My DCSE Case in Chesapeake

Ever since the state lost their child-support payments, how well Jeffrey, David and Bobby eat depends on how well they pull crabs and croaker from the Chesapeake Bay.

For a decade, their mother, Kimberly O. Tompulis, figured the father of her two oldest boys was ignoring them. She hardly heard from him and received little or no financial support.

But in late May, Jeffrey and David's grandmother sent a letter. Things must be easier with those support checks coming in from her son, she wrote.

Tompulis started: What support checks?

Eventually she found out that the father has been sending child-support payments for a year. His paychecks were being garnisheed in Illinois, and the money sent to Virginia's Division of Child Support Enforcement. Virginia officials never told Tompulis about the payments - and then sent them back to the father after she didn't claim them.

It wasn't the first time that a state computer or bookkeeping snafu - one of many problems in the overburdened, largely ineffective system - has kept Virginia children from receiving money paid on their behalf. Across the state, only half the estimated 350,000 child-support cases have obtained legal orders for payments by absent parents. Only a fourth receive any payments at all.

Tompulis lived with Jeffrey and David's father for eight years but never married him. She has received little support in the decade since she left him, but she has kept in touch with his parents. She later married and separated from the father of her third son, Bobby.

Tompulis, 37, sometimes worked multiple jobs - waitress, nursing assistant - to help support her family. The last time was in the spring, but she had to quit as a waitress and short-order cook because she couldn't find a suitable sitter for her boys. David, 11, was hospitalized for two years with emotional disorders and still requires special care; Bobby, 8, was born with one arm. They and Jeffrey, 12, are in therapy.

The family made do with Navy support

checks from her estranged husband, disability payments for David's care and food stamps. They've lived since last year in a weatherbeaten house yards from the Bay.

Masking tape covers two long cracks in the front door, and photos of the boys cover the walls.

Their mother sleeps on a living-room couch that has a spring sticking out the bottom. They were getting by.

But things got worse when another bureaucratic foul-up temporarily stopped the Navy checks. The family ran out of money.

While Tompulis fruitlessly sought answers, her boys were waking to breakfasts of one scrambled egg apiece washed down with tap water.

And in the evenings they often fished for their supper. Their landlord's patience was waning; he already had given them a five-day notice, although he held off evicting them.

``It's the 8-year-old's birthday today,'' Tompulis said last month. ``Who's going to tell him there's no birthday cake?

``All I know is, it's desperate now. I'm desperate.''

She called Virginia child-support officials four and five times a day from a neighbor's phone. Usually she couldn't reach anyone, and few of her calls were returned, she said. But slowly she found out things.

Her case had been declared inactive years earlier. The payments from Illinois couldn't be found.

Viola D. Prince, a case manager for the Norfolk Community Services Board's Mental Health Unit who worked with the family, tried to help, but also grew frustrated.

``I have never had a situation so complicated where the money was there and she can't get it,'' Prince said. ``I got information from the state of Illinois in two or three hours, and Virginia said it couldn't get it.''

An Illinois Division of Child Support Enforcement spokesman said Jeffrey and David's father has been sending $130 to Virginia authorities every two weeks since July 1993 - a total of more than $3,000.

By early July, a Virginia DCSE caseworker said they had located some of the money in a holding account in Richmond. ``All I have to do is push a button, and within 48 hours you'll be issued a check,'' Tompulis said the caseworker told her.

The family celebrated. They enjoyed a rare dinner out. They raced through Roses, splurging on long-postponed new clothes, shoes, even Mighty Morphin Power Rangers toys. ``We blew a lot of money,'' Tompulis said.

But no check came. The caseworker was on vacation. When he returned, he said the money wasn't there anymore. Illinois didn't have it, either.

The family missed its July rent payment. The Community Services Board helped them find some money for groceries, but crabbing and fishing took on added urgency.

``We eat a lot of crabs,'' Tompulis said, smiling wanly.

A DCSE official called Tompulis in mid-July, the same day a newspaper reporter called the agency inquiring about Tompulis' case. The official criticized her for taking her case to the news media, Tompulis said, but also sent her a check for $130. The money went for groceries and a few birthday hats for Bobby's postponed party.

Officials promised more, but nothing came for days, until last week. To tide the family over, the state sent a check for $520 via Federal Express from a state emergency fund.

The money will be deducted from the money Tompulis' children are owed.

Elizabeth T. Ray, district manager for the Norfolk DCSE office, said Tompulis apparently didn't return a postcard sent to her when her file was purged in December 1992 for being inactive.

Under the old computer system used before this year, there was no cross-index to let workers know she was also getting support payments from a different father at her current address.

The money from Illinois went into an unclaimed account for almost a year, and in mid-May was returned to the father. Tompulis learned about the payments and began asking for them 11 days later.

``I can't say definitely what happened,'' the DCSE's Ray said last week.

``I guess I would have to say she did not always let us know when she had a new address. Yes, we had pieces of mail come back . . . but it didn't mean all cases were updated.''

Tompulis is still waiting for more checks. Ray promised that the DCSE will go after the money it returned to the father in Illinois, and will seek his bank accounts if he has any.

``I have no doubt she's in desperate need,'' Ray said.

Tompulis said she'll believe everyone when she sees the checks

Good Morning Mr.XXXX,

Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Ezzard Roberts, Supervisor of Enforcement for the Chesapeake District Office of Child Support. I am contacting you on behalf of my District Manager, Gerald Berry who is currently unavailable at the present time to address your concerns. I have reviewed your complaint as well as this case thoroughly in respect of your request.

Your first complaint clearly suggest that the Chesapeake DCSE office has "leaked" personal information to your ex-wife such as personal phone numbers, work history, and a certain legal matter in North Carolina. In regards to this complaint after my review I have found no evidence that DCSE in any way acted according to this manner. However, I have found that on more than several occasions that the Custodial Parent herself did contact our agency and provided this information for enforcement purposes. It is at all possible that the Custodial parent may "possibly" have other avenues of obtaining this information.

You have also indicated that the workers whether they be past or present has not complied with any request for payment information in a timely manner. My review concludes that your 1st letter of this nature was received 07/13/05 and the request was forwarded by restricted mail on the very same day. There was a 2nd letter similar to this request received by our office 03/11/06 which I would agree was not handled in such a timely manner, however that issue has been addressed with the case worker. However during that time several attempts were made by the case worker, in the form of arrearage statements with a request from the worker for you to contact her directly because at that point you were adamant about not relinquishing your telephone number to DCSE.

I do sympathize and apologize for your relationship with a past worker, Ms. Thiel who is no longer with DCSE. If you were treated with rudeness I do apologize to that effect however Ms. Theil is no longer an employee with DCSE so I do not feel as if it is appropriate to revisit the issue. It appears that you and Ms. Theil had numerous dialogue during this period and you personally addressed your concerns in regards to your client, worker relationship to her in writing and took action yourself by indicating that you would correspond with her only in writing, in which you did.

Overall the processing of this case was handled correctly and in accordance with DCSE policy. All of the appropriate actions were taken, this case was closed and reopened several times and numerous orders where passed, all which were processed properly at the time they were received. We have conferred with the worker and counseled with her in regards to all matters we felt were appropriate.

In closing I will provide you with my direct telephone number should you have any further issues or questions.

Ezzard C. Roberts

Enforcement Team Leader

Chesapeake District Child Support

814 Greenbrier Circle Suite U

Chesapeake, VA 23320

Gerald Berry

Program Manager

PSI

814 Greenbrier Circle, Suite U

Chesapeake, VA 23320

Dear Mr. Berry,

I would like to letter/email to be considered as a formal complaint against the workers of my DCSE case, case number XXXXXXXXX, which started in the Chesapeake office in later 96 or early 97. Since that time the personnel of the local Chesapeake office, have leak personal information to my ex-wife. The personal information I’m referring to is personal phone numbers, work history, and more recently a personal legal matter in North Carolina.

Here are list of complaints.

1. Not replying to letters of request of information (payments, arrears statements) in a timely matter. Often have to include “I would like said info with 10 days, or I will contact Richmond.”

2. The release of my phone numbers to my ex-wife on several occasions (my personal home number, my cell, and my family numbers as well.) there is a collation with my release of my number to DCSE and falsified phone harassment charges brought by my ex-wife within days of DCSE receiving my new contact number, which in most were not my personal home number.

3. Closing of my case without notification to such closure, and then reopening of case with an out-of-court order. (The order could be validated with a phone to the courts, to see if it was still valid.) At this time the courts ordered no support at all. Yet, Ms Theil tried to reopen this case by using a court order dated 12/1/97, that order was replace with a new one on 6/05/02, which was before the one dated 3/21/03 which cut off support. On or about the 11th of September of 2003 Ms Theil sent me a letter stating that “the payee named in your support order, pursuant to the VA Code below has changed. The change apples only to the specific support order identified above JA_045887, (leaving out which order it was, the last one order before this letter was JA-045887-09-07) that I was to submitted payment immediately to the State Treasurer. I phone Ms Theil after receiving the letter, I informed her that I have a recent order stating no support, she inform me that’s not what she had, that she had the order that stated I was to pay $311/m. Since we could agree over to the phone, I paid her a visit at the Chesapeake office with a few days. I showed her the order and she told me that this stop all actions by them till a new order is entered.

a. Then on 5/05/04 Ms Theil replied to my request for information and stated “ Attached is a payment history, per your request. In addition the advance notice of lien that was sent to you in February was sent to cover the full amount of your arrears not previously covered. I was never sent any advance notice of a lien in February or with the letter date 5/05/04. I sent another request for a copy of this lien on July 21, receive by DCSE on Jul 26. And was told I would have to get a copy from the courts, was on letter dated 7/29/04 in someone’s handwriting. (Note that I don’t live in VA)

4. Ms Theil rudeness with a employer, I wrote the department had gave them my new employer address, but nothing was sent to them, I called her and ask why she got very rude on the phone, I gave her the info once again, she ask for the home office which I didn’t know so I gave her my work number and my manger name. I was informed by my manger that Ms Theil was very rude with her and implied that she was covering for me. I tried to work two jobs and once I got hired by another employer I call in with that information and told her to send a withholding order and I would allow it, to help with my arrearages. So time later I left the first job because the second job wanted me full time. Both Jobs had withholding ordering place, in May Ms Theil sent me a notice to called her because she receive notice that I was no longer at job one. I call her and told her that my other employer info was already on file, she informed me it wasn’t then shortly later confirm the information on my other employer. (I can only guess she wasn’t reading her computer screen)

5. On March 3rd I received a letter from Ms Steward asking for me to contact her. I did so, she want to know about my new employer. I refuse to give her this info since my support was being paid each month on time and a very large amount. She informed me of the VA law requiring me to give her this info. I informed her that I don’t live in VA and she couldn’t force me to give her the info. And as long as the payments was being paid to leave me alone. Then in May she contacted me once again about my payments. At this time my payments where be paid by Cigna each month, Cigna sent out the payment about the 28th of each month, so it can arrive before the 3rd. In March the check for April arrive early to the Treasurer office, so it was posted in March and not April. She wanted to know why no payment was made in April. I try to explain to her the way Cigna pays this support. Under the court order that Cigna has to follow I must receive the payment from my mother death on or before the 3rd each month, it is noted on the check that the check can’t be cash before the third of each month. I told her that the Treasurer got the April check at the end of March, and I don’t control when the State Deposits the check. She informs me that’s not the way Cigna payments out to people. I informed her that it was on my case and since Cigna has been sending this check more than 15 years to my family I knew more about it then she would ever know about.

6. In letter dated 10/05/06 Ms Stewards state she have no way to speak with me and to call her, I did and gave her my sister’s number, which later a family member of my ex-wife called me. My sister’s number is not published and is block form callers id boxes. That exchange wasn’t nice.

7. In May of 2007 I enter in a contact sell of my benefits from my mother’s death, at the time I owed about 1700 in back support, at this time my benefits were no longer being taken by DCSE, I borrowed enough money to pay off this arrears so everything would go as plan. Ms Steward filed a new withholding order to stop this sell. I was later asked about this sell from another of my ex-wife family later in an email from them. This is the only family member that lets me know how my son is doing. How else would she know I was selling this income? The sell did go through on a later date.

8. Now some time in September My ex-wife closed or has tried to close the case. Now my court order said that I’m to pay through the DCSE, no other way is allow if done so then those payments are gifts and won’t be counted.

9. Ms Steward sent a withdraw notice to Cigna but informs then a new one will be coming soon. In October, November, December I receive my payments that Cigna made on my behalf back to me from DCSE. I call Cigna and ask if they have received the order to stop payments to DCSE they confirm this and told me that Ms Steward told then that a new withholding order would be sent soon as it was signed. My last court date was in 2005. This is not an administrative order through DCSE it is a Court Order Child Support. DCSE and the Courts have my current address on file since 2002, yet, in some cases my notices from DCSE are sent to an address in VA (a family address, which they forward the mail to when this happen). When I call DCSE through the new phone center and ask for my case worker to call me ASAP. I received a call from Ms Steward I ask why she allowed this case to be close, she told me it’s wasn’t her call, that my ex didn’t want their services. Then I ask Ms Steward about the withdrawal order for Cigna and what she told them. She told me that she never told Cigna that. Fine, but why would Cigna Lie to me.

10. I request a copy of the withdrawal letter, she informed me that this information would be sent out on Tuesday because the holiday on Monday. (this was at the end of January) I received the said papers in February about two weeks later.

Thank you for your time on this matter.