Precinct 5 cracks down on deadbeats

From Staff Reports

Montgomery County Pct. 5 Constable David Hill and fellow Montgomery County Constables yesterday arrested ten local parents who violated court orders requiring them to pay child support. The countywide sweep, which was conducted in conjunction with Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott’s child support division, targets parents who are wanted by authorities for failing to pay their court-ordered child support.

In addition to Constable Hill, other constables who participated in the initiative are: Pct. 1 Constable Don Chumley; Pct. 2 Constable Gene DeForest; Pct. 3 Constable Tim Holifield; and Pct. 4 Constable Travis Bishop. Investigators with the attorney general’s child support division aided the constables by providing logistical assistance to locate missing parents.

“Parents have a moral and legal obligation to make regular child support payments,” Abbott said. “By collecting child support, we are ensuring young Texans have the resources they need to grow healthy and strong. We are grateful to Constable David Hill and his fellow Montgomery County Constables for their commitment to Texas children.”

The sweep represents an intense effort by Montgomery County Constables to track down parents who are wanted for contempt of court as a result of their failure to pay child support in cases handled by the Texas Office of the Attorney General. The operation began at 5 a.m. when the constables dispatched teams of officers from their respective precinct offices to arrest the noncompliant parents.

Delinquent parents arrested in the roundup face up to six months in jail. Cash bonds that parents post to get out of jail are paid to the custodial parents and children who are owed back child support.

Statewide, child support collected by the attorney general exceeded $2.3 billion for the state fiscal year that ended Aug. 31, 2007. Montgomery County parents received $24 million of that amount.