R.I.’s hard times hit child support

W. Zachary Malinowski

The Providence Journal

One-by-one, day-after-day, the men sheepishly walk to the lectern in Family Court and answer questions about why they can’t possibly make their child-support payments. On a recent morning, Kervin Candelier fumbled through his pants pockets and pulled out a wrinkled receipt from Western Union that suggested he had paid $1,000 in June.

Candelier owed $6,900 in child support payments, and his former girlfriend, the mother of their two children, claimed that he only gave her $500 to pay for school clothes and supplies. He said that he’s doing his best, but he’s a barber and only makes about $230 a week. “Every business is slow right now because of the economy,” he said.

Source: http://www.projo.com/news/content/CHILD_SUPPORT_10-26-09_IOG52JP_v26.37ce26a.html