Collect Calls?

[GILEADFARMS]

What is the name of your state? MASSACHUSSETTS
My ex-husbands "visitation" order is limited to phone contact only because of his drug addiction. He's court ordered to pay support, but does not. For that last six months he's been calling collect twice a week to speak with the children and it is costing me a small fortune. We go back to court on the 21st to address a moving out of state issue, and I want to know if I have any grounds to request he stop calling collect. I've been allowing it because I did not want to be held in contempt for interfering with his contact. Is it plausible for me to ask for him to pay for his own calls and can this be addressed in the same hearing or does it require a seperate motion? Thank you!

 

[abstract99]

Stop accepting the calls. You are not in conetmpt if you do. He can buy a phone card. He is just looking for a free ride. Send him a certified letter stating that he is more than welcome to call the kids but you will no longer be paying money out of your pocket to do this. Chances are that you will get a nice letter back with some pitiful excuse about how he can't afford phone calls because he spands all of his money on drugs. Boo Hoo.

 

[mrsbrown]

Don't accept the collect calls if it does not state you have to. There is no reason he can't get a calling card. Or you can have the kids call him at a arranged time. It would still be cheaper then collect.

 

[LdiJ]

I agree, you are absolutely not obligated to accept collect calls. Send him the letter as suggested.

 

[BL]

My girlfriend went through a Contempt hearing , of which one allegation was that the mother would not except collect calls ( I would not the phone is in my name ) .

The Judge found the whole contempt Petition frivolous , and said there was NO requirement in the Orders that the Mother , or anyone else , except long distance collect calls .

I doubt any Judge would order you have to either .

So unless your order state you must except them , you do not .

Note: this was a NY Decision .

 

[abstract99]

Just out of curiousity..... how much have you spent on this so far?

 

[Phnx02]

What is the name of your state? MASSACHUSSETTS
My ex-husbands "visitation" order is limited to phone contact only because of his drug addiction. He's court ordered to pay support, but does not. For that last six months he's been calling collect twice a week to speak with the children and it is costing me a small fortune. We go back to court on the 21st to address a moving out of state issue, and I want to know if I have any grounds to request he stop calling collect. I've been allowing it because I did not want to be held in contempt for interfering with his contact. Is it plausible for me to ask for him to pay for his own calls and can this be addressed in the same hearing or does it require a seperate motion? Thank you!

Ditto what everyone is saying......you don't have to take the calls. Also, this can all be addressed in the same hearing.

 

[GILEADFARMS]

So far, we've spent over 400.00 on collect calls in six months. He violated his probation and was arrested yesterday < we know this because he called collect from the jail>. We have been trying to convince him to sign off his parental rights because me husband is disabled and the boys would be covered under his disability if he adopted them. So far, no such luck. We go back to court on the 21st for a hearing on visitation/support and hopefully we will be able to get some of this resolved. He's approaching the point in back child support where he will be facing charges for not paying, so it would be in his best interest too to sign off on the boys. Open to any sugestions.
Thank you, Jennifer

 

[Some Random Guy]

If he is in jail, you may need to accept collect calls since that may be the only option available to him. Bring up this issue in the hearing.

 

[beenthere30]

Maybe not... Some jails are now offering calling cards that the inmates can by to make calls without using collect call.

 

[SMURFEELAW]

Are his parents involved with him. If they are maybe, even from jail he could collect call them and then they could three-way the kids (although I have no idea on the procedure regarding three way calls from jail) but you should not be made to take money out of your home in order for him to speak to the kids even if he's in jail he's obviously in there for something he did and that is his responsibility not yours. Good Luck. Also on the giving up his rights remember that won't necessarily wipe out the back owed amount. As long as it is due to you and not the state you may be able to forgive the back owed support but it won't make it go away by just signing over his rights only the current and future will be stopped.

 

[abstract99]

You can't three way call from jail. My ex tried it on me.

 

[starbud99]

Just a idea... what if you only had a cell phone and not a home phone/land line. ( I work in the cell phone industry...) How would you be able to accept calls then? My point being that you WOULDNT be able to. so why should it be any different. I say cancel your home phone, give him the new cell phone number and let him know, he can call any time he wants. What he will figure out sooner than later, is that his calls can not go through, maybe he should kick some drugs to the curb, so he can afford some calling cards. Just an Idea...

 

[SMURFEELAW]

You can't three way call from jail. My ex tried it on me.

I thought I had heard something like that before that's why I said I wasn't sure.... Thanks for clearing that up

I still stick by the fact that it is his own fault and if he wants to talk to his kids he should behave and keep his own a** out of jail.

 

[GILEADFARMS]

His being in jail is a recent development. He was in jail for awhile before this, but had been released. I honestly don't mind paying for once a month calls from jail to the boys because my husband and I both feel it is important for him to maintain a relationship with them. Their stepdad is great, but he's not their dad and all three of us realize this. We encourage the kids to write to him and when we go back to court on the 21st, had agreed to supervised visitations in a couceling center with the judges approval. <the judge was the person who issued the contact by phone only order, we had originally agreed to supervised visits, but my ex didn't show up for the court date>

On a side note, we have been doing a lot of research on the parental rights/ adoption issue and found several instances were moms who gave up children for adoption has a clause for some sort of contact/visitation written into the adoption. Is it possible to apply that kind of a clause to a case where a parent gives up his rights to the children so the step parent can adopt them? We both think that this would be an ideal situation but do not want to broach it with my ex until we know for certain it would be plausable. Again, our primary concern is supporting the boys. If my husband adopts them, they would become eligible after a certain amount of time for support through his disability. Does anyone know if this clause can be applied to our situation?
thank you!