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Published Monday, February 13, 2012 in Opinion
Our ineffective system regarding child support not serving families
Editorial
(Editor's note: Today's guest editorial is from the Savannah Morning News.)
•••
For fathers who have failed to make their child support payments, life has become a revolving door. They go to court, go to jail, try to find work, go to court, and so on.
Georgia lawmakers should try to find a way to fix this ineffective system to better serve families.
The legal system for fathers who don't pay child support is harsh, and with good reason -- some need the threat of a jail cell to make act responsibly.
However, for fathers like Lance Hendrix, the revolving door shows no compassion, even when it has been earned.
According to an Associated Press article, Hendrix served in the military and worked odd jobs to pay child support for his daughter. After he paid about $3,800, his funds ran low and he was sent to jail for four months for not paying his child support.
Now released, he finds it increasingly harder to find work, which will eventually result in another jail sentence. Hendrix referred to this cycle as an "impossible situation."
Hendrix is teaming with four other fathers to change Georgia's laws that send them to jail for lack of payments. They feel the courts should be more lenient to fathers who have taken child support seriously, but fell on hard times.
The dads have a point, especially when the legal system appears to be at fault. According to court records, at least 3,500 parents since January 2010 have received jail time because of child support without an attorney being provided for them.
Sarah Geraghty, a member of the Southern Center for Human Rights in Atlanta, referred to the situation as a "modern day debtor's prison."
Her metaphor is a good one. It's unrealistic in today's economy to expect fathers to find work in a shortened amount of time with a jail sentence on their record.
Geraghty has pointed out that Georgia uses jail time as a first resort instead of a last resort. That should be changed.
Judges should look at each case individually, not apply cookie-cutter justice.
Comment On This Story
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The very name of this law is a sign board of discrimination. True there are some dead beat Dads, and Moms as well, and many others that fall under this law are dead beats at all. When a governmental agency is allowed to suspend licenses there is always abuse. People may be working or driving on a suspended license and not even know it. If stopped there could be fines and/or jail time. GA even allows other states to come into its Driver Data Base and Suspend GA Licenses without proof of guilt. This is "Guilty until proven Innocent."
Posted by ED R at 10:49 AM
2/16/2012
Why when in court they don't attach required child support to their SS#? That way they can never run and hide. For the man who "falls on hard times"...get over yourself. The woman and child you left behind struggle more than yourself. I wish more would go to jail and just be released on work release. If single parents can't pay the rent, electricity, water I hope it will be ok to give out the dead beats name and number to collect the child support that was due to help pay for the care of your child. The only place you can raise a child on $240 a month is in a third world country.
Posted by AG at 9:23 AM
You obviously did not know enough about this subject to publish your own article. You reprinted an article from The Savannah Morning News. My comment was long because this is a very complex issue with a number of unlawful and discriminatory practices. For example, you said nothing about the Class Action Suit in progress in Fulton Superior Court on this very issue. Since 1998 the Dept of human Resources has ignored (GA Supreme Court) Hughes v. Dept of Human Resources. No attorney is provided for these cases yet we provide free attorneys for Murderers, Rapists, etc.
Posted by ED R at 7:46 PM
having babies. Fathers who do not accept the responsibility of supporting their offspring are selfish. You see them everyday sporting their pit bulls , fancy wheels and expensive stereo systems while taxpayers support their kids. What about lifestyles of alleged father's who are just as promiscuous if not moreso than the mothers? Takes two to make a baby .
Posted by twocrows at 4:21 PM
None of this is about having babies. It is all about forcing fathers and forcing the government to pay for selfish women lifestyles. Stop all child support and stop all government handout programs. These women will quit having babies. Moms who truely love their children will care for them without child suppot or government handouts. My mom did.
Posted by BH at 3:00 PM
isn't working . I encountered a 29 year old mother in Columbus with 9 kids and a daughter in Macon who said her father had 28. Medicaid is accepted at abortion clinics in Decatur and Columbus so the way to "fix" the problem is to murder your unborn child. I suppose that's a more acceptable solution than sterilization?
Posted by twocrows at 12:29 PM
I need to know how to get in with this. I know of people who are thousands of dollars behind but let my husband get one month behind they are threating his license(that he needs to work) and taking him to court its not a good nor fair system.
Posted by Amanda at 3:07 AM
Sounds like Joe wants to start his own regime and be a modern day Hitler. Just sterilize anyone who receives any kind of help that Joe doesn`t qualify for.
Posted by Dave at 12:47 AM
Sure would like the term mothers who don't pay more often. I have had my son full time for 6 years and not a dime from a dead beat mother!
Posted by sj at 12:03 AM
move out of state they will never find you like my wife's ex husband sorry guy owes like 30,000. what a great man he is!child support in georgia are the best ever!!!!
Posted by great guy at 10:34 PM
GA. does not support the Dad in anyway! You can not find out anything on childsupport from the government we pay taxes to - unless you want to collect money...what kind of state do we live in? Our taxes pay the salary of people who don't offer any help to the non-custodial parent.
Posted by Debra at 9:34 PM
I totally agree with this. It is so hard to find any job in the country today. Jail time should be an absolute last resort. The father's always get the short end of the stick in a divorce. I also believe that the mother's who are receiving child support should have to show what they spend that money on. They should have to keep receipts and records of where that money is going.
The mother's need to be held more accountable when it comes to raising the kids!
Posted by Kelli Overton at 7:56 PM
Your comment was not approved because it drastically exceeded our 100-word limit.
Posted by Moderator at 5:55 PM
Why not stick it out and raise your children?
My husband and I had our problems went to counseling and put those issues aside until the children graduated from high school. Divorce is too easy a option now,just like abortion,don't like the problem then just bail out.
Posted by Nancy at 5:36 PM
maybe if the writer of this article had any experience with being a single parent they would realize that the deadbeat is still getting off easy when ordered to pay support it is the other parent who is left to try and make ends meet and raise a child alone. Now that is "Harsh"
Posted by michelle at 4:51 PM
Your comment was not approved because it drastically exceeded our 100-word limit.
Posted by Moderator at 4:33 PM
Families that are not divorced fall on hard times also but we still have to find a way to buy our kids clothes, food, school supplies, etc and I could go on and on and on no sympathy felt here. There are plenty of resources for help. Those kids are your kids for forever. You made them you find a way to pay for them!!!!!
Posted by anonymous at 3:39 PM
A man makes 25k a year. His ex makes 25k a year. He pays 40% in taxes and benefits and 30% in child support. Now he has 8k a year to live on. She payes 5k a year in taxes and now she has 37k to live on. He also has to pay all medical bills. Maybe half if he is lucky. All this with joint custody and he never sees his children. All because his wife wants to party and play around.He needs a 75k job just to have 23k to live on. All with the threat of going to jail at his ex's whims. What fair courts we have.
Posted by BH at 3:25 PM
Divorce is too easy now; and there's no stigma of public pressure to remain married. I favor a 6 month waiting period after you apply for a license to get married in the first place! Aside from all that if you fail to make child support -- you get sterilized so you can’t create more problems.
Posted by Govt watcher at 2:33 PM
Same story here...My Cousins ex-wife has never paid a dime of child support in 12 years at a rate of $250.00 a month.
$36,000....They will lock a guy up in a heartbeat but you can not make a judge lock a women up that owes money... she has to spit in his face to get locked up.
On the other hand just as stated a guy trying and wanting to pay is in and out of jail. with license suspended
There are no jobs!!!
Thank you Sarah Geraghty
Posted by Ken at 1:03 PM
Jail should only be for those who have the means but continue to refuse to pay. To do otherwise is not only a debetor's prison but makes the future of the children even more doubtful with the father less likely to land adequate paying employment.
Joe would change his mind if it was his son or daughter who may have fallen on hard times.
Posted by turfkiller at 12:35 PM
I don't think you should lump everyone getting EIC into that group. My husband works extremely hard and we do not get Fstamps or Medicaid. We pay all of our bills and make it with his 26k per year. We do qualify for a small EIC but that doesn't make us the ones sucking the life out of the gov't.
Posted by taxpayer at 12:07 PM
I agree with the comment that Judges should look at each case individually..
Posted by Susan1 at 12:07 PM
And yet somehow the mothers find a way......
Posted by Jill Travoss at 11:25 AM
The writer of this article has no idea what's really going on with child support. Most "parents" are given far too many chances before being sent to jail. It is not a debtor's prison, because it is a unwilling child victim that is not being supported -not a bank or someone that chose to give a loan. The writer also only mentioned fathers whereas mothers often times don't pay either.
Posted by jj at 11:16 AM
Key word in this Savannah News Editorial is three letter word in second paragraph.
"Fix"-- Fix the problem the same way I fixed my spaniel. Current proposed legislation providing cheap sterilization could be expanded to the unemployed & anyone with a "free" cell phone or an EBT card or filing for an "Earned Income Credit" check and--The list could go On, and On, and On-------------
Posted by Joe at 11:15 AM
I can empathize with some of these gentlemen but the rules should not be changed to benefit the ones who are a burden on the system like the fools who run around and have 7 kids with 5 different women and then claim poverty. Maybe a sterilization clause can be written in for those deadbeats.
Posted by Billy at 10:16 AM
My ex sister in law was ordered to pay child support. She never did or does. She hasn't been to jail, just a slap on the hand and told to pay it. It is sad when she does the same thing some men do, but doesn't get the same punishment. Yes, my brother was ordered full custody of his kids.
Posted by Whatsinaname at 10:02 AM
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Child Support
2/17/2012
Link To This Comment
I'm a noncustodial mother. I hold steady jobs for years at a time. Much better than my ex. If I fall one month behind due to jobloss, I have a summons for court. While my ex is in a three income household and I'm the single provider for my own household. I'm a full time time student with a squeky clean record. I take responsiblity to pay my child support. I'm not a dead beat mom so I agree that jailtime should be reserved for those who regularly avoid paying.
Posted by Anonymous1 at 11:37 AM