Ethan would invite strangers back to the huge Burleson, Texas, where he lived alone, according to a friend

This was because State District Judge Jean Boyd agreed his upbringing had given him 'freedoms' he couldn't deal with

He had faced 20 years behind bars but walked away with 10 years probation last week

Son Ethan Couch, 16, was drunk and high when he plowed into a broken down car, taking four lives and injuring more in June last year

Mr Couch has been arrested for theft, evading arrest and an alleged assault against his now ex-wife. He paid out over nine driving citation fines

Fred and Tonya Couch have had many brushes with the law from speeding to assault

The parents of the drunk driving teen controversially spared jail after killing four people have more than 20 criminal and traffic offense claims on their records - but have never served any time in prison, MailOnline can reveal today.

Ethan Couch, 16, was only sentenced to ten years’ probation following June’s horrific car wreck after his defense attorney argued he suffered from a condition called 'affluenza' which means he is so spoiled by his mother and father he is not fully responsible for his actions.

Now MailOnline can reveal his parents, millionaire sheet metal manufacturer Fred Couch and ex-wife Tonya have had many brushes with the law themselves.

Previous: Fred couch, Ethan Couch's father, has a long list of criminal and traffic citations against him on record from speeding charges, theft to even assault against his now ex-wife, Tonya

Criminal: Mother Tonya Couch paid a $500 for driving another motorist off the road

Spared: Ethan Couch was sentenced to 10-years probation rather than 20-years in jail after he killed 4 people in a DUI incident in June

They have several driving citations on their records and Mr Couch has been arrested for alleged crimes including theft, evading arrest and an alleged assault against Mrs Couch, according to official court documents obtained at the Johnson County Court records office in Cleburne.

But aside from a number of small fines for their motoring offenses and a six-month community supervision order issued to Mrs Couch, neither of them have been punished further.

In fact all of the more serious cases against Mr Couch, going back as far as 1989, have been dismissed.

Charges were dropped in the two theft cases, because Mr Couch paid substantial restitution.

That my be particularly relevant to his son's case. Gerry Miller, a psychologist testifying on behalf of the defense in Ethan Couch’s trial, told the court: ‘The teen never learned to say that you’re sorry if you hurt someone. If you hurt someone, you sent him money.’

Today, a source at the Johnson County court records office in Cleburne, said Mr Couch ‘must have a very good attorney’.

According to official documentation, Mr Couch, 48, has a blizzard of 22 accusations on his record, made up of four criminal misdemeanor allegations and 18 traffic violations.

They resulted in nine driving citation fines for offenses ranging from doing 95mph in a 60mph zone, to driving without his license.The majority of the other citations were dismissed.

On top of that he has been arrested over allegations of theft twice and evading arrest once. In June 1988 he allegedly bought a $46 pair of shoes with a worthless check, but the case was dismissed after he ‘paid full restitution of $830.56’.

Killed: Hollie Boyles, 52, and her daughter, Shelby Boyles, 21, were helping out the driver of a broken down SUV when they were struck and killed by Couch's out-of-control pickup

Victims: Breanna Mitchell, and Brian Jennings, 41, were both killed in the horrific crash

In April 1992 he was again accused of using a worthless check, this time to buy $26.41 of gas. And again the case was dismissed after he paid $274.80.

Two years earlier he was accused of evading arrest. That case was also dismissed, although it is unclear why from court records.

And in 1996 he was arrested for allegedly assaulting his wife. Records state he, ‘intentionally and knowingly caused bodily injury to Tonya Couch by striking’ her ‘on or about the face with his hands causing Tonya to fall, and by grabbing’ her ‘on or about the neck with his hands, scratching’ her ‘neck’.

On that occasion Mrs Couch submitted a sworn affidavit of non-prosecution, meaning the case was dismissed.

Her police record is shorter. In 2003 she was charged with a misdemeanor offense of reckless driving after she, ‘intentionally and knowingly drove a motor vehicle in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property’.

Court records say she pulled up behind a fellow motorist and then pulled alongside them forcing them onto the shoulder of the road.

Mrs Couch was hit with a $500 fine and a six month community supervision order.

She was also stopped for speeding and three counts of failing to adequately secure children under 17-years-old that same year.

Left alone to live in luxury: This is the mansion on Burleson Retta Rd. in Burleson, Texas that Ethan Couch hosted wild parties at while unsupervised

Mr and Mrs Couch’s previous bad behavior will bring them under even more scrutiny. Many, including the defense attorney they hired to act on behalf of their son, have slammed their parenting skills and blamed them for their son’s horrendous actions, which happened at around 11.45pm on June 15.

Couch and a group his friends got into a red Ford F350 pick-up – owned by his father’s company - and were speeding at 70mph in a 40mph zone when the truck left the road.

As it careered out of control, it clipped a broken down SUV, throwing the owner and four Good Samaritans, who were trying to help, 60 yards in the air. Youth pastor Brian Jennings, mother and daughter Hollie and Shelby Boyles and 24-year-old Breanna Mitchell were all killed on impact.

Trial notes claim the cocky teenager said 'I'm Ethan Couch, I'll get you out of this,' to one of his passengers at the scene.

It was revealed soon after that his blood-alcohol level was 0.24 - three times the adult limit, though minors aren't allowed any alcohol in their system - and that he was also on the prescription drug Valium when he started the chain reaction of crashes. The impact flung the four people 50 to 60 yards, authorities reported.

In court a top defense attorney hired by the Couch family argued that the teen was not responsible for his actions.

Dr Miller, blamed his behavior on his parents, claiming they gave him whatever he wanted including 'freedoms no young person should have'.

Respectable face: Frederick Couch (left) who owns a metal works, Cleburne Sheet Metal, that has an estimated yearly turnover of $15 million and around 30 staff is seen in a picture from a company brochure while (right) is Tonya A cross is all the remains of the crash site: Ethan Couch, 16, was driving under the influence when he killed 4 in a crash that occurred a short distance from his father's house on Burleson Retta Rd. in Burleson, Texas

Dr Miller called Couch a product of 'affluenza,' where his family felt their wealth bought privilege and there was no rational link between behavior and consequences.

'The teen never learned to say that you’re sorry if you hurt someone,' Dr Miller said, according to the Star Telegram. 'If you hurt someone, you sent him money.'

State District Judge Jean Boyd appeared to agree with the defense and gave him ten years’ probation and counseling at a 'country club'-style treatment center - at a cost of $450,000 in Newport Beach, California, paid for by his father.

The ruling has caused outrage around the nation, with many claiming Couch only escaped jail because of his parents' wealth.

The idea that someone can be given a light sentence because their parents are rich has resulted in a furious response.

MailOnline gave a shocking insight into just how spoiled Couch was. He regularly boasted to friends that he lived in his own mansion, completely unsupervised by his parents – who are now divorced - and used to host wild, alcohol-fueled parties at the luxurious property in Burleson, Texas. He had been partying at the house unsupervised on the night of the accident.

Teenager Anthony Lamanna was invited to ‘Couch’s house’ just three days before the deadly wreck. He had never met the teenager before and was stunned by what he saw.

He said: ‘Ethan lived in this big place with a long winding drive way that went all the way round to his back yard, which had a large pool in it.

No jail: Judge Jean Boyd is facing calls to be removed from her position after she handed out a remarkably lenient sentence of 10 years probation to Ethan Couch who killed four people while on a drunken joyride

Instead of prison, Couch is set to spend time at the swanky Newport Academy male residential rehabilitation center in California with his parents footing the bill

‘When we arrived, the first thing he did was jump in the pool, with his clothes on, rip his shirt off then start downing a big bottle of vodka.

‘He was really knocking it back, he must have drunk about six or seven shots in one go. That set the tone and from then on he was just boasting and trying to impress us about how much he drank and how much he partied.

‘There was no furniture except for a big couch, a wide screen TV and his X Box. It definitely looked like the kind of place a teenager would live in.'

On the night of the fatal crash – which also left passenger Sergio Molina paralyzed – Couch had stolen beer from a local Wal-Mart.

Anthony says he did something very similar the night he visited the mansion. He explained ‘Earlier in the evening he had picked us up in that same red pick-up that he crashed three nights later.

‘He had been boasting that he was a thief and on the way to his house he stopped off at a shop in Burleson and him and a friend stole some beers.

Forever changed: Sergio Molina, now 16, was in a coma following the June accident but now has been transferred home and has been awarded a $2 million settlement by a court in Texas

‘One went in the front and passed beers to the other one who was standing by the fire escape. The alarm was going off and we just drove away. He didn’t care’

MailOnline contacted Mr and Mrs Couch and the family attorney but they had not replied at the time of publication.

Sergio Molina’s family have launched a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the Couch family and their company Cleburne Sheet Metal LLC – which has an estimated yearly revenue of around $15 million.

They have referenced two previous drinking violations committed by Couch prior to the crash in legal documents.

In one he was apparently caught drinking, while parked in a vehicle with an underage girl. That incident happened just months before the crash.

Judge Jean Boyd has faced intense criticism over her decision not to send Couch to prison and there have been calls for her to step down.

Yesterday MailOnline reported that Judge Boyle has not always been so lenient when it comes to youth offenders.

Scene: 911 callers described cars everywhere and kids' lying in ditches' after the June 15 smash

Injured: Sergio Molina (left) and Soliman Mohmand (right) were two of was seriously injured. They were both riding in Couch's truck when the cash occurred

Last year she sentenced a 14-year old African American boy to prison for ten years for killing one person with a powerful punch. The teenage suspect’s name was never made public since he was prosecuted as a juvenile.

Boyd is expected to retire next year, but a petition has been launched at change.org demanding that Texas Governor Rick Perry remove her from the bench immediately.

'This sentence is a slap in the face [of] the families of those who were killed. He's sent to California to a spa-type center while the families of the victims get to go to a cemetery,' wrote a supporter of the petition, Stephen Pyka of Texas.