When Alabama residents are dealing with financial needs, many may dream of hitting it big in the lottery or a casino to pay off their debts. Unfortunately, this is just a dream for all but a very few. And even for those who do strike it big, there can be repercussions if they have outstanding debt or child support issues. One man recently learned this lesson the hard way.

The man had some success while playing at a Wisconsin casino, to the tune of $10,000. When law enforcement got word of his wins, however, they arrested the man for his failure to pay child support. The man was $6,000 behind on his child support payments at the time and had $13,000 in cash on his possession when he was arrested. Authorities indicated that the seized cash would be used to pay the back child support.

Typically, those who are seeking back child support do not have a lump sum payment that law enforcement can go after like a lottery win. Instead, officials must pursue more traditional methods of enforcement, such as wage garnishment.

Wage garnishment may be an effective way to obtain a portion of one’s earnings to pay child support. Anyone who receives personal earnings like wages or salaries may see garnishment of their disposable earnings — the earnings that are left after typical deductions are made.

In child support cases, up to 50 or 60 percent of a worker’s disposable earnings are subject to garnishment. However, a court order often must be obtained before garnishment is available. Accordingly, Alabama residents needing the benefit of garnishment might consider consulting an experienced family law professional who can advise as to the proper procedures for garnishing another person’s wages for child support purposes.

Source: Host.Madison.com, “Man behind $6k in child support had $13k on him when arrested after big casino win, police say,” Bill Novak, Feb. 7, 2013