Sadly, many Pennsylvania divorced parents know what it is like to not receive the support payments for their children as ordered by a judge. There is a fear that food will not be on the table for one or more meals, that the child will not have a suitable coat to keep him or her warm in the winter, or he or she will have to stay behind on a class field trip because the money just is not there. Terius Gray, known to fans of the rap genre as Juvenile, has recently spent time behind bars for non-payment of child support.
After two days in one city jail, police picked Gray up for another stay in another city on a separate child support matter. He worked out an installment deal with the first city to pay off $150,000 in back child support for his 18-year-old son. Judges know jail time is not an answer for most parents who have not paid child support because they are not able to make money if they are incarcerated. However, when a parent has the means yet does not pay, jail is an option judges choose to take. According to Gray’s lawyer, he spends time with his son and has even bought him a car and paid the way for his prom.
The second arrest was for a case going back to 2001, with claims from a woman that she had Gray’s child the year before. Because he did not show for a court appearance in 2011 pertaining to the child’s paternity and ensuing child support, a warrant had been issued for his arrest. The suit has not yet been resolved.
Some non-custodial parents will take any job to be able to provide for their child. Others may need a little nudge from the court. Custodial parents in Pennsylvania who are having trouble collecting the child support owed them will want to speak to an attorney who will take up the fight for them.
Source: theadvocate.com, “Rapper Juvenile pays part of child support debt, then immediately jailed in another parish“, Ramon Antonio Vargas, June 19, 2017