Working the system

by BL
(Lubbock, TX)

I have been divorced for 5 years and have 3 children with my ex-husband. He has NEVER been current on his child support and is currently more than $25,000.00 in arrears. He has not seen the kids since the divorce. He calls them once in a blue moon and promises to send gifts that never come. Our son, who is now 14, has some special medical needs. Their father is ordered to pay a seperate medical support order and to reimburse me for the cost of their health insurance but of course doesn't. My son's medication is more than $10,000 a month and thank God that insurance covers alot of it but the premiums for the insurance are getting to be too much for me to handle. My ex has moved back and forth between Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi and I have to transfer the case every time he moves( a process that ususally takes 6 months or more) and by the time I get the case in place to enforce the orders -he moves again. He has been arrested twice for contempt. He knows exactly how to work the system now and the Courts don't play hardball with him. They give him too many chances and then he moves in the middle of the night and I'm back at square one again. The caseworker at the attorney general's office finally admitted to me that if he is going to move around alot then they really can't help me. When I was a full time student and received wellfare benefits the State of Texas was more aggressive about collecting the child support but now that I've graduated and make a better income and don't qualify for benefits anymore, they have no desire to really help us. I don't know how I'm going to keep going. I have more medical bills than I can possibly pay for my son's conditions and I'm already working 2 jobs. My ex-husband recently posted pictures of him and his new wife and her kids at Disney World on Facebook. He also posted pictures of his new truck that is in her name. I've printed those and given them to the caseworker who really didn't seem to care. It should be a felony to have a child and then refuse to feed or clothe them. I wish someone would get tough with him and tell him that he can't steal from his own flesh and blood.