Hello, my first post. I have a question regarding contempt, or a contempt proceeding. I live in KS obviously, JOCO. My order is from another state, KS is just playing collection agent (interstate). This is an arrears only case, the child was emancipated 4 years ago. It is kind of complicated so I will try and be as clear as possible. The original order was 15 years old before the other state even sent it to KS. That was 2005. I received notice in the mail and probably by a sheriff that it was registered in KS, that they were doing income withholding. At the time, the support was $620 per month. Fast forward to 2009, I lost my job of 15 years. Then the support payments come from unemployment benefits, deducted directly from, like income withholding. April 2010, I go to court and get a modification (originating state). This cuts my monthly support to $310 per month, half what it was. This is where it gets somewhat complicated.

The court order states that it is to take effect May 1st, 2010. I talk to the court trustee, they say if I can get them a copy of the order they will put it in immediately. I drive it up there and hand deliver it that very day. It took three months for them to register the order anyway. (July, 27th). The amount coming from my unemployment stays the same. I call the trustee and ask, they inform me it is done by percentage, not what you owe. So as it turns out, they are taking $489 per month against a $310 order. I ask the worker and am told that any overage carries to the next month. So In July, the $310 is paid and $179 is credited toward August,etc. I am given a website for the JOCO court trustee, my case number and a pin number so that I can access my records, see due dates etc.

Fast forward again to May 2011. My unemployment ran out (still no job). I look on the website, it shows that my next due date is October 2011. I think, cool. Gves me more time to get in order. In September I look again, my taxes were intercepted and a payment posted of $400 in August, new due date shows as November 2011. Okay, so I get the $310 together for Novembers payment, mail to to KPC. I look, it posts on the 8th. The 9th a sheriff knocks at my door, handing me an order to appear on a contempt charge. The paper says. "the duty of support is $620 per month" next line it says, "the order has not been set aside, modified or changed". Mind you, it was modified 18 months ago and is no longer $620. Then lists the amount of my total arrears.

My question is, how can this be contempt? To my knowledge, the over payments covered those 4 mos that I didn't send anything. According to their web site it was covered anyway, the due date was Oct/Nov. I never received notice of delinquency from them. Reading their website and the JOCO court website, it states, that anyone 7 days past due on support payments must be notified of any delinquency, this is "local rule 28". I was never notified and it shows on their web site that no notices sent. (I did receive  a couple when I first lost my job waiting for UE to start). It shows on their site the date they mail a late notice. Haven't had one sent for two years.

So I am wondering, since this is the first and only glitch with Kansas, is this a true collection effort, or do they just like to drag people through the system just to flex their muscle? Frankly, it seems like the latter to me. I don't think they have a case. I can show (by screen caps) that no notices were ever sent to me. The paper they sent alleging the contempt shows the wrong amount of support and says the order was never modified, which it was. Just seeking opinions from those of you more familiar with this system than am I. It's odd to me too, I called the people in the originating state, they think KS is stupid (their word, not mine). They said in their state, they don't jump on contempt for a couple missed payments on an arrears acct. They use it more for someone that is obviously avoiding them and they have tried every other possible remedy. They said they use the balance forward method too, so they understood what I meant and agreed that those months were covered. Not that they have any say here.

Thank you for joining us and thank you for your post.  I will absolutely reply with my thoughts on the subject, but I need to get through all of the information first.  Just skimming your problem, I would say you have a child support mess on your hands which has landed you in possible contempt.  Don't fret the contempt crap, just make sure you make your court date and explain your case.  I would also advise you obtaining a copy of the KPC records from their website (if there's not a link on this site, I will add one).

I will reply to again to this post when I've had time to review your situation further and reflect.  Maybe later tonight.

That’s quite the story.   Took me a while to get through it all.   I think you have a very valid case.   I’m guessing you’re still unemployed so hiring an attorney may be cost  prohibitive at this point.  But I think  you have enough of a case that you could argue it pro se and probably do fine  (just my opinion).

Kansas has been tasked with increasing their interstate  collections.  I cannot remember where I saw  that, but they keep statistics on interstate child support, and they need to  show the Feds that they are collecting more interstate funds.  I don’t know that this is necessarily “flexing,”  but I do think the case is rather petty and wreckless – especially since the child was  emancipated years ago.  Usually if a  payor is paying anything at all, they won’t hit them with contempt because of  the legal system costs involved.  I would  call to schedule a meeting with the JOCO attorney for the trustee.  Actually ask them to put it on their calendar  and block a 1 hr meeting for you.  If  they refuse to do that, tell them you have no other choice but to file a  responding motion requesting your attorney fees to demonstrate that you’ve paid  everything.
Here’s your strong points:
-         Your order for $310 was way back in 2010
-         You hand delivered the order to their office at  their request on (what date?)
-         You called their office when you noticed too  much was being withheld and asked why and where that money would go (need  date).  You were told it would credit to  the following month
-          Their own system told you there was not a  payment due until October (need a picture of that).  This made sense to you since you had been  overpaying every month for a while.
-          You called and offered to resolve the matter  with the trustee but they refused and instead decided to drag the case into  court senselessly.
-          Child is emancipated and this is arrears only  (no child in need here)
-          You’ve been paying and intend to keep paying,  but you motioned to reduce the obligation to $310 for a reason, not so you  could over pay every month.
-          Trustee never notified you of any contempt.  Court records may have a certified mail  receipt or something
 
I think the trustee is going to claim they’ve never seen your  $310 order, so I think you should send a copy certified mail to them with  return receipt so you have proof that they have it.
 
Hope that helps.

    What I would do is use this little “balance forward” method  to demonstrate that you are in the green.   If you were supposed to pay $310/mo starting in May of 2010 and 17  months have elapsed, you should have paid $5270.  However, if you can demonstrate that they  collected $620 for 4 months, then collected $490 for the remaining 13 months,  that total collection is $8850.  If you  then look at how much money 4 months of non-payment is, that is only  $1240.  So even if you didn’t pay for 4  months, you should still be $2340 ahead.
Lies occur every day in family court – trust me on  that!  As far as not having proof for  everything – well, it looks good if you can actually support things you say,  but it’s not necessary to have evidence for everything.  Usually what I do is make the statement, then  if someone calls me a liar, I pull out a document.  That method has 3 effects (1) it shows I didn’t  lie, and (2) it shows the other party is a liar and is out to get me and (3) it  saves time by not having to dive into evidence every time I make a statement.  An attorney will lie just as much or more  than any party will.  We can’t present  evidence of what we had for breakfast.  If  you don’t have evidence, just state your recollection of the facts and show  that you are “reasonable” and it will all work out.

They can’t get any money from you if you’re not working, so  it would make no sense to put you in jail.   Further, it will look very good if you can show that you sent a  certified letter to the trustee offering to discuss the issues and reconcile  before the hearing.  KS courts, in my  experience, do not try to drag people in if they’ve been paying.  But Johnson is actually one of the absolute  worst counties in the state to have anything in.  There are a lot of powerhouse attorneys and  judges that like to throw their weight around.

You should be able to handle this issue pro se.  Attorneys don’t understand math usually, so  explaining this mess for an hour will cost you $250.  Your first stop should be to the trustee to  see what can be done.  I don’t see how  they can jail you if you’re not in arrears and in fact they are the ones who  have been taking too much out of your check.   Make sure you know your facts though and obtain information first before  you open your mouth.  Ask them to send  you the payment records they have, ask them for the arrearage calculation for  the $490 or whatever.  See what their  logic is first.  Then you can formulate  your response.

Well, I've never dealt with a situation like yours personally or otherwise, but I have been around the block a bit.  I also crunch numbers for a living, so if there is an error, I usually find it.

You need to request an arrearage calculation and a copy of your records from the trustee immediately.  Tell them you can come in to personally pick it up when it is ready.  Don't expect them to put a side order of hustle on it either.  The idea is not to determine what your arrearage is, because you can calculate that based on your KPC payment info, but to have them provide you with a piece of paper on their letterhead that says you are not even in arrears.  Then call a couple days later and ask them once again what happens if you overpay.  This time get her name and her title, but don't sound like your prodding for information.  When you get to court, offer to call this person on your cell phone and ask them what happens if you overpay.  Dramatic, but will uncover a massive flaw in their knowledge base.

Reading:
7. Record of Support Payments. The                                  trustee shall maintain a record of child support and maintenance payments.
9. Imminence of Delinquency Action.                                  Whenever an obligor is 7 days delinquent in any payment, the trustee shall notify                                  the obligor of the delinquency and that action (including income withholding) will                                  be taken to enforce the support order unless the support payments are immediately                                  paid.
12. Review of Contempt Findings.                                  Any party placed in custody as punishment for the contempt shall be entitled, upon                                  request, to a hearing before a District Court Judge within 48 hours thereafter.                                  Notice shall be given to the District Court Trustee.

Keep in mind that in some KS court rooms and with some judges, the word "SHALL" means "MAY" which means you might do it or you might not.  I found this one out the hard way one time, but I learn very quickly too.  This is most likely why you didn't receive a notice.  BUT, don't let that stop you from saying that they didn't even tell you and neither did their system.  A "reasonable" person would send notice before filing.  So a judge might then just ask the trustee if they sent a notice.  If they are truthful, they will say "no."  That doesn't look very good.  This also doesn't say how the notice must be sent.  I personally think this rule needs revision to say "MUST" send a notification by certified mail or by personal service to ensure the obligor knows the storm is coming.

If everything you said is true, I don't think they can legally throw you in jail.  Even if something happens, you have 48 hours in JOCO to appeal the issue to a judge (and you should).  If you are not comfortable running your mouth for 10 minutes straight arguing your case (don't even take a breath), and can spin it in such a way that the trustee has been unreasonable, you might want to hire an experienced female attorney.

If you'd like me to take a more in depth look at your situation, I'd be happy to review it for you.  Just PM me on here.  I don't like the idea of debtor's prisons, because it seems counterproductive, so I don't want to see you go down the wrong path.