Enforcing a civil writ for CS out of state?

[anonymom]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida/Georgia

I have not received any child support from my ex-husband since December 2007. In May 2008 I filed a contempt motion, and a hearing was set for late July. In early July my ex-husband moved to Georgia with no warning, and didn't notify the court until a day or so prior to the hearing by filing an emergency motion for continuance based on him leaving the state due to his wife's father being on his death bed.

The hearing went on as scheduled, and as a result of the contempt motion, he now has a Florida writ of bodily attachment issued with a purge amount of $2000.

*How realistic is it that he will be picked up in GA?

He is supposedly disabled and drawing a check from the VA for $3000/mo. which is paid the 1st of every month.

*What happens to him if he doesn't pay the purge?

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida/Georgia

I have not received any child support from my ex-husband since December 2007. In May 2008 I filed a contempt motion, and a hearing was set for late July. In early July my ex-husband moved to Georgia with no warning, and didn't notify the court until a day or so prior to the hearing by filing an emergency motion for continuance based on him leaving the state due to his wife's father being on his death bed.

The hearing went on as scheduled, and as a result of the contempt motion, he now has a Florida writ of bodily attachment issued with a purge amount of $2000.

*How realistic is it that he will be picked up in GA?

He is supposedly disabled and drawing a check from the VA for $3000/mo. which is paid the 1st of every month.

*What happens to him if he doesn't pay the purge?

If he gets picked up on the warrant, he will stay in jail until he pays the purge. However, unfortunately, there is not a huge chance that he is going to be picked up on the warrant as long as he is out of state.

 

[anonymom]

I spoke with my ex last night & he informed me that he couldn't afford to pay the purge and was going to turn himself in. He is under the impression that if he serves 30 days, he will not have to pay the purge amount.

Is this true?

 

[Gracie3787]

I spoke with my ex last night & he informed me that he couldn't afford to pay the purge and was going to turn himself in. He is under the impression that if he serves 30 days, he will not have to pay the purge amount.

Is this true?

It might be true, depending on exactly what the contempt order states.

Typically, a contempt order will state something like- 30 days incarceration, or a purge of so many dollars. The NCP then has a choice, they can pay the purge and not have to spend anytime, or little time in jail. Or, they can serve the full sentence and not have to pay the purge.

In some cases, the Judge doesn't state a specific time for incarceration, in those cases, the NCP will normally have to stay in jail until either the purge is paid, or they go in front of the Judge and get an order for a set amount of incarceration time.

 

[nextwife]

It might be true, depending on exactly what the contempt order states.

Typically, a contempt order will state something like- 30 days incarceration, or a purge of so many dollars. The NCP then has a choice, they can pay the purge and not have to spend anytime, or little time in jail. Or, they can serve the full sentence and not have to pay the purge.

In some cases, the Judge doesn't state a specific time for incarceration, in those cases, the NCP will normally have to stay in jail until either the purge is paid, or they go in front of the Judge and get an order for a set amount of incarceration time.

The tax payers of his state may not want to support him any longer than 30 days if there is limited jail space and the option would be leaving a more violent individual out onto the streets.

 

[Gracie3787]

The tax payers of his state may not want to support him any longer than 30 days if there is limited jail space and the option would be leaving a more violent individual out onto the streets.

That's why most Judges won't order more than 30 to 60 days, because our jails are already overflowing. Fortunately for most CPs the NCPs usually end up paying the purge.

 

[anonymom]

thank you all for your replies. unfortunately in my case he's claiming that he can't pay the purge because it would cause his family to be homeless. his is the only source of income for his new family, which includes a pregnant wife who can't work due to doctor's orders and 2 children. since i won't agree to a lesser amount, he's stuck.

this also means that my children are without visitation with their father for however long this takes to settle. he refuses visitation with them while the writ is active because he & i meet for exchange at the local police department and he knows that i will have him arrested as soon as i see him.

i just want my money.

shouldn't i have gotten a copy of the contempt judgement? because his address changed in the middle of this, his copy of the judgement was bounced back to the clerk's office and he hasn't received a copy either. as i understand it he's been following the case via the clerk of court's website. the last thing listed was a request from him for his copy, but he said he has yet to get it.

 

[Gracie3787]

thank you all for your replies. unfortunately in my case he's claiming that he can't pay the purge because it would cause his family to be homeless. his is the only source of income for his new family, which includes a pregnant wife who can't work due to doctor's orders and 2 children. since i won't agree to a lesser amount, he's stuck.

this also means that my children are without visitation with their father for however long this takes to settle. he refuses visitation with them while the writ is active because he & i meet for exchange at the local police department and he knows that i will have him arrested as soon as i see him.

i just want my money.

shouldn't i have gotten a copy of the contempt judgement? because his address changed in the middle of this, his copy of the judgement was bounced back to the clerk's office and he hasn't received a copy either. as i understand it he's been following the case via the clerk of court's website. the last thing listed was a request from him for his copy, but he said he has yet to get it.

Did the DOR CSE file the contempt motion?

If they did, they don't always send the CP a copy of any order. You can request a copy from them, or you can request a copy out of the file from the clerk's office at $1.00 per page.

Once he's in jail and it hits him that he will pay or stay in jail, hopefully he'll make sure that his wife or someone else helps him come up with the purge money.

 

[anonymom]

I filed the contempt motion thru the courts. I don't even bother with CSE, I just go straight to the clerk's office and file for contempt, since CSE seem to just drag their asses about the whole thing. Forget suspending his driver's license, cause that doesn't cut it. The only way I'll ever see any money out of him is to put him in jail.

He's opting to do the jail time in lieu of paying me stating that he can't afford the purge amount (which is almost a whole month's pay for him) I dunno, I mean, if I can't get $788/mo out of him for CS how do I expect to get over $2k from him in a month? The contempt order was handed down in July and it's now September. I haven't seen any money from him, nor has he seen my kids since he dropped them off from his summer visit in August. He knows that as long as he lays low out of state he's safe from the writ.

Apparently his wife is furious/upset that he has gotten himself into this situation, but she won't get off her pregnant ass and get a job to pay what he owes, so I have no sympathy for her.