Friend of the Court Times

Genesee County: Responding to Federal Incentives

2011-10-01T14:15:00.000-07:00

While it is true that the Friend of the Court often times can be oppressive and abusive, it is important to remember that these problems extend all the way up to the federal level. Child support is pretty much the only area of involvement when it comes to family court. Which is one of many contributing factors as to why the FOC tends to abuse its power against those from whom they collect child support. . . They have the federal government backing and sometimes motivating their efforts.

Based on some comments I have read, many people believe that the sole purpose of the FOC is to collect child support. They wonder what could they possibly be doing if they are not "doing their job" collecting money and chasing deadbeat parents (let's face it, deadbeat dads). My response would be only a guess, but it would be that they are focusing on the more important aspect of enforcement when it comes to split parents, and that is protecting the child's right to have a relationship with both of his or her parents, not the custodial parent's (let's face it, mother's) "right" to unconditionally take money from someone without accountability.

Then it's funny how the discussion turns to holding support payers (and yes, they are officially referred to as "payers") to their responsibility. When the FOC is really doing their job, their number one priority is protecting the relationship between the child(ren) and the non-custodial parent through case workers and not blindly jumping to any conclusion the custodial parent is making or believing any lie she is telling. In protecting these relationships, the non-custodial parent will in turn live up to any proportionate financial responsibility.

Genesee County Friend of the Court clears more than $871,000 in child support payments during incentive program

Published: Sunday, August 21, 2011, 9:00 PM Updated: Monday, August 22, 2011, 5:11 PM

mlive.com

By Roberto Acosta | Flint Journal

GENESEE COUNTY, Michigan — Parents ponied up more than $871,000 in unpaid child support after the Genesee County Friend of the Court asked its workers to brainstorm new approaches for collecting money and handling cases.

File photoJohn Battles

The 11-week program also cleared up more than 2,700 cases and cleared the books of $44 million that was owed, mainly through closing old cases and restructuring payment agreements.

Friend of the Court John Battles said the methods weren’t new ideas, but the office’s 85 caseworkers took a more hands-on approach.

“One employee just grabbed a list of active bench warrants and just started calling everybody who needed to make a payment,” he said. “Even the switchboard operator was collecting money.”

Other workers stepped up efforts to establish paternity.

The office also closed cases in which someone owing support may have been deceased, incarcerated or been missing for an extended period of time.

“By closing cases that are uncollectable or shouldn’t be collected, it allows us to devote time to cases that we can collect on,” said casework supervisor Connie Boniecki.

More than 100 orders were made to stop support because the person owed no longer wanted to collect the money and another 450 orders were modified to reflect changes in the parent’s fiscal situation.

“The employees came up with a lot of great ideas on how to work with people, how to collect on cases we should have been collecting on,” said

There’s still much work to be done.

The Friend of the Court estimates there is still about $524 million in unpaid child support on more than 66,000 open cases in the county.

A residual benefit from the latest collections is that it may help increase the amount of federal money to Genesee County, Battles said.

The state’s Department of Human Services distributes the money based largely on child support and back support collection.

Battles said 17 employees were laid off during the last fiscal year, but the staff in place continues to make calls and assist in all their normal case responsibilities.

“I know some people don’t see that, but they are a hard-working group,” he said. “They want to do the right thing for people.”

Wayne County: Frustration Can Lead to Motivation?

2011-09-28T06:24:00.000-07:00

While the numbers don't quite add up, probably because of typos, and the grammar is very choppy, I have a few reasons for reposting this complaint here.  First, it mentions how "they should also assign a case worker to your case, not the who ever answers the phone system they have now."  While this does make sense, it is unlikely to happen in the near future.

So I wanted to take the time to say that in my experience, it is better to go into the FOC in person to handle a problem (as with any problem, really) than it is to try to take care of it over the phone.  This is not always practical though, so I have found that when calling the FOC it is good to do two things:

1)  Get the name of the person who takes the call.  She (or he) will usually say her first name.  If she doesn't, then ask.  Go through your question or problem and hang up. 

2)   Repeat.  Yes, they usually put the caller on hold and the call-back doesn't have to be an immediate one, but it can be.  Either way, when you call back you will usually get a different person - and a different explanation.  Often times I would call more than twice.

Another reason for calling attention to this article is the statement that "the over the counter drug charge is ridiculous there is no way that it should even exist."   I agree, I have never heard of this, and I am wondering what it is.

The last reason is the call for people to work together, by both the story and a subsequent comment, to hold this system accountable.  It looks to me like links and info got deleted by ripoffreport.com, so I want to at least give it some more recognition being that this is really the point of this blog.

Michigan Friend Of The Court Things Need To Change With The Friend Of The Court Detroit, Michigan

Ripoff Report

The Friend Of The Court is not our Friend and that needs to change. The program needs to be re-evaluated, there system doesn't work and no one is there to over see the wrongs that are being done to good people that intend to pay support and take care of there children.

The FOC sent an order to my employer that i had to have insurance on my son, never once checking to see what the cost was. now i have to take a $522.00 dollar a month hit until they review my complaint that this is over 5% of my income. Now they are taking over $1100.00 a month from my check.

This needs to stop and i would like to organize a group and see what our chances are to sue the FOC for the money they have taken from good people like us. And file to have the system changed and examined and have offices put in towns around Mi were they belong and not 1 office in Detroit.

They should also assign a case worker to your case, not the who ever answers the phone system they have now.

There formula that they use needs to be re-formulated. when my son lived with me there was at no time it cost me $500 a month, not even at school time. Also the over the counter drug charge is ridiculous there is no way that it should even exist.

If anyone is interested email me at (((ROR redacted))) but make sure you have proof of the system cheating you so then we can share the cost and find an attorney that will fight for us. THE VICTIMS OF FOC

#1 Consumer Comment

michigan friend of the court

AUTHOR: RMJ - Lansing (United States of America)

SUBMITTED: Monday, August 08, 2011

i was wondering if there was any way that people could contact each other by email so we could get a group of us together and fight this bs system. Let me know thanks rmj

Manistee County: Passing the Buck

2011-09-27T16:24:00.000-07:00

I vaguely remember having to deal with this when I was in the court system.  My problem wasn't as serious as this, but each department has a convenient avenue for shifting responsibility and this back-and-forth finger pointing is typical.  Usually this happens with people who cannot afford a lawyer to sort it out.  The best thing to do is to keep calling until you get the answer you deserve, keeping track of the names of the people you talk to along the way.  I found that it was more effective to handle most problems by going to the friend of the court and speaking to somebody in person.  Becoming a familiar presence in the office can help make up for the inability to afford a lawyer.

Manistee County Michigan Friend Of The Court/ Lansing/ State Friend Of The Court Foulup Manistee Michigan

Ripoff Report

Help me? Who needs help me or Friend of the Court or both. All I can tell things are really screwed up and I was wondering if anyone at Friend of the Court knows what they are doing and what the description of their job entails.

It all started when my estranged wife (soon to be ex) left me for another man. And of course took my children too. I was both mother and father when we were together. I got served with divorce papers and what was really bad she sought full custody. Just to let you know, I am an excellent father. Always putting my kids first. No record, no drugs, no alcohol history, no anger or abuse history. I bent over backwards for my family. Of course I got a lawyer too.

However I couldn't fight for custody as well because of the amount I pay to her (Friend of the Court) is pretty close to half of my income. I deserve my kids and I deserve to take the money I earn and spend it on my kids myself not give it to someone that broke my kids and myself's trust. I scrape by and hope weekly I have enough money for gas to earn money so I can pay for child support. However that is not the real foulup this is...

When my ex's lawyer put in for garnishment to take money out of my check and submitted it to Friend of the Court he got the wrong address from my soon to be ex. I work for a company that is located in another State. The place I actually work hired my company (contracted). Well friend of the court sent the garnishment order to the place i work and not to my company.

Well I got the paperwork and I immediately contacted Friend of the Court in Manistee and told them of their mistake. Friend of the Court sent the correct paperwork to my company. Because of Friend of the Court's mistake I was about $500 in arrearages. My company immediately made the garnishment and it was coming out of my check. But here is the huge foulup...

About 2 to 3 months later I received a letter from Friend of the Court stating I was behind in child support by over $3000. Wow! What a mistake this was. Money was taken out of my check every payday. I was never behind like that. I have the proof that money was taken out each payday when my company received the letter. It all shows it was on time and never once behind.

I contacted Manistee Friend of the Court and they stated this mistake is a Lansing error and I needed to go through them. So Manistee Friend of the Court gave me the number to call and I called them. It was an automated number only. No human voice. So after going around with my local Friend of the Court they still said it wasn't there problem. I finally got ahold of MiSDU and they informed me that that error is suppose to be corrected by my local Friend of the Court.

My local Friend of the Court is informing me the State is suppose to correct it. Neither is claiming to correct this huge error and I am stuck with this error and I have the proof I do not owe arrearages. I called my company (payroll), and they informed me they have been garnishing my checks, sent it out to the correct address, the correct amount, and is up to date. So no errors from my company. Now get this, I can't even do my taxes yet because if I do my return will be taken for arrearages that I do not owe and given to my soon to be ex-wife. I am left holding a mistake that isn't even mine.

I am clueless what to do because I play phone tag between Local and State Friend of the Court not wanting to correct this $3000 error. Help me get there attention because evidently they do not take me serious and could care less and if this is their attitude then beware who else has to deal with them. Thank you so much

Jeffrey

Manistee, Michigan

U.S.A.

Light Punishment for FOC Worker Turned Convicted Felon

2011-09-24T17:39:00.001-07:00

Talk about a slap on the wrist.  A felony charge gets reduced to 3 days in jail.  I wonder how many other incompetent people are in charge of taking people's money at the local FOCs.  It also makes me wonder how many incompetent people are making the hiring decisions.  I only wonder these things, though, if I choose to believe that it actually was incompetence and not greed.  What's even more interesting is how many people in the comment portion try to make excuses for her.

Lisa Hovis, ex-Muskegon County Friend of the Court worker, sentenced for embezzling child-support money

Published: Tuesday, July 19, 2011, 10:06 AM Updated: Tuesday, July 19, 201http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif1, 10:10 AM

mlive.com

By John S. Hausman | Muskegon Chronicle

A botched coverup of an inability to do the job: that, not greed, was the motive behind an account clerk's small-scale embezzlement of money from Muskegon County's Friend of the Court, authorities concluded.

And with that background, a visiting Kent County judge sentenced Lisa Renee Hovis to three days in jail with credit for one day already served; two years on probation; and 50 hours community service. Seventeenth Circuit Judge Christopher P. Yates also ordered Hovis to pay $512.22 restitution, a total that includes costs of investigation.

Because she is recovering from recent back surgery and is still using a walker, Yates allowed her to serve her remaining jail sentence any time in the next 60 days.

Hovis, 44, of Twin Lake on May 18 pleaded no contest as charged to one count of embezzlement by a public official of more than $50, a felony.

“I think what you did was much more a mistake than intentional theft,” Yates said to Hovis after pronouncing sentence late Monday afternoon. “You really seemed to be in over your head on the job.”

According to the presentence investigator's report, Hovis — a recent hire in Muskegon County 14th Circuit Court's child-support division in 2009 — often had trouble balancing her cash box, Yates said. At times it would come up short, at other times over. Sometimes, the judge said, Hovis would even put in cash from her own purse to try to make the box balance.

“On balance, it seems to me that you were doing a job that you couldn't do,” Yates said.

Although the sentence was relatively lenient, the judge said, he did want to impose some jail time “so that you understand that you never want to go there again ... to make sure that you get a sense of how awful the jail is.”

Hovis was technically an employee of all four of Muskegon County's circuit judges, leading to the case's transfer to Yates. Yates came to Muskegon County for the sentencing.

Hovis received child-support payments from clients as part of her job. Hovis became a court employee in August 2009. Soon the Friend of the Court administrator noticed repeated discrepancies and contacted the Muskegon County Sheriff's Office in December 2009. Hovis was placed on administrative leave soon after and was criminally charged in October 2010.

Corruption at Muskegon County F.O.C.

2011-09-23T12:07:00.000-07:00

This is an older article from mlive.com that I decided to repost because I believe that it is highly relevant to anyone paying child support and that there is no such thing as too much exposure for a story like this.

Lisa Hovis, ex-Muskegon County Friend of the Court worker, pleads no contest to embezzling child-support money

Published: Wednesday, May 18, 2011, 11:42 AM Updated: Wednesday, May 18, 2011, 12:23 PM

By John S. Hausman | Muskegon Chronicle

Lisa Renee Hovis

A former Muskegon County 14th Circuit Court clerk has pleaded no contest to embezzling public funds.

Lisa Renee Hovis, 44, of Twin Lake entered the plea Wednesday before visiting 17th Circuit Judge Christopher P. Yates of Kent County. She pleaded no contest, as charged, to one count of embezzlement by a public official of more than $50, a felony.

Hovis was an account clerk in the Friend of the Court division. That made her technically an employee of all four of Muskegon County's circuit judges, leading to the case's transfer to Yates. Yates came to Muskegon County for the plea and scheduled sentencing for 4 p.m. July 18.

Hovis received child-support payments from clients as part of her job. Prosecutors said she took some of the funds for her personal benefit.

The charge stems from an incident Sept. 14, 2009, when Hovis allegedly pocketed $180 from a person who made a $200 payment and was given credit for only $20, authorities said. Hovis became a court employee in August 2009.

Not long after that, the Friend of the Court administrator noticed repeated discrepancies and contacted the Muskegon County Sheriff's Office in December 2009, Muskegon County Prosecutor Tony Tague said earlier.

Hovis was placed on administrative leave shortly after the sheriff's office was contacted, and she was escorted from the Michael E. Kobza Hall of Justice in February 2010 by sheriff's deputies. The embezzlement charge was filed in October.

Carol Rhodes Former FOC Enforcement Officer

2011-09-22T12:34:00.000-07:00

In this video, a behind-the-scenes account of how the 37th Circuit Friend of the Court operated is given outside of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. She summarizes her book, Friend of the Court, Enemy of the Family, and describes the "money first" attitude and goes into brief detail about the corruptive practices by the department in which she worked. This video takes place August 18, 2007.