• 28
  • May
    2010

Divorce, custody and child support decisions are rarely easy, but choosing the route of an uncontested divorce or custody process can greatly alleviate the drama that often ensues as a result of such decisions.

A recent case involving a Texas mom in the zealous quest to recover child support from her ex-husband exemplifies the type of behavior and necessary redemptive steps that effective uncontested routes in family law can prevent.

Julia Poff and Richard Allen Badgley married in 1990 and divorced after Badgley returned from Desert Storm. Per month, he was ordered to pay $300 to Poff for their 1 child. After consistently failing to pay his child support, Poff took the legal savvy she had as a paralegal and went to work in order to get the nearly $43,000 in child support owed to her family. Poff took the following legal actions to hold her ex-husband responsible for his owed child support payments:

  • Contacted the Texas Attorney General's Office and obtained documents outlining the support Badgley owed and has not paid
  • Sent a signed affidavit from the Texas Attorney General's Office to Michigan authorities where Badgley resides 
  • Filed a motion for contempt in her county, which made it necessary for Badgley to appear at a court hearing

When those actions failed to get results (Badgley never showed up for court), Poff ultimately filed a criminal nonsupport complaint with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. When the county court indicted him on criminal nonsupport charges, Badgley was finally apprehended and arrested in Michigan.

Since Badgley's indictment is filed in Texas, he will likely have to make the trip back here in order to answer to the court and to Poff.

Resource

Man owing $43K in local child support arrested in Michigan