Here is another example of the sort of drama we all hope to avoid in our personal lives and in the practice of family law. According to news reports, a man from Chicago recently jumped from a third-storey window to avoid paying $5,979.66 in child support.
35-year-old Ronald “Boobie” McIntyre was being pursued by police on a Cook County warrant for unpaid child support. McIntyre, a career criminal with 80 criminal convictions unrelated to the child support issue, was apparently keen to avoid another arrest.
When Cook County Sheriff’s officers attempted to take him into custody at his apartment, a woman let them in but said disappeared and she had no idea where he was.
A child then pointed to a back window. The officers looked out and saw McIntyre splayed on the ground.
“Though it appeared he landed on grass, it was actually artificial turf covering concrete,” a sheriff’s office representative told the Chicago Tribune. Both of McIntyre’s legs were broken in the fall.
When officers reached the ground, they discovered that they still couldn’t reach McIntyre because he had jumped into a fenced-off area. Despite his two broken legs, McIntyre shouted expletives at the police and tried to wriggle away.
The officers eventually reached through the gates and handcuffed McIntyre to them before calling an ambulance. McIntyre was treated for his injuries before being taken — again — to jail.
According to court records cited by the Cook County Sheriff’s office, McIntyre has been convicted of obstruction of justice 39 times, 21 times for assault, and 20 times for invasion of privacy. He now faces criminal charges on nonpayment of child support in an amount exceeding $5,000 as well as a civil child support enforcement action.
Related Resources:
- “Man jumps from window, breaks both legs, in desperate attempt to avoid paying $6000 in child support” (New York Daily News, August 11, 2010)
- “Dead Beat Dad Jumps From Building to Avoid Paying Child Support” (NBC Chicago, August 11, 2010)
