SPC Blog: What You Need to Know

NPR Reporter Audie Corish doesn’t understand low income dads

Audie Cornish used the term “deadbeat dads” three times in a recent article. She is right that excessive child support is at the root of a lot of crime and illegal street trafficking, but she hasn’t done good research on excessive child support orders for low income obligors. Her use of the term “dead beat dads” is offensive and inappropriate since it omits the fact that many non-custodial women are not paying child support.

She should talk to Vicki Turetsky, Commissioner of the Federal Office of Support Enforcement. “Jail is appropriate for someone who is actively hiding assets, not appropriate for someone who couldn’t pay the order in the first place.” She should research state child support enforcement offices. In Connecticut, DSS Commissioner Rodrick L. Bremby says this about family friendly child support: “emotional, social and educational support as well as financial support is imperative to the growth of a well-rounded child.”  He states that the Guideline percentages of income for low income obligors are unrealistic and “counterproductive to fostering the parent-child relationship as it may lead to uncollectable child support orders and drive noncustodial parents to underground economies and alienation from their children.” (2014 letter to Connecticut’s Commission on Child Support Guidelines)

Source for NPR’s blunder: National  Public Radio program entitled “Crime Interrupts A Baltimore Doctor’s Reform EffortsAugust 7,  2015, 3:25PM ET.

Recent Posts

Co-parenting Tips

  How do you effectively parent children after divorce or separation? In this video professionals talk. They know about emotional, legal, and practical issues related to co-parenting, parallel parenting and parenting of all sorts. We have studied the evidence on...

read more

Children Suffer In A Connecticut High Conflict Divorces

In December 2023, the Connecticut Supreme Court heard the case of R.H. v M.H., SC 20882. The parents had filed hundreds of motions in their battle, all apparently justified by the “best interests” standard. The details are dwarfed by over four years of litigation. How...

read more

Do Connecticut courts encourage shared parenting?

Cindy Cartier, a lawyer who does divorce mediation, writes “In recent weeks, my phone has been ringing off the hook with folks interested in mediation over litigating their family law issues.  Upon inquiry, many of them are hearing of court cases where the Judges are...

read more

Shared Parenting Reduces Child Abuse And Neglect

Shared parenting reduces child abuse and neglect. Why? Abusers are identified up-front and denied shared parenting when courts are doing their job. Guardrails include protective orders, ex parte orders, child protective services, domestic violence (DV) counseling for...

read more