Texas Treatment Arrested for Failure to Make Child Support Payments

For some children, child support doesn’t just provide “extras,” such as the ability to participate in school sport teams or extracurricular activities. It provides the financial means to keep a roof over their head and food in their stomachs. In the absence of this support, life can become difficult and unpredictable for both the child and the custodial parent. Texas police recently arrested 15 individuals who reportedly failed to make timely child support payments.

Concerning the arrests that were made, Texas Attorney General Gregg Abbot pointed out that parents are legally obligated to financially provide for their children. Apparently, those that were arrested weren’t just a little behind. They were actually held in contempt of court and had warrants out for their arrest. It took an initiative of multiple police officers to locate the parents involved.

Although some might assume that those who failed to make their child support payments were all fathers, three of the fifteen arrested were mothers. Although some were arrested over the course of the days leading up to the roundup, 10 of those with warrants for missing child support payments were arrested over the course of one day. Most were arrested at their homes.

While there may have been a variety of reasons that could have affected these parents’ ability to pay, their alleged noncompliance with court ordered child support payments resulted in their subsequent arrest. Each of the arrested parents could end up spending six months in jail. For Texas parents who are behind on child support payments due to an inability to afford what has been ordered, it is possible to petition the court to adjust the payment to a more reasonable amount consistent with the current financial circumstances.

Categories:
Family Law