Damian Brooks came before a judge Thursday to report that he?s out of school, has a good job and is set to have about $1,000 a month in child-support payments taken straight out of his paycheck.
But the assistant state?s attorney had no proof of that. So Baltimore County Circuit Judge Mickey Norman stepped down from the bench and got on the phone with the company ? as the courtroom gallery listened in.
“He?s in no kind of trouble,” Norman said, reassuring a human resources employee on the other line. He verified what Brooks had said, thanked her and hung up. “She?s obviously helpful,” he said, sitting back down.
Brooks was one of dozens of men listed Thursday on Norman?s docket of civil child-support cases.
Some fathers came in owing tens of thousands of dollars in back support, some struggling to keep up with payments as small as $60 a month. One man said he had cancer and couldn?t work regularly. Another said his last employer took off for Florida and never paid him.
Many of the men ? they were all men that day ? were referred to Baltimore County?s Family Employment and Support Program. The program, which was launched with a 2004 federal grant, steers noncustodial parents who are often severely behind in child support toward the help they need finding jobs.
If the parent has a medical problem, staff will come up with jobs that don?t aggravate it. If building a resume is a problem, they can get the parent help. Some parents have been in prison and don?t even have an ID card; the FESP staff guides them toward those basic resources.
Just about any reason a noncustodial parent can give for not keeping up with child support, the people at FESP can work to fix. And if they don?t cooperate with the program, parents can face jail time.
“Most people want a decent job,” Norman said in an interview. “And if they have a decent job, they?ll fulfill their responsibilities.”
Brooks stood outside the courtroom after his hearing and said he?ll easily make his payments now.
“I?m no longer a deadbeat dad!” he said, heading for the elevator. “I handle my responsibilities.”
