Hearing on Thursday in another state...can't make it...help?

[cookhm81]

Last month I received orders to appear and show cause as to why I should not be jailed due to back child support. I acknowledge this, but I have also been paying through wage garnishment for quite some time. The arrearage was calculated up through the end of March of 2009.

The problem is that I live in Texas, and the court hearing is in Arkansas. I have no way to get to the hearing. I tried for weeks to find the means, and I couldn't come up with anything. I am currently unemployed, but I have paid independently through the court. My driver's license was suspended and I have yet to get it reinstated.

I live with my fiancee and my oldest child that I have full custody of, and he supports us both and it is all he can do to keep ends meet and help me with my support and provide for my son. I am actively looking for work but in this economy, it sucks. Especially with no skills, since while I was married to the father of my children that I pay support for, I was a stay at home mom. The job I did have was in fast food and I lost that job due to health issues.

I have no money for legal representation, so the only thing I knew to do was to contact the court directly, explain my circumstances and difficulty in getting to the hearing. I also requested that a payment plan for the arrearage be decided upon in my absence and that I would pay according to their terms and to the best of my ability. I included the proof of the child support that I have paid, and also the income withholding order from the OCSE (the people who are taking me to court, shouldn't they have this information anyway?). I also sent a copy of this information to the OCSE, so that they couldn't say that they hadn't been notified.

This was done last Monday, and I still have not heard anything from the court as to their decision. Should I call them to see what the status is? If my plea is denied, where do I go from there? I still don't have a way to get there.

This is causing me so much anxiety that I haven't slept or eaten in days. If a bench warrant is issued, how do I find out? Should I just turn myself in to the police station here and let them transfer me to Arkansas? That, it seems, would be preferable than sitting around waiting and wondering when they will come get me, and the possibility of them coming in the middle of the day when my fiancee is at work and my son is in school with no way to let anyone know, or worse, when my son is here with me and my fiancee is at work and no one here to take care of my son.

Please, anyone, help me out here.

I did this on Monday, and still haven't heard anything from the court.

[ocean]

Call the courts on Monday and see what the status is...You can ask to have a phone hearing. They will call you at the time of the hearing and do it all over the phone.
Who did you send the paperwork to? the judge?