Newsroom

Louisiana's "Most Wanted" Features 18 Who Owe Nearly $866,000 in Child Support

November 13, 2013

BATON ROUGE -- The Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) today released the names of 18 non-custodial parents who owe nearly $866,000 in past due child support and are considered to be Louisiana's "Most Wanted" delinquent payors.

This year's list, published as a poster, features non-custodial parents who owe at least $20,000 and have not paid child support in at least six months. It includes each non-payor's photo, last known address, number of children and how much they owe.

"The parents included on the Most Wanted list are non-custodial parents who repeatedly evade our efforts to collect the child support owed to their children," said DCFS Secretary Suzy Sonnier. "In previous years, this poster's publication has elicited tips about the current locations of many of Louisiana's delinquent payors and has in turn made them pay up."

Any member of the public who has information on the whereabouts of any person on DCFS' "Most Wanted" poster is encouraged to notify authorities or call 1-888-LAHELP-U (1-888-524-3578) and choose Child Support (option 1) and then option 5.

The largest sum owed by a "Most Wanted" individual is $128,220.55 by Richard Miller, a 53-year- old electrician who is last known to live in Lake Ozark, Missouri. Miller has topped the "Most Wanted" list since 2009.

All of the "Most Wanted" making the list are ranked by amount owed*:

• $128,220.55 - Richard C. Miller, 53 years old, last known living in Lake Ozark, MO
• $ 78,724.08 - Ricky Dale Richard, 56 years old, last known living in Westlake
• $ 75,277.95 - Jerald Roy Douglas, 45 years old, last known living in Marrero
• $ 70,435.88 - Dwayne Ballard, 42 years old, last known living in Luling
• $ 64,559.50 - James Alton Liverett III, 50 years old, last known living in Holden
• $ 59,223.86 - Calvin G. Blue, Sr., 56 years old, last know living in Folsom
• $ 49,606.68 - Richard Williams Prine, 57 years old, last known living in Denham Springs
• $ 45,015.76 - Brian Keith Thomas, 50 years old, last known living in Baton Rouge
• $ 41,397.31 - Patrick Neil Ronney, 45 years old, last known living in Gretna
• $ 40,649.00 - Hernes Lizardo Aparicio, 39 years old, last known living in Duluth, GA
• $ 36,503.59 - Elroy Timothy Hoover, 40 years old, last known living in Covington
• $ 33,746.77 - Louis Kipling Summers, 38 years old, last known living in Ridgeland, MA
• $ 25,986.02 - Alexander Dezara, 38 years old, last known living in New Orleans
• $ 24,893.86 - Gerald Phillip Piper, 43 years old, last known living in Alexandria
• $ 24,419.34 - William Bryan Smith III, 38 years old, last known living in Gulfport, MS
• $ 23,277.90 - Ryan Christopher Phelps, 33 years old, last known living in Valdosta, GA
• $ 22,615.43 - Jyles William Spencer, 37 years old, last known living in Hammond
• $ 21,434.00 - Donald Melvin Myatt, 47 years old, last known living in Bogalusa

Although this "Most Wanted" poster represents the worst offenders, Louisiana's unpaid child support to DCFS totals more than $1.3 billion. In October, there were more than 166,000 cases of unpaid child support in the state.

"DCFS works tirelessly to see that Louisiana's children are being provided for by their parents," said Sonnier. "We utilize many tools to track down delinquent payors to ensure they are fulfilling their obligations to provide financial, medical and emotional support to their children."

One tool DCFS uses to collect child support arrears is the casino intercept program. In its first two years, the program, which launched in September 2011, has collected more than $1.4 million. The 17 participating casinos cross-reference winners of more than $1,200 with a database of individuals owing past due child support debt.

DCFS has a feature on its website that allows individuals to search for child support delinquent payors. Users can search by first or last name, city, amount owed and parish where the court order was established.

Failure to pay court-ordered child support can result in liens against the non-payor's property, seizure of assets, suspension of driver's, business, professional, hunting or fishing licenses, interception of state and federal tax returns, passport denial and contempt of court charges, among other enforcement actions.

DCFS Child Support Enforcement offers custodial parents several resources, including parent locator services, paternity establishment, establishment of child support orders, enforcement of orders, and collection and distribution of child support.

The "Most Wanted" poster will be distributed to DCFS and other government offices around the state. To view or download the poster, visit www.dcfs.la.gov/MostWanted. Search the full database for all Louisiana delinquent child support payors at www.dcfs.la.gov/delinquent.

*As of August 30, 2013, amounts may differ from the poster as some past due amounts may have been partially paid by the non-custodial delinquent parent. Additional amounts may have been added to others since the publication of the poster.