Elise Buie Family Law | Are There Serious Issues with the Child Support System?

One of the most complicated issues following a divorce can be working out the details of how each parent spends time with their children. In addition to the complicated process of determining a custody arrangement, parents must come to an agreement about which (if any) parent must make payments to the other for the care of the child. Determining child support can be an incredibly contentious issue, as can later attempts to try and collect that child support.

The April shooting of Walter Scott, an unarmed black man in South Carolina seemed to be one in a long list of recent controversial shootings by police forces in the US. Walter had been pulled over as part of a routine traffic stop due to a broken taillight, when he got into an argument with Officer Michael Slager. Mr. Scott then broke free from Officer Slager and began to run away. Slager shot Scott eight times in the back while he was attempting to flee. Footage of the shooting was captured by Slager’s dashboard camera as well as a bystander’s phone. Michael Slager was charged with murder.

As the story made national headlines, one question being asked was why Walter Scott ran from a traffic stop. According to a recent New York Times article, it may have been due to child support debt. Records show that Mr. Scott owed a staggering $18,000 in uncollected child support. In Scott’s home state of South Carolina, failure to pay child support can lead to additional fines (causing the total amount owed to increase) as well as jail time for contempt of court. 

In fact, Scott had previously served jail time for unpaid child support. This incarceration caused him to lose his current job, and created significant obstacles for securing future employment. These hurdles, according to Scott’s brother, trapped him in a cycle of inability to make support payments, facing incarceration, and losing jobs. His brother claims that the reason Scott attempted to flee the traffic stop was due to his fear of being sent to jail again, triggering the never-ending cycle of falling behind on payments.

Washington is also one of the many states where someone can be sent to jail for failure to pay child support. Groups opposed to this practice say that it is tantamount to a debtors’ prison- if a person doesn’t have adequate funds due to financial hardship, they may fall behind on payments. Failure to make such payments could result in jail time, which only adds additional obstacles to maintaining sufficient income to make support payments.

A major issue is the concept of “imputed income”- where the court will assign child support payments based on the ability to earn full-time minimum wage salary, regardless of the actual employment of the parent charged with making such payments.

Merely throwing a parent in prison who is behind on payments does not result in any additional money being dedicated to the care of the child, which is reason for the payments in the first place. What happened to Scott was tragic, though there is hope that his story could help lead to reform efforts, so children and families are better supported.

STAY UP TO DATE

Subscribe to our newsletters

 
Subscribe to one or more of our newsletters, delivering meaningful insight on topics that matter to you and your family.

FURTHER READING

Latest Blog Posts

As a Seattle entrepreneur, you’ve undoubtedly dedicated countless hours and resources to building a successful business. You’ve dotted all of your I’s and crossed all of your T’s. But have you considered what will happen to your business after you're…

In today’s world of fast-paced decision-making and on-demand solutions, such as DIY divorces, it is not surprising that many couples contemplate divorce the moment they find themselves unhappily married. Our culture’s fickle mentality often seems to advocate for the idea…

In the wake of divorce or separation, co-parenting can feel stressful. Not only have you just gone through an emotional experience, but you are also now trying to figure out how both you and your co-parent can spend time with…

Far too many families end up fighting, or at least experiencing tension, over a family inheritance, but it does not have to be that way. Having counseled families for years, we offer the following advice to help your family avoid fighting over your property — while you are here and after you die.

If you are getting divorced, you may be worried about what it will do to your finances. Maybe your finances are heavily intertwined with your spouse’s, or you are worried about what your future will look like, given these changes.…

Establishing paternity and parentage is important for many families and parents. Regardless of why you want to establish paternity and parentage, the process has the potential to be confusing, especially if you are unfamiliar with the terms and rules for…

After divorce, you may find yourself living on one less stream of income than you did when you were married and want to find a way to make up for it. Or even if you didn’t lose any income by…

If you are in the process of getting remarried, a prenuptial agreement may be the last thing on your mind. It should be at the forefront of it, however, as it can be beneficial for you, your spouse, and, if…

As a mom of four (now adult) kids, I remember well the flood of emotions that came each time they went to my ex’s, especially during the early days of my separation and eventually after my divorce. Not only was…

The holidays can look much different during a divorce than they did only a year earlier, and the changes can take some getting used to. The challenge is that you have to start somewhere, and in these “newer” moments, it…