CHILD SUPPORT COLLECTIONS UP; DA HAILS OFFICE'S BATTLE VS. DEADBEATS.Byline: David R. Baker Daily News Staff Writer The child-support check handed to Lynda Brown on Thursday did not come easily. She had spent eight years battling her former husband in court, seeking money to raise their two young children. But she finally got more than $150,000 in back payments, after her lawyer and the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County District Attorney's Office seized seized (seised) n. 1) having ownership, commonly used in wills as "I give all the property of which I die seized as follows:...." 2) having taken possession of evidence for use in a criminal prosecution. 3) having taken property or a person by force. (See: seisin, seizure) money that her former husband won in a lawsuit lawsuit: see procedure; tort. . ``This system will work, if you stick with it and have patience,'' Brown said during a news conference. It was one of many success stories that District Attorney Gil Garcetti Gilbert "Gil" Garcetti (b. August 5, 1941) served as Los Angeles County's 39th District Attorney for two terms, from 1992 until November 7, 2000. Background Gil Garcetti received a bachelor's degree in Management from the University of Southern California and a Juris said should help his office set a record in 1998 for child-support collection. Collections for the first three months of 1998 have already topped $62 million, up 36 percent from the same period last year, Garcetti said, speaking at the Encino office of the Bureau of Family Support Operations. If the pace continues, the bureau, which is part of the District Attorney's Office, should collect $260 million this year, compared to $232 million in 1997. ``That money is going to children and families that desperately need it,'' he said. ``We're making really substantial progress.'' Garcetti attributed the increases to the bureau's beefed-up staff, its greater use of automation and to state laws penalizing parents who don't pay. He cited as particularly useful a law that took effect in January 1996 allowing government officials to revoke To annul or make void by recalling or taking back; to cancel, rescind, repeal, or reverse. revoke v. to annul or cancel an act, particularly a statement, document, or promise, as if it no longer existed. the driver licenses of parents delinquent delinquent 1) adj. not paid in full amount or on time. 2) n. short for an underage violator of the law as in juvenile delinquent. DELINQUENT, civil law. He who has been guilty of some crime, offence or failure of duty. in their child support payments. ``Guess what? You're not going to get that license if you owe child support,'' he said. The bureau has hired 150 new staff members since last fall and is trying to expand its customer service center, which handles calls from parents needing help, Garcetti said. The figures released Thursday show substantial increases not only in the amount of cash collected, but in the number of court orders for child support payments won by the bureau. From January through March, local courts issued 12,431 child support orders, more than twice the 5,932 orders given during the same period last year. Despite the improvements, such cases can still take years to resolve. Canyon Country resident Theresa Stringer string·er n. 1. One that strings: a stringer of beads. 2. Architecture a. A long heavy horizontal timber used as a support or connector. b. A stringboard. , who received a reproduction of an $85,000 check from Garcetti on Thursday, first contacted the bureau for help in 1991. Her ex-husband had stopped making support payments for their four children about a year after their 1988 divorce, she said. ``You learn that you have to persevere per·se·vere intr.v. per·se·vered, per·se·ver·ing, per·se·veres To persist in or remain constant to a purpose, idea, or task in the face of obstacles or discouragement. on things that are really important,'' Stringer said. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos, chart PHOTO (1 -- 2) Lynda Brown, with her children Brian, 8, and Erin, 13, above, won her battle to get back child support. At right, Theresa Stringer, left, leans on attorney Pamela Springer springer a North American term commonly used to describe heifers close to term with their first calf. , who helped her collect $85,000. Evan Yee/Daily News Chart: Making delinquent parents pay |
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