Poor Parents Who Can't Pay Child Support Are Jailed: Kick them while they're down!

I'd never known you could be jailed if you didn't pay child support. Here in the US, 1.7% of the jail population are men who didn't pay child support.

One of these men was a war veteran, Lance Hendrix, who after returning from service, was unable to find work and fell behind on his payments. He was put in jail. (Read the article HERE and a civil class action lawsuit against the state of Georgia HERE). That just seems wrong on so many levels, I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't actually know someone like that.

So, this friend of mine, also a veteran who served in Iraq (and whom we all are convinced suffers from PTSD Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), loses his truck driving job right as his marriage falls apart. His child support payments are $481 a month. He goes through a few more truck driving jobs, none of which pay as much as his former one - actually not even enough for him to survive off. 

A year later, he is put in the slammer for not paying child support. He is released three months later, with worse PTSD from having to be on guard all the time against threats from other inmates. His driver's license is suspended to punish him for not paying child support. So now, he can't drive trucks anymore. He can't drive, period. 

He manages to find work washing dishes at a restaurant, 30 minutes walk from his parents house, where he now lives. He makes about $400 a month. He can't make the child support payments, let alone feed himself.

This dilemma is 'solved' because after a month washing dishes, he is incarcerated again for - you got it - not paying child support. Three more months in jail (and even worser PTSD). Oh yeah, I nearly forgot to mention - the child support payments continue to accrue while he is in jail. He could have been at least making some money washing those dishes! And of course he lost his job as dishwasher since he was jailed. 

He is so, so far behind in payments now it's ridiculous. His next court date for - that's right - failure to pay child support - is coming up again. He's knocking on every door, asking for work, but zilch. 

How do you even begin to help someone like that?

And yet, we are trying. Our darnedest.

xo Gracie