NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED
Frank Hatley, 50, failed to pay child
support in the state of Georgia. But he was no deadbeat dad: the child
in question wasn't his. Worse: the special assistant state attorney
general knew that, and the judge in the case knew it too. Hatley tried
valiantly to pay the state the money it said he owed. Even after he
lost his job and was homeless, he gave the state a portion of his
unemployment benefits -- even though DNA tests proved the boy wasn't
his. Once the DNA test results came in, Cook County Superior Court
Judge Dane Perkins ruled Hatley didn't have to pay future support
costs, but ordered he continue paying toward what he owed from before
the tests came in. After paying at least $9,500 toward the debt, Hatley
fell behind in the payments when he lost his job; Judge Perkins ordered
Hatley to jail. After more than a year, the sheriff where Hatley was
jailed finally asked a lawyer to represent him, and with her help
Hatley has been freed. Once the story hit newspapers the state asked
Judge Perkins to waive the old debt, but he has not yet ruled. (Atlanta
Journal-Constitution) ...Let's go for real justice: Judge Perkins
should pay it out of his state salary.
Frank Hatley, 50, failed to pay child
support in the state of Georgia. But he was no deadbeat dad: the child
in question wasn't his. Worse: the special assistant state attorney
general knew that, and the judge in the case knew it too. Hatley tried
valiantly to pay the state the money it said he owed. Even after he
lost his job and was homeless, he gave the state a portion of his
unemployment benefits -- even though DNA tests proved the boy wasn't
his. Once the DNA test results came in, Cook County Superior Court
Judge Dane Perkins ruled Hatley didn't have to pay future support
costs, but ordered he continue paying toward what he owed from before
the tests came in. After paying at least $9,500 toward the debt, Hatley
fell behind in the payments when he lost his job; Judge Perkins ordered
Hatley to jail. After more than a year, the sheriff where Hatley was
jailed finally asked a lawyer to represent him, and with her help
Hatley has been freed. Once the story hit newspapers the state asked
Judge Perkins to waive the old debt, but he has not yet ruled. (Atlanta
Journal-Constitution) ...Let's go for real justice: Judge Perkins
should pay it out of his state salary.