Story highlights Texas grand jury indicts Tonya Couch for hindering prosecution

Authorities say Couch helped her son flee to Mexico to avoid jail for violating probation

(CNN) The mother of the teenager who claimed his affluent upbringing made him less culpable for killing four people while driving drunk has been indicted by a Texas grand jury.

Tonya Couch faces charges of hindering apprehension of a felon and money laundering, said Samantha Jordan, spokeswoman for the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office. The charges arise from a trip Couch and her son, Ethan Couch, took to Mexico while he was serving 10 years on probation for intoxication manslaughter.

More information was not available because the court has imposed a gag order.

Authorities said Ethan Couch and his mother fled to Mexico to avoid a court hearing to determine if he had violated his probation by attending a party where alcohol was served.

Mexican authorities found them at a Pacific resort town. In January, Ethan Couch was returned to Tarrant County, where he has remained in jail.

Read More