That's certainly not the first remedy that the court has taken.
But say, if he hadn't been sent to prison, would he have paid child support then?
We all don't know, but I strongly suspect no, and I strongly suspect the court has more than just my suspicions and calibrated its reaction accordingly.
>But say, if he hadn't been sent to prison, would he have paid child support then?
The amount could have been ordered to be taken from his bank account, or confiscated from his salary directly from his employer or payment system, or taken from his property.
There's absolutely nothing that necessitates that he is sent to prison if he merely can't pay.
Only if he has money and doesn't pay (and that after accounting for his food and rent expenses at a nominal minimal fee), or hides money that he could have used to pay.
Smith County Texas will eventually get sued for this for indefinite imprisonment. There have been a few cases there where they put people in jail for 'contempt of court' for not paying child support. They throw the person in jail, then as that date comes up they demand the person pay further due child support, and keep said person in jail, but since it's a new charge they can keep doing it again and again and again.
Child support can be based on imputed income. Where income is imputed, it does not exist, e.g., you do not have to pay tax on imputed dollars because they don't exist. So there are no bank accounts to seize because they cannot contain imputed dollars. If a person doesn't have a W-2 salary, there is nothing to garnish. In these cases, courts can and do order the debtor to prison.
I think it would be an interesting choice, that if you're sent to jail for lack of payment towards child support ( or any other debt ), the government pays your debt up to the point you get out.
This would have the unintended consequence of poor people voluntarily going to prison as a means of payment. The social implications of this would be devistating. class stratification is already a major issue in the country. The last thing we need is literal debtors prison.
Market solutions and the Justice system rarely intersect, and this is certainly an area where they should not.
But say, if he hadn't been sent to prison, would he have paid child support then?
We all don't know, but I strongly suspect no, and I strongly suspect the court has more than just my suspicions and calibrated its reaction accordingly.