Flagrant Non Support Lawyers

Keeping up with support obligations is not always easy. There is any number of things that can affect your financial wellbeing and make it more difficult for you to keep up with your own life and expenses, let alone giving support to someone else. It’s almost inevitable that someone who is required to pay support will fall behind, at least a little bit, at one time or another. Money troubles can crop up very suddenly and unexpectedly.

Unfortunately, in the eyes of the law, it doesn’t matter why you’ve stopped paying support—even if it’s only meant to be for a short period of time. Failure to pay support is a crime and you can find yourself in court facing criminal charges. Kentucky law administers penalties for failure to provide adequate support. Depending on the circumstances, it can be either a misdemeanor or a felony charge.

Who Must Be Supported Under Kentucky Law?

When most people hear the word “support”, they automatically think of child support. Kentucky law makes provisions for support in other circumstances as well. Kentucky Revised Statutes § 530.050 states that someone can be obligated to pay support for:

• An indigent spouse
• A minor child or children
• A child or children adjudged mentally disabled 
• A parent who is destitute of means of subsistence and unable because of old age, infirmity, or illness to support himself or herself

Anyone delinquent on support payments for any of the purposes listed above can be charged with nonsupport or flagrant nonsupport.

What Is Non-Support Under Kentucky Law?

In Kentucky, someone can be charged with nonsupport if he or she “persistently fails to provide support which he can reasonably provide and which he knows he has a duty to provide to a minor or to a child adjudged mentally disabled, indigent spouse or indigent parent” or if they fail to meet the full obligation established by a court order to pay child support, for a period of two months or more.

Nonsupport is a Class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by a fine of up to $500 and/or up-to one year in jail. A second conviction for nonsupport will come with a minimum of seven days in jail. Being convicted a third or subsequent time comes with a minimum sentence of 30 days in jail.

What Is Flagrant Non Support Under Kentucky Law?

A person is guilty of flagrant nonsupport when he or she fails to provide support which they can reasonably provide and that failure results in any of the following:

• Being behind more than $1,000
• Six consecutive months without payment of support
• The dependent has been placed in destitute circumstances.
  • The law states that it can be construed as evidence that a dependent has been placed in destitute circumstances if the dependent is a recipient of public assistance as defined in KRS 205.010.

Flagrant nonsupport is a Class D felony. A Class D Felony is punishable by time in prison ranging from one to five years and/or a fine of anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000.

The state can also seize bank accounts and tax refunds as well as garnish wages in order to collect past-due support payments.

Baldani Law Group Can Help With Kentucky Non-Support Charges

Our team of lawyers at Baldani Law Group has more than 100 years of combined experience working in the Kentucky criminal court system. Don’t let procrastination or poor preparation put your freedom in jeopardy. Nonsupport or flagrant nonsupport charges can end up costing you much more than the value of a few missed payments.

We have the qualifications and the experience you need. We’ll be there every step of the way to make sure that your rights are protected from start to finish. You can contact us online anytime or call (859) 259-0727 to schedule an appointment. Consultations are free and confidential. We’ll be happy to go over the details of your case and discuss exactly what we can do to help you.