Charges filed for over $67,000 in child support

The Jackson County District Attorney’s Office filed more charges last week against two men who reportedly owe over $67,000 in child support and interest. One man owes money to two different women.

Brian K. Gulbronson, 37, Black River Falls, faces 16 failure to support charges in two separate cases while Darrell J. Towne, 38, Holmen, was charged with six similar offenses.

According to the criminal complaints, Gulbronson owes $40,372 in child support and $20,365 in interest as of Sept. 30. In one case, Gulbronson was to pay $84 a week beginning in July 2002, and his last payment of $165 was last March. In another case, he was supposed to pay $71 a week beginning July 2002, and his last payment of $135 was last March.

According to the complaints, Gulbronson has been found in contempt of court on at least two occasions. He last served 60 days in jail this summer but has not been in contact with the child support agency since his release. more

Delinquent support pay earns man prison time

COLUMBUS -- A 44-year-old Columbus man who “pathetically failed” in his last chance to catch up on a stack of unpaid child support bills was sentenced to 18 months to four years in prison in Platte County District Court.

District Judge Robert Steinke told Richard Delancey Wednesday he had “pathetically failed to comply with the terms of his probation” while sentencing the defendant to prison for his summer 2007 convictions on four counts of criminal nonsupport.

Steinke on Wednesday revoked the four-year probation sentence he imposed last summer against Delancey in what the judge at the time promised would be the defendant’s last chance to avoid a prison cell.

“While you don’t take the terms of your probation seriously, I do,’’ Steinke told Delancey, standing before him in front of the bench. “I gave you the opportunity to change your life ... it simply has not worked. The court is without any option. You have to be held accountable.”

Criminal nonsupport is a Class IV felony, punishable by a maximum of five years imprisonment, $10,000 fine or both and no minimum sentence. more

Dozens gather to remember child who was fatally beaten

The light of dozens of candles shines outside the former home of 20-month-old Imani Jennings.Police say the toddler was viciously beaten to death by her mother's boyfriend Friday, after she had a potty training accident. Both the mother, 20-year-old Cherron Patterson, and her boyfriend 15-year old Anthony Weakfall, were arrested Saturday.Dozens gather to remember child who was fatally beaten The murder of a young girl has drawn sympathy from across the Syracuse community. Sunday night, dozens of people came out to show their support for Imani Jennings at a candle light vigil. Allison Lazarz has more on the tribute and the message the little girl's biological father had for the community."I'm just disturbed. Every vigil that we do is hard it's frustrating, it's painful. This victim, from what I understand, people knew she was being left alone, people knew she was being abused and no one said anything. This is what needs to stop this is how we can bring our community together," said Rachel Titus, a member of the group Mothers Against Gun Violence. Imani's biological father came to the vigil to tell neighbors they need to keep an eye on one another."Make sure that we're looking out for the young people today and making sure we're involved in their lives so stuff like this won't happen," said Lee Jennings Jr., Imani's biological father.Even though some of baby Imani's relatives say this has been incredibly difficult, they say all the community support is helping them stay strong. "It takes a lot for somebody who doesn't know you to come out and support you in your time of need. It's soothing to know that there are people that will support me. That there are people who are hurting with me and that people are praying with me and that is why I smile," said Rohnda Wright-Jamison, Imani's grandmother.And she and neighbors at the vigil know Imani is now at peace.An exact time hasn't been set for her funeral.Related Stories

Make non-custodial parent pay $25 fee

Right here in New York state. Effective Oct. 1, a federally required annual service fee of $25 is being charged to the custodial parent who is receiving child support. This is starting to sound like a racket on how they are charging fees to collect money... DPHS charge interest on arrearage, charge a fee for collecting the money. I suppose DPHS makes millions of dollars each year, simply by relying on mothers to file for child support. A bill should pass to elminate how much money DPHS should actually make in a year...

Child-support laws need to be changed

I think that the new changes in child support has made some major improvements for the man, but the way they calculate needs work. How can a woman who makes more money than the man and still get tax free money as if she did not work?

The point should be made if a woman can terminate a childs life in 1 simple payment, a man should be able to terminate his rights to a child with 1 low payment. equality for all. Also, it is my belief that Court ordered support is re[*#@!]ulous. Maybe if the way support was calculated was better examined, there'd be less 'dead beat dads'. Just a thought.

Rounding Up Deadbeat Parents

Why is it so easy to find deadbeat fathers and moms but can not collect a dime? I think that in some case trying to squeeze blood from a turnip, is just not going to happen. The ideal to impose child support on a person who is living with his mom and then put him in jail, what is that really going to accomplish... In my mind repeat offenders usually have a hard time finding work. So even if its only 50 dollars a month, something is better than nothing. To impose a fine and take half of a mans check is not fair to the man or his family. You see until the judges start looking at what they do to the common man, they will never know how to be fair and impartial. So in 6 months they will have another round up.

Paternity tests prove hundreds are not the father

The Daily Telegraph can reveal 18 men, cleared by DNA testing, have made use of changes permitting them to claw back funds paid through the Child Support Agency. More than 300 men have been cleared by DNA of being fathers. Documents obtained under Freedom of Information show orders for $171,567 to be returned have so far been made against the mothers.

The money that was paid to them is being garnisheed from mothers' incomes by the Child Support Agency in the same way that payments are taken from the wages of non-custodial fathers. In each case the duped men were able to prove beyond doubt in the courts they were not the fathers based on DNA paternity testing. The new law, section 143 of the Child Support (Assessment) Act, requires the Family Court to consider issuing orders for repayment where paternity is successfully challenged and child support has been paid.
The law allowing such repayment debts to be collected by the Child Support Agency became effective on January 1 last year. In the biggest case, Queensland man Ken Rodgers obtained orders for the repayment of $60,000 after making child support contributions over a decade to a woman who refused to even send him a photograph of his alleged child.

The happy note is that some fathers are being reimbursed for their payments for a child that was not his, although what about the fathers who have proved the child is not theirs and can not get his money back...

Is that really justice?

Indiana man gets four years in prison for not paying child support

ZANESVILLE — An Indiana man received four years in prison Monday in a Muskingum County Common Pleas court for not paying child support, according to the Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office.
Adonis Brooks, or Kenneth T. Brooks, 48, was sentenced to the prison term by Judge Mark Fleegle and ordered to pay $51,260.83 in back child support for six children. This is the worse thing that the Courts could do to a man. When they lock him up they not only punish him but punish the childern as well. If the Courts would spend as much time trying to work with the person behind on support as they do trying to lock them up maybe, just maybe they could get something accomoplished other than locking them up. The worse thing that can happen to this man is interest on arrearage! You see after child support reaches a certain limit, it becomes impossible to pay back!

Dead Man can pay no Child Support...

This is about Scott Peterson who keeps receiving a letter to pay his child support. Although DHS is probably wondering how Peterson manages to evade the police for the past 10 years. Well I thought I would help the Jacksonville DHS out... Forget the countless letters that has been sent, or unlimited phone calls that has been attempted. I sure hope that what I am going say will help you out. Scott Peterson is dead! As a matter of fact he has been dead for 10 years now...As a matter of fact it made the news when he was murdered! Maybe you morons in that town could read your mail or even answer the phone? I can only imagine how much interest that has accrued during this 10 year period?

State of Tennessee sued for seeking child support from wrong man

By Ann KnefIllinois resident Joshua Brown is suing the state of Tennessee for sending him a notice indicating he had a child in Tennessee with a female other than his wife.Brown claims the state sent him a non-custodial parent delinquency notice on March 26 indicating he was responsible for past due child support. "The Notice was discovered by his wife," states the complaint filed Oct. 7 in St. Clair County Circuit Court. "Mr. Brown's parents and in-laws learned of the Notice from his wife and also inquired."Brown claims he "reassured all" that he was not having an extra marital affair that produced a child.He claims he informed the state that it had the wrong person by pointing out the difference in middle initial and social security number, but the state persisted by notifying his employer. He claims he also received a notice that his income would be withheld for child support."Plaintiff's wife again saw these various documents again causing turmoil and strife in the home," the complaint states. "Plaintiff again tried to assuage his family's fears. Brown claims he contacted an attorney after the state sent him a notice that his employer was being directed to add the Tennessee child to his health care plan.He claims the correspondence eventually ceased when the state was "apparently satisfied" that it had the wrong man.His suit seeks damages for defamation."This publication caused his pregnant wife and himself severe hardship, caused plaintiff to lose sleep, have constant anxiety, suffer humiliation, embarrassment, nervousness and mental pain and suffering," the complaint states. "That Defendant knew or should have known of the falsity of such statements considering the different middle names and different social security numbers."Brown is represented by Jarrod Beasly of the Kuehn Law Firm in Belleville. He is seeking "an amount in excess of $50,000 for the damage to his reputation at work, at home and within his family, punitive damages and cost of this suit."

Child support appeal rejected

PIERRE - A Stanley County man failed to show a substantial change in financial circumstances in his bid to have child-support payments lowered, the state Supreme Court says.Three months after agreeing to $1,350 monthly support payments for two children following a divorce, Andrew Heiss asked to have his obligation dropped to $100 a month. He said his income had been cut and he had the children half the time. He said his position as assistant manager in a company that operated a farm for the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe had been changed to ranch hand.The Supreme Court unanimously sent the case back with direction that the requested cut in payments be denied.

The high court said Heiss had the burden of proving that he had experienced a substantial change in financial conditions because he had agreed to the original support order. He didn't do that, the court said.

Heiss :I would like to know where you get the information you print, the truth is the obligation to pay child support is $703 dollars a month. And I do have the kids half time , and My income had changed I already proved that in court .

No pay, no drive

Parents may lose licenses if they don't pay their child support...
Morethan 15,000 parents who are not paying child support are facing, losing their driver’s, professional and/or recreational licenses if they don’t payup soon. Letters from the Department of Human Services warning delinquent parents are arriving in mailboxes across Tennessee. The notices inform parents that if they are behind at least $500 in their child support and haven't made a payment in more than 90 days, they could lose their license(s). "We are absolutely committed to making sure children in this state receive their court-ordered support,” said Human Services Commissioner Gina Lodge. “Having a child means taking responsibility for that child, and it is appalling that so many parents men and womenare walking out on that duty. License revocation is awake-up call that works for thousands of parents who have been ordered,but are not paying their support.”There are more than 20,000 licenses currently at risk. Parents who face the loss of their driver’s, professional or recreational licenses include registered nurses, real estate agents, security guards, and teachers. How can you stop a income, then expect a person to pay? Right ot wrong, 2rongs don't make a right!

Revocation letters have been sent to non-paying mothers and fathers in every county in Tennessee, covering more than 4,500 cases in Shelby County,2,250 in Davidson County, 1,350 in Knox County and 1,150 in HamiltonCounty.State and federal law allows DHS, which administers theChild Support Program, to revoke the licenses of parents who fail topay their child support. The notices inform parents that they can prevent revocation if they contact their local child support office and set up payment plans, or repay the past due amount. Traditionally, halfof the parents who receive notices end up working with DHS to pay offtheir child support obligation. However, last year more than 7,000 licenses were revoked due to failure to pay.This year, data matches between DHS and the Department of Safety identified more than 18,000 driver's licenses of persons meeting the requirements forrevocation of their licenses. More than 400 professional licenses issued by the Departments of Commerce and Insurance, Health andEducation are also at risk. Approximately 1,200 hunting and fishing licenses will also be subject to revocation. In addition to the license revocation program, the Child Support division and its partners use enforcement tools such as administrative wage assignmentor garnishment, liens and federal intercept programs to collectsupport. In recent months, DHS intercepted 41,000 federal economic stimulus checks, totaling more than $24 million. There are currently 260,000 child support cases under court order in Tennessee. Of these, roughly 55 percent pay their court ordered support in atimely manner. For more information on the Child Support Program, visit the DHS Web site at state.tn.us/humanserv/cs/cs_main.htm

Ex-Coach Gets Probation For Repeated Fondling Of Student

Matthew Lindholm Must Register As Sex Offender

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. -- A former business teacher and girls basketball coach at Central High School in Grand Junction has been sentenced to five years intensive probation for the attempted sexual assault of a student.
Matthew Lindholm, 33, had pleaded guilty in July to a felony charge of attempted sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust.
He was accused of repeatedly fondling and kissing a 14-year-old girl in his office at the school between January 2007 and February 2008. Lindholm resigned from the district on Feb. 11, citing family issues. more

121 men in child pornography operation on the Internet

MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- Spanish police have arrested 121 men and seized millions of computer files in the country's biggest operation against child pornography on the Internet.

Investigators uncovered a worldwide network that was trading millions of files.

Authorities are looking at 96 others but they have not been placed into custody yet, Manuel Vazquez, the national police chief of the technology investigative brigade, Wednesday.
Eight-hundred police officers participated in the raids on more than 200 homes in most of Spain's provinces.
The operation was conducted in cooperation with federal police in Brazil, which uncovered a worldwide file-sharing network that was trading millions of files in 75 countries. more

Tenn. To Revoke Licenses Over Late Child Support

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The state warned parents delinquent on child support payments that they risk losing their drivers licenses, professional licenses and hunting and fishing licenses if they don't pay.

Tuesday a news release from the Department of Human Services said that letters were delivered across the state to parents who were behind at least $500 and hadn't made a payment in more than 90 days.

More than 7,000 licenses were revoked last year for failure to pay, and the Department of Human Services said there were more than 20,000 licenses at risk. The professional licenses in jeopardy of being revoked include registered nurses, real estate agents, security guards and teachers.

'They go to prison and still owe child support when they get out…and owe double what they originally owed.

The way the laws are written now, a felon who owes child support can owe more and face more jail time. I admit that the person should not have committed a crime, but they did. Now with the insane laws favoring the custodial parent, Since interest and penalties accrue rapidly, many former prisoners struggle under a staggering debt they will never pay off. Some return to jail because of nonpayment of child support. Others are re-incarcerated after turning to illegal activity to support themselves, because at low wage lawful jobs, 40 or 50% or more of their paychecks are garnished to pay the debt. The costs of these crimes and of re-incarcerating the ex-offenders vastly outweigh the puny sums states collect in back child support.
The amount should either stop the minute he gets incarcerated or debt should be paid in full when a sentence is given to the inmate. Doing anything more than that is setting the inmate up for failure.
Moreover, these debts often make it impossible for ex-offenders—many of whom are young mothers and fathers who were incarcerated for nonviolent drug offenses—to play a meaningful role in their children’s lives. And prisoners pay for their crimes with their time behind bars—these debts often amount to a punishment artificially extended beyond their sentences.

The new report, Repaying Debts, was commissioned by the Justice Department and produced by the Council of State Governments’ Justice Center. It makes some useful recommendations, including capping payments at 20% of an ex-offender’s income and streamlining the collection process…

Unfortunately, numerous legislative attempts to resolve the issue have been defeated, often through demagoguery. For example, in 2005, the California Assembly Republican Caucus helped defeat a modest reform bill, with one leading Republican Assemblyman explaining, “The state should never aid and abet a convicted criminal in avoiding child support.”

Fixing this problem has nothing to do with helping criminals. It instead acknowledges the obvious—parents who are unable to work are unable to pay. All of us want ex-offenders to return to legal employment instead of crime. The Justice Department's new report demonstrates that one important way to reduce recidivism is to end the child support system abuses these ex-offenders face.

S.C. court issues summons for old 63-cent child-support bill

S.C. court issues summons for old 63-cent child-support bill

Kathleen Threatt was summoned the court because she failed to pay child support in Sumter County, S.C.

Why is this news?

Because WLTX-TV says her 12-year-old bill totaled 63 cents.

"I had to apologize to the officer on the phone because I was

"I had to apologize to the officer on the phone because I was laughing so hard," Threatt, 45, tells the station. "It doesn't make sense."

Threatt's children are grown. In fact, she's now a grandmother.

The mother of T.I childern suing for more child support

The mother of T.I.’s oldest 2 children, Lashon Dixon, is suing Clifford for more child support. She says the current $2000/month she gets for both boys just isn’t cutting it and they need a raise. It is a recession peoples. According to the Associated Press, Lashon Dixon has been reportedly been receiving $2,000 a month for their two 7 and 8 year-old boys. Rather than demanding a specified amount, the 29 year-old is requesting a court to order a stipend equal to Tip’s financial success.

child support tax unfair for single parents

I'm a single father, and I've never received child support. Those who do get a check often pay for it in blood, sweat and tears. As a matter of fact I also pay child support as well and that's a battle I have trouble managing myself.
I consider myself one of the unlucky that I have that ongoing war each day. Single moms and dads often barely make ends meet -- especially in a county where the number of working poor rises each year. Raising kids is a two-person job, and paying for the little monsters often requires aunts, uncles and grandparents to chip in.
Now, the federal government is demanding that custodial parents pay a $25 yearly fee to receive child support. And guess when those first payments are due?
2007's is due in September. 2008's is due in October. From there on out, the annual fee is paid in October.

Parents are trying to scrape money to get their kids back in school. $25 may not seem like a lot, but it's a pair of shoes, a uniform, a backpack or lunch fees for the month for a child.
That's right. One child. Imagine if you're trying to outfit two or three.
And in a slap to self-reliant working parents, those who have EVER received cash or food assistance in any form are exempt, as are those who collect less than $500 in child support. Receive $501 per year in child support and you pay the fee.

Child support should be just that, to pay support for the child! This should not be an opportunity for the government to figure out ways to get extra money by any means possible...

ex-radio host gets 7 years for child porn

A former San Francisco radio talk show host and former Roman Catholic priest was sentenced to more than seven years in prison Thursday for distributing child pornography.

Bernie Ward, 57, pleaded guilty in May to one count of distributing child pornography. Prosecutors said investigators found dozens of pornographic images of children as young as 3 on Ward's home computer, including masochistic images of children bound and gagged.

"He traded in the currency of children's suffering," federal prosecutor Steve Grocki said.

Ward, a father of four known for his staunchly liberal views, hosted a nightly radio show until the station fired him when the child pornography indictment was made public in December.

A Stanislaus County woman who exchanged sexually explicit Internet messages with him called police after Ward sent her a photograph of two children engaged in a sex act.

She also provided police with transcripts of a conversation where Ward said he was aroused when his daughter walked in the bathroom while he showered, according to court documents.

"I find it extremely troubling that a parent would say the things he wrote in those messages," U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker said before sentencing him to seven years and three months.

Ward's attorney, Doron Weinberg, had argued for five years, the mandatory minimum prison sentence. He cited numerous letters of support Ward received after pleading guilty and Ward's volunteer work.

Weinberg has said Ward downloaded the child porn for journalistic research.

"It's clear that it ended in a dark place," Weinberg said. "Bernie Ward is a good man."