Police in New Jersey’s Mercer County have detained 111 people on outstanding warrants for not paying child support. The warrants were served as part of a raid that took place between July 15 and July 17. To carry out the raid, officers from the Mercer County sheriff’s department worked in conjunction with several other agencies, including the Mercer Vicinage Probation Division and the New Jersey State Parole Board. Similar raids took place in more than 20 counties across the state, with police serving 760 warrants in total.
There were a total of 118 warrants served, of which 9 were served on women and 109 on men. Most of the offenders have persistently avoided paying their child support. According to the Mercer County sheriff, some of them owe thousands of dollars. The sheriff suggested that parents who are behind on their child support payments find a way to rectify the problem.
When a parent fails to make child support payments, a judge may find them in contempt of court. They could face a number of consequences, including jail time, suspension of professional licenses and wage garnishment. Their failure to pay could potentially be reported to credit scoring agencies, lowering a person’s credit score.
A person who owes a large amount of money in back child support is unlikely to be able to get out of paying it unless they can prove that they have no money or property and have no way of raising or borrowing the money. If a parent loses their job or becomes disabled, they may be able to request a modification lowering their payment amount, but they will need to show proof of their inability to pay the current amount, such as documentation from their former employer or a medical professional.
Source: Princeton Patch, “Mercer County Arrests State-High 111 During Child Support Sweep”, Anthony Bellano, July 21, 2014