Man appears in court for violating court order to pay child support

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man appeared in court last week for violating a court order after he failed to pay child support last year. He was given one week to think about what to do before the court delivers its decision.

According to court records, the defendant was behind on payments by over $1,000 since July of last year until August of this year. The man was ordered to pay $150 a month for his children when the couple’s divorce was finalized by the court in 2019, however, despite there being months that the man paid the full amount as ordered by the court — other months the payments were short.

When asked why he failed to comply with order of the court, the defendant said that he was unable to work between November of last year and April to May of this year, as he was sick.

“What about December of last year until March of this year, were you also sick during that period?” the court asked the defendant. The defendant did not answer.

“Do you have an answer to my question or not?” the court asked the defendant.

He responded, “Your honor, I worked during that period, however, due to my illness, sometimes I worked 2-3 days a week while other times I worked 4 days. I never worked for a full week due to my health condition.”

The court told the defendant that he needs to make up his mind whether he wants to comply with order of the court or not. The court then ordered the defendant to go back home to allow him time to make up his mind what he should do, before the court gives its decision next week.