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Latest Legal News from the Criminal Courts in Houston, Texas
May 22, 2007
Attorney General Abbott, Tarrant Co. Constable Track Down, Arrest Parent Who Owes Child Support
Charles Silva owes $49,000; faces criminal prosecution
MANSFIELD – Deputy constables with the office of Tarrant County Constable Clint Burgess arrested Charles Dominic Silva Wednesday at his residence in Mansfield for failing to pay court-ordered child support. The Mansfield father of two was apprehended after investigators from the Attorney General’s Child Support Division located Silva and contacted Constable Burgess to make the arrest. Silva, 47, owes $49,000 in unpaid child support.
“Texans will not tolerate parents who neglect their children,” Attorney General Abbott said. “Parents who refuse to pay their court-ordered child support must be held accountable for violating the law. Thanks to Constable Clint Burgess and his deputies, a negligent parent was brought to justice for failure to support his kids.”
In September 1994, a Dallas County court ordered Silva to pay $550 a month in child support. After Silva repeatedly violated the court’s order, an investigator with the Attorney General’s Child Support Division presented the case to Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins for criminal prosecution. In March, a Dallas County grand jury returned a criminal indictment and an arrest warrant was issued.
“We are grateful to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office for its commitment to Texas children. With the district attorney office’s ongoing help, we will ensure that the children of Dallas County have the resources they need to grow healthy and strong.”
Silva is currently incarcerated in the Dallas County jail on criminal nonsupport charges. A criminal nonsupport conviction carries up to a two-year state jail sentence and a fine of up to $10,000.
The Child Support Division is responsible for establishing and enforcing civil child support orders. Attorney General Abbott works regularly with local prosecutors to impose criminal penalties against parents who have the ability to pay child support, but who refuse to make their court-ordered payments.
The Attorney General’s statewide child support collections exceeded $2 billion for the fiscal year that ended Aug. 31, 2006. Offices covering Dallas and Tarrant counties collected more than $440 million of that amount.
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