Ethan Couch, 18, won a delay in his deportation based on a constitutional appeal in Mexico that could lead to a trial process that could last weeks or even months.

Any flaw in the process of his detention by Mexican immigration authorities can be considered a violation of due process and of his human rights, San Antonio attorney Javier Lopez de Obeso, who is licensed to practice in Mexico, said Thursday.

"If the immigration authorities didn't act properly, he can find a way to stay in Mexico for more time," Lopez said.

If the judge considering the appeal decides there was a mistake made in the process of detaining Couch, he could be released, and authorities would have to rearrest him, Lopez said.

Couch's mother, Tonya Couch, 48, was returned to the United States early Thursday after her deportation from Mexico.