TWENTY MONTH SENTENCE FOR FAILURE TO PAY CHILD SUPPORT UPHELD

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the twenty month sentence of Michael Lee Knight for failure to pay child support. The Court found that he failed to pay $35,833.13 in child support and that he owed $78,565.85 (including interest?) in restitution.

Knight claimed that the trial court did not take into sufficient consideration “his poverty, history of sexual and physical abuse, struggles with drug addiction and bipolar disorder, incarceration while he was to pay child support, and efforts to care for his current wife, mother, children and stepchildren.”

Knight plead guilty to the offense of not paying child support. The appellate court pointed out that its responsibility was limited to determining whether the District Court abused its discretion in sentencing Knight to twenty months. The Sentencing Guidelines indicated a sentence of 30-37 months. But since the maximum sentence for the offense is two years the District Court sentenced Knight to twenty months. The Eighth Circuit pointed out that the District Court need not address every possible sentencing issue on the record. Sentences within the Guidelines are presumptively valid and according to the court it is highly unlikely that that any sentence below the Guidelines is an abuse of discretion.

What I don’t get is what possible benefit is there to society of placing a person in prison for failing to pay child support. Certainly during the period of the sentence no child support is going to be paid. Knight is already on Social Security Disability so his ability to pay child support must be questioned. Even if he can work the prison commitment will make it more difficult when he gets out for him to get a job and pay child support. We have long ago given up debtor’s prisons. We cannot put him back in prison for failing to pay the restitution unless he has the ability to pay the restitution and fails to do so.