I just spent 2 days in jail (Georgetown, KY)for not being able to pay my full child support payment. Now I have to go back to court the 27th of September and I fear being put away for a long time.
2007-09-23 19:02:14 · 9 answers · asked by Lorraine C 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Wow, too bad that didn't happen to my deadbeat father, he had 5 kids and left em for dead in a gutter. It's to discourage abstinent parenthood and encourage responsibility. Sorry to hear you're getting jailed even though you tried to pay. But if that dude coulda been prevened from making a gutter baby then this law was needed since 1901.
Courts are too strict, too strict.
2007-09-23 19:09:48 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
They are being sent to jail not because the court wants to put them there. Instead, jail, and the threat of jail, is a tool used by the courts to pressure and otherwise encourage people to pay "child support", no matter how unjust or asinine the award may be.
Oh! A woman went to jail for that? WOW! Now the shoe is on the other foot! Dang! I thought that it was only men who got castrated and sodomized in the so called "Family" courts. Hmmm....
As I see it, you have a few options:
Go back to court. When you appear before the judge show your middle finger, and tell the court that it can go to hell. Then you will end up in jail for contempt, until you change your attitude, I suppose. But, maybe you will get an actual, well defined sentence.
Tell the judge that you are willing to pay, but unable. Courts are usually MIGHTY reluctant to send anyone to jail who is both willing and able to PAY. And pay and pay and pay! This is because, if you are in jail, then you have no job, right? And, if you have no job, then how in H*ll can you pay any "child support". So, this is one of the VERY few areas that you actually have some leverage with the court.
Get a lawyer.
Become a fugitive.
2007-09-23 20:36:24 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Because no one forced you to have the child. He or she is your responsibility and if that means getting a second job or waiting tables, you do what you can to hold up your end.
There is no excuse for backing out of your responsibility.
That being said, jail is not such a good idea. You can't be productive from there and the one who suffers is your child.
You should be put into some sort of service program where you earn money and your wages get sent to your child.
Interesting problem here. You shirk your responsibility to support your child and your community (the public) ends up supporting you (food, shelter, basic costs of living taken care of by tax payers)!
Jail. Bad idea. Courts should reconsider their decisions on cases such as these.
2007-09-23 19:15:31 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
The fact that the court saw fit to jail you was NOT for non-payment of child support but for contempt on the order to pay.
EVERYONE has the 'ability' to pay child support. (and if you'd like to trade payments, then you can have my $5,000 per month payment). You either have a history of not working and not paying or you simply refuse to pay.
Either way, the nights in jail were on contempt, NOT non-payment.
2007-09-24 01:06:19 · answer #4 · answered by hexeliebe 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Because there is a court order that says you will pay X amount of dollars in child support. If you fail to do so, you violated a court order, which is against the law.
Support your kids, and the problem self corrects.
2007-09-23 19:06:56 · answer #5 · answered by Citicop 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Go to court and have the payments adjusted to fit your current income. The thing is, if you had the kids in your custody, you'd still have to support them with the same amount of money or they'd be taken away. You have to sacrifice for your children whether they live with you or not. Good luck.
2007-09-23 19:07:02 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
im not sure why they would do that. as a matter of fact you may not have to go to jail the second time. i just spent seven days till i was sent to the state that i owe the support in and i bonded out i have court in october. email me and let me know how things went and what the judge wanted to see so ill know what to expect please
2007-09-23 19:08:38 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
You are given reviews every 6 mo, depending in your state. If you fail to update or show earnings as required, yes that is what happens.
Remember that even if you don't pay for a year or more, when you start earning, you will be garnished.
2007-09-23 19:08:04 · answer #8 · answered by Mephisto 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Better have some proof of your financial situation.
2007-09-23 19:08:33 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋