The Plight of Non-Custodial Parents During Record Unemployment
Once a financial order is in place, a judge has become less and less important in the process of child support. In effect, an eternal order of debt has been created for any non-custodial parent. The system in place does not consider ongoing economic circumstances. Part of the problem is that the system assumes that job loss is voluntary. The system is often openly antagonistic toward non-custodial parents. The assumption is that economic circumstances are never a problem and if economic circumstances become a problem, those circumstances are certainly a result of negligence of the non-custodial parent. This outlook assumes guilt. What is worse is that at a time when a parent can least afford it, he or she must hire an attorney in an effort to have child support reduced on a temporary basis. That is not always possible. However, when an attorney can be secured by a non-custodial parent, retroactive child support modification is impossible during the process. The parent is left paying for the attorney along with any Bradley debt. In other words, the amount does not change until after the judge modifies the payment, which can be many months. The legal situation that has been induced is grossly unfair as well as unconstitutional.
For far too long, non-custodial parents have suffered in relative silence and oppression.The right to due process is ignored. If fathers are handicapped, debilitated or suffer job loss, child support continues as before. There is no trigger for just change nor an audience for that change. Any motion for modification is typically rejected in court. Modification of child support amounts are considered as 'discretionary' instead of mandatory. Non-custodial parents that are imprisoned for no fault of their own continue to build continual arrears in child support regardless of any circumstances and these circumstances are never subject to review. No rights of parents are enforced with the exception of monetary support. The idea of rights in any divorce or child case are theoretical and often fraudulent. Civil rights beyond the right to pay for children simply don't exist. Often, the responsibility of a parent is assumed. Many non-custodial parents are paying and continue to pay for children that do not belong to them. Parentage is often legally assumed despite strong evidence to the contrary.
Children have not been helped by this system of weights and balances. The plight of children has changed little in American society for the last thirty years. The real national issue that resides in the United States is one of family breakdown. However, there is little attempt to resolve the plight of the father or the breakdown of the family. Instead, the Bradley Amendment has enforced the criminality of fathers with the stroke of a pen for debt that they can never repay without due process of the law to determine guilt. That guilt is assumed. Even worse, America is forced to pay for incarceration because of federally-endorsed extortion against non-custodial parents.
Only you can change the unconstitutional world that has evolved in America. Americans do not have real legal remedies in place, but we still have the ears of public servants in Washington. If enough Americans proclaim their outrage against the abuse of non-custodial parents and the real plight of the family, lawmakers will come to understand that Americans recognize the injustice and suffering in the halls of parenthood. This is the only possibility for change short of a public civil rights uprising. Please contact your Senators and Representatives in Washington and let them know that you want to have the debt system and crisis in due process removed from family law. Only then can Americans hope to make the civil rights of this nation whole.
Published by E. Manning
E. Manning knows that reality is more than what is seen. He is a writer, researcher and historical analyst living in Nashville, Tennessee. View profile
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12 Comments
Post a CommentTo Thomas Paine,
I did precisely what you suggested and geve custody to the father because I did not have the money to care for my children. Now he and his wife are doing everything in their power to have me thrown in jail because I cannot find a job in this economy. The fact is that the child support laws need to change, and make it so that child support is based on the child's needs and both the custodial and non custodial parents ability to pay. The opportunity to use child support as a means of revenge against an ex spouse needs to be eliminated. It needs to be possible for parents to work out arrangements if they cannot pay. After all, it's not unusual to have a single breadwinner in a household, but divorce, and asking someone to be the only breadwinner is suddenly illegal? That makes no sense.
No wonder an average of 4 non custodials kill themselves every day in the US..The depression is crippling me!!! Children need BOTH parents, NOT a gravesite to visit!
I have been denied review for the past 6 years because they take it upon themselves to review to prevent me from having it reviewed. I've been out of work for 3 years since they incarcerated me for being homeless with a child and only owing $1,000. That's right $1,000 and I lost my job due to the incarceration and they didn't care if someone was there to get my son off the bus, who was only 5 at the time. Since then I haven't been able to get employment due to have a suspended drivers lic and being incarcerated. I'm not a man so I can't even apply for construction, they'd never look at a woman.
Here recently they've been sending notices that won't arrive until after the date they signify to notify them. example, letter written on the 22nd of Novement, Thanksgiving was the 25
I am one of the Non Custodials who is unemployed. I lost my job over 2 years ago. Since then I have lost my home, my truck, my savings, my dignity and now have a warrant out for non payment..Im NOT a DEADBEAT, what I am is deadbroke, impoverished and the ex has used this to alienate me from my daughter. I havent seen her since Jan 2009..I am facing 6 months in jail if I turn myself in,but I refuse to spend ONE night in jail for simply being unemployed. And it seems no one cares..No wonder an average of 4 non custodials kill themselves every day in the US..The depression is crippling me!!! Children need BOTH parents, NOT a gravesite to visit!
This is a really good article, but it should be noted that this does not effect fathers alone. It also effects non-custodial mothers, who also may find themselves unable to work because of pregnancy and childbirth. These things are also considered voluntary, in spite of the fact that even sterilization is not 100% effective and some women don't believe in abortion.
Great job. Found this again on Twitter.
Will check out this Bradley amendment. Thanks for the info.
If you want to read more about the social perils, trials and the illegality of the federal Bradley Amendment, you can visit http://bradleyamendment.wordpress.com
Anonymous: Correction: If you CAN NOT, take care of your child because of unemployment, or disability, or illness, give full custody to the father.
Anonymous: If you can take care of the child as a custodial parent, then give the child and full custody to the father, you have this option is is simple. Men are not dogs, they love and care for their kids too. They do not ask for full custody because they know that 99.9% of the time if they do ask for full custody and even, fight, they will not get it.
The Bradley amendment affects everyone and is serious. You should know this? Why, because it gives the States the right to put non-custodial parents in jail for falling behind on support payments. Not for murder, not for rape, not for abuse, for falling behind on payments. Not even flat out refuse, just falling behind. And not even for actual child support, it could be interest fees, not support! And if the father goes to jail, you do not get your payments, and when he gets out of jail your payments will be affects still, because now he has a criminal record now,and good paying jobs do background checks. So, see? you shoot yourself
You are right my friend. You speak the truth. It really amazes me how many single mothers are in denial. I have done research and I am writing a book, and I have concluded that they just do not know how the system works. They only know when their checks are coming and if they can get more? They is the truth. The DA does not tell them what the laws are, the DA does not send them newsletters. They really do not know what the DA does to the fathers. The DA does everything for them without charge, so there is no need to learn about the system. They do not know how many independent studies have been publish that showed the system was unfair and unconstitutional, and a waste of tax payer money. government.