Woman to report ‘merciless judge’ to Chief Justice Sykes
Published:Tuesday | November 9, 2021 | 12:11 AMBarbara Gayle/Contributor
A mother, who on Tuesday, November 2, narrowly escaped spending 10 days in jail for child support because she did not have a balance of $10,000 which she was disputing, said the justice system needs to be overhauled.
‘’The experience has left a bitter taste in my mouth and is something I will never forget because the judge showed me no mercy or leniency,” she emphasised.
The woman said she turned up in court on Tuesday with the last $8,000 she had.
She explained that when she went to court last month, she was told she owed $18,000 for child support.
“I was positive I did not owe so much, so when I went to court on Tuesday, I asked for the amounts I paid to be checked again. The judge refused and to my shock and surprise, he said I would have to pay the entire $18,000 or spend 10 days in jail. He then called a policewoman to lock me up,” she related.
The mother said at that moment she pleaded with the judge to allow her to make a phone call and he gave her the opportunity. She called a friend who came to the courthouse and gave her the $10,000 and saved her from spending time in jail.
She said even when she explained to the judge that the child had been living with her since April this year and her husband, who is a member of the Jamaica Defence Force had not given her any maintenance money, the judge showed no sympathy. She said her husband who was in court, collected the $18,000.
After she and her husband separated, the woman said she had custody of their child. She had some challenges and had plans to go overseas and so she asked the court to give custody to her husband for the time being. During the period, her husband took her to court for maintenance and the court ruled she should pay him $8,000 monthly. She admitted that because of the pandemic, the payments were not regular and her husband took out a summons against her for the money. The child was in the custody of the father for nine months, so the total to be paid was $72,000 and she said she paid the amount in instalments. She explained that she was positive that the only amount owing up to Tuesday was $8,000.
The woman said she went overseas and on her return, she applied for custody of the child and was awarded custody by the court in April this year.
“Since then I have been the sole breadwinner for my child who is now attending a prominent high school and is doing very well at school.
One of the things that bothered me most when I was ordered locked up over a $10,000 difference was what was going to happen to my 12-year-old child,” she cried.
She disclosed that since she got custody of the child she has not applied to the court for a maintenance order against her husband. She said she has never applied for spousal support.
“I narrowly escaped spending time in jail and to this day, I cannot understand why such a harsh decision was made by the judge,” she added.
The woman said she plans to write to Chief Justice Bryan Sykes so he can be aware of the incident.