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Lily Webb

Professor Don Moore

October 15, 2016

EH 102

Affluenza

In January of 2015, student athlete Brock Turner sexually assaulted an intoxicated,

unconscious woman. In June of 2016, Turner was sentenced to a mere six months in prison. The

reasoning of such a short sentence being it would have a “severe impact on him, [and his father

argued that] a kid’s life shouldn’t be ruined…because of 20 minutes of action”(Dockterman).

This argument is one that is often brought up in recent culture. Teens or young adults who are

convicted of crimes such as sexual assault, driving under intoxication, or other similar types of

crimes are often let off the hook. This defense used is known as “Affluenza”, the idea of being

“too spoiled by [one’s] parents to know right from wrong”(Gutman).

The “Affluenza” defense is a greatly debated one. Those who argue in favor of the

affluenza defense often make arguments along the lines of a spoiled life causing a child to not

see consequences of their actions. Along these lines, they argue that if the children don’t see

what their outcome may be, and they carry out negative, harmful, illegal action, their life

shouldn’t be ruined based off of the one bad decision. Those who believe in affluenza think that

these young people can be steered straight, and these moments can be used as teaching

experiences. However, others do not agree in the validity of the Affluenza defense. Those with

this perspective also make the argument that affluenza often goes hand-in-hand with the idea of

“white privilege”. White privilege is the “unearned advantages enjoyed consciously or

subconsciously by people of white skin”(Hossain). Often times, those young people who execute
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the defense known as Affluenza, are white. They make the argument that if someone of color

were to commit these offenses, they would not get away with it. Another argument against

Affluenza is that while twenty minutes of bad decisions shouldn’t have to ruin a life: it does. “A

privileged life can be destroyed by 20 minutes of irresponsible, selfish, and hurtful

actions”(Clark). Those who argue against Affluenza feel that white privilege and Affluenza are

not acceptable defenses to help young people get away with crime, and it needs to be brought

into the light as to why.

Brock Turner’s sexual assault case has blown up in recent months. His fathers description

of why he should not be punished severely is an example of Affluenza. While Turner was guilty

of the charges, he faced only six months in prison. His father argued that Turner “shouldn’t go to

jail, but receive probation, so he can visit college campuses speaking about the dangers of

‘alcohol consumption and sexual promiscuity’”(Clark). The idea is that these young people

committing crimes are just mislead, and with the correct treatment of their crimes, they can

return to the correct path. It is true, that “most white males on campus are not irresponsible

drinkers, vandals, or abusers; most are bright and informed”(Clark). If these offenses of young

people are treated somewhat lightly, maybe these men can be steered straight. Affluenza argues

that a young person has “been so coddled by [their] wealthy parents that [they] are unequipped to

deal with the consequences” (Rothman) of the offense that they have carried out. The

phenomenon of Affluenza is not a new one, either. The idea of one’s privilege causing young

people to misunderstand the consequences of their actions has been a defense for a while. For

example, the 1924 case of Leopold and Loeb. Two Chicago students, Nathan Leopold and

Richard Loeb, kidnapped and murdered a 14-year-old boy, and were able to avoid the Death

Penalty using the defense of having been “stunted by their privilege…[it was said that their]
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sheltered lives made them victims, too”(Rothman). All of these cases of Affluenza argue that

too much shelter and privilege is what led these young people to this path of destruction, and

they should not be punished for it. It is not their fault that they were raised this way, and with a

bit of guidance, they should be able to overcome their negative actions.

On the other hand: many find the Affluenza defense to be completely illegitimate excuse

for crime. “The Los Angeles Times report[ed] that a bill introduced by assemblyman Mike Gatto

[attempted] to outlaw “affluenza” as a legal defense”(Kedmey) because he disagreed with it so

strongly. He believed that “degenerative judgement brought about by fat allowances”(Kedmey)

is not an acceptable excuse, and they should receive punishment rather than “posh

rehab.”(Kedmey) Not only do they believe that being “overly spoiled” as a child is not a defense,

they also make the argument of White Privilege. Picture this: a young white man, Ethan Couch,

drives while under the influence of alcohol, and “kills four bystanders in a drunk driving

wreck….The judge gave him only probation, 10 years [because he was] too spoiled by his

parents to know right from wrong”(Gutman). Now, if the situation were shifted to a young black

man— some view the circumstances as completely different. The justice system treats different

races completely differently. An example of this is touched on by George Hartley, who speaks

about the occurrences in Ferguson, Missouri. An 18-year-old named Michael Brown was seen

“stealing cigars from a convenience store and threatening the store’s manager”. A police officer

known as Darren Wilson caught him and followed him shot him. An “autopsy showed that

Brown had been struck by bullets six times, including twice in the head”(Hartley). Compared to

the drunk driving and manslaughter charge found guilty of Ethan Couch, the shoplifting and

harassment Brown was culpable to seem minimal. However, Couch was allowed to walk free on

parole, and Brown’s charges cost him his life.

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These two sides of the issue, however, can find shared arguments. In both sides of the

argument, they talk about the idea of a life being changed within twenty minutes. On both sides

of the argument, it is said that a a kid’s life shouldn’t be ruined…because of 20 minutes of

action”(Dockterman). However, where they disagree, is one side of the argument is that the

individual who commits the crime should be let off fairly easy, so that their life won’t be ruined

because it was only a twenty-minute mistake. The other side of the argument acknowledges that,

while it is very sad that twenty minutes can ruin a life, that’s exactly what it did, and they still

have to pay the price for their wrongdoings. Another point that both perspectives take into

account is that these poor decisions are teaching moments. Once again, however, the side that

supports the affluenza defense believe that the outcome is either/or, while the other side believes

it is an “and.” For example: either Brock Turner goes to jail, or he spends his time teaching those

not to make the same mistakes that he has made. While the other side of the argument is that

Brock Turner should educate others to not make the same mistakes that he has made, and he also

needs to suffer the consequences for his wrongdoings.

Through this common ground, they could find a shared solution to the problem. They

could come to the conclusion that and is the way that this needs to be handled. While it is very

sad that these actions ruined a life, these offenders still need to be punished for the actions they

carried out. However, they should also not let go of the idea that these negative actions are a

learning experience. People like Brock Turner and Ethan Couch can be used as an example of

negative behavior and they can also be spokespeople against the types of crimes that they

committed. Those who were harmed should not have been harmed in vain. These young men

should pay for the poor choices they have made, but they should also prevent others from
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making the same mistakes. If they speak out, they can prevent others from becoming victims to

the same kind of crime that they committed.

The topic of Affluenza is a debated defense. Those who argue in favor of the itdefense

argue that a spoiled life causes a child to not see consequences of their actions, and since they

don’t see what their outcome may be, their life shouldn’t be ruined based off of the one bad

decision. Those who believe in affluenza think that these young people can be steered straight,

and these moments can be used as teaching experiences. Many others, however, argue that the

defense is invalid, and allows privileged young people to get away with negative actions. Those

who disagree with the Affluenza defense also often argue that it goes hand-in-hand with white

privilege, or the “unearned advantages enjoyed consciously or subconsciously by people of white

skin”(Hossain). There are similarities between the two sides of the issues: mostly being those

that discuss how the crimes should be dealt with. Through this common ground, there is a way to

find a shared solution to the problem.

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SOURCES

Clark, Naeemah. "Stanford Sexual-Assault Case Reveals the Chasm That Privilege Creates."

Chronicle of Higher Education. N.p., 24 June 2016. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

Clark approaches this at almost a neutral prospective initially. She addresses the possible idea

behind the Affluenza defense in the specific case of Brock Turner. Turner's father argued how he

could grow from the poor choices he made, and Clark addresses this honestly. The subject of

sexual assault on campus is one that Clark is familiar with, as a professor and director of

communications at Elon University. She speaks of the impact on white males that can arise from

sexual assault, and she talks about how twenty minutes of poor choices can ruin a life.

Docktermen, Eliana. "On Campuses 'Party Culture' No Longer Excuses Rape." Editorial. TIME

Magazine 27 June 2016: 21-23. Print. Dockterman provides a detailed breakdown of the case of

Brock Turner's sexual assault. She speaks in favor of the the victim, and says the idea of Turner

getting off the hook by calling his behavior a "drunken mistake" is "downplaying". She also

addresses how this occurrence has brought up the argument that women in our culture are made
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to believe they are "responsible for preventing their own rapes". She touches the issue of Title IX

as well, and talks about the issue of sexual assault in broader terms on college campuses.

Gutman, Matt. ""Affluenza" Teen Returns." World News with Diane Sawyer. ABC. Texas, 28

Jan. 2016. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

Gutman reports on one of the most famous cases of the Affluenza defense: Ethan Couch. He

drove while intoxicated, resulting in the deaths of four people. However, due to the argument of

being "too spoiled" his parents, he was let off with ten years of probation. Gutman covers the

case, and also speaks about Couch and his mother attempting to escape probation by fleeing to

Mexico.

Hartley, George Alfred. "Ferguson Protests of 2014." Funk & Wagnalls New World

Encyclopedia. N.p., 2016. Web. 23 Oct. 2016. This article gave a detailed description of what

happened during the Ferguson Riots in 2014. It was a very straightforward, unbiased source.

Gave simple descriptions of what happened and didn't seem to express it in favor of either side of

the argument.

Hossain, Kazi I. "White Privilege - Perceptions of Pre-Service Teachers." Multicultural

Education 2015: 52-55. Multicultural Education Vol. 23. 2015. Web. 15 Oct. 2016. Hossain

provides a detailed analysis of the issue of White Privilege. He covers it in an education point of

view, based upon his students. He first attempts to help the students develop an understanding,

and also speaks of their reflections on the issue. He even includes a group of students that accept
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the issue, and a group that is in denial. It is a comprehensive summary of the issue of White

Privilege.

Kedmey, Dan. "California Moves to Outlaw "Affluenza" Defense for Rich Kids." Los Angeles

Times. Time.com, 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 23 Oct. 2016. The Los Angeles Times reports an

assemblyman who strongly opposed the Affluenza Defense. It is a newspaper article speaking

about said man, Mike Gatto, who attempted to get this defense outlawed in the state of

California.

Rothman, Lily. "The 'Affluenza' Defense Is Older Than You Think." TIME. Time.com, 9 Feb.

2016. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

Rothman brings a historical approach to the Affluenza defense. She talks about the recent cases

using this defense: a teen named Ethan Couch killed four people in a drunk driving accident, and

was let off with the defense of "Affluenza". She touches on this case, and then she speaks of it

not being something that has just come about recently. She addresses the infamous case of

Leopold and Loeb, where two child murderers were let off due to their "sheltered lives" leading

them to the path they ended up on. The historical approach is not one that many people took,

which made this a valuable source.

Salam, Reihan. "Black and White in Shades of Gray." National Review, 5 Oct. 2015. Web. 23

Oct. 2016. This article addresses the happenings in Ferguson and touches on the issue of White

Privilege in the Justice System. Ferguson was the occurrence of the shooting of a black man,

Michael Brown, by police in Ferguson, Missouri. It is written about a specific photograph

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reading "Black Lives Matter" and digs into the idea of white supremacy. This article focuses on

anti-black racism, rather than White Privilege in general.