The two presumptive front-runners in the race for Texas governor say they're outraged by a probation sentence given to a North Texas teen for a deadly wreck that killed four pedestrians.
Attorney General Greg Abbott and state Sen. Wendy Davis discussed the case of 16-year-old Ethan Couch following his sentencing last week in Fort Worth.
Couch was given 10 years' probation instead of prison in the June accident, a sentence that has gotten national attention.
Controversy surrounding the sentence has become focused on the defense's strategy which included testimony that Couch suffered from "affluenza" -- a diagnosis not recognized by the American Psychiatric Association which refers to an upbringing so privileged that a person is unable to discern right from wrong.
Abbott says his office is studying whether the sentence can be reviewed and told KTVT-TV that the result of Couch's case was "outrageous."
Davis, a Democrat who represents Fort Worth, told WFAA-TV says she wants to study changes that can be made "from a legislative perspective."
Meanwhile, the judge who handed down the sentence is facing public calls for her resignation and an online petition on Change.org demanding that current Texas Gov. Rick Perry remove her from the bench. Under current Texas law, the governor can remove a sitting judge from the bench with approval of two-thirds of Texas House and Senate members.
