# The handyman is a convicted sex offender. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 29, 2012, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724 "2012-07-29T02:27:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/241 "2012-07-31T16:24:29Z")
> [@Troppus](#): > > Can’t see how that situation relates to thread. Couple people suggested that the reason this guy hasn’t paid child support is because he can’t find work due to his crime. May be true. But what guarantees that his salary will be reported or shared with his kids? Because there are ways via the court system that he can be FORCED TO PAY IT! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/242 "2012-07-31T16:25:50Z")
> [@](#): > > Because there are ways via the court system that he can be FORCED TO PAY IT! Better answer: nothing. So what? It’s not possible to prove things of that nature at arm’s length. ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/243 "2012-07-31T16:42:42Z")
> [@Missy2U](#): > > Because there are ways via the court system that he can be FORCED TO PAY IT! Bamboo under the nails? Salvage his dental work? Forcible kidney removal and auction? Why all the mystery? Do share, even if you must snark it up or smash the caps lock in your Herculean effort to answer a simple question you claim to know the answer to. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/244 "2012-07-31T16:47:40Z")
> [@Troppus](#): > > Bamboo under the nails? Salvage his dental work? Forcible kidney removal and auction? Why all the mystery? Do share, even if you must snark it up or smash the caps lock in your Herculean effort to answer a simple question you claim to know the answer to. In my state they can be jailed. ETA There are also huge fines. In some cases this is a felony. ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/245 "2012-07-31T16:53:38Z")
> [@Missy2U](#): > > In my state they can be jailed. > > ETA There are also huge fines. In some cases this is a felony. Jail time does not put money in the custodial parent’s pockets. How is child support collected from an independent contractor, or anyone paid in cash? Do we trust self-reporting, or what? For the people in this thread arguing in favor of employing this guy because he has child support to pay, how will his employment as a handyman guarantee money goes to settle his child support debt? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/246 "2012-07-31T16:56:26Z")
As I said, it doesn’t. What the fuck is your point? ---
**Author:** ![MissTake](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misstake/32/3189_2.png) [@MissTake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissTake)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/247 "2012-07-31T16:57:49Z")
Another Missy checking in WRT child support: Laws state garnishments to occur by a “payor of funds”, not necessarily an employer. I frequently have to inform people that if you are paying an obligor, you must pay us, too. This happens often in construction (sub-contractors) and in any commission only employment. If a person chooses to work for cash under the table, it is _NOT_ easy to coerce him/her to pay. Incarceration may or may not induce payment. If someone is comfortable in jail, s/he is not going to care much if sent away for 90 - 180 days. Many states / counties have programs in conjunction with the child support office to assist people in finding employment. Even people with criminal records like the handyman. However, it requires the person to do their own groundwork and to make significant changes in their lives. Easier said than done. I would say less than 5% of those who I refer to one of our programs actually follows through. And I’m sorry, no one can be forced to pay child support. There is always an out for people who can find it. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/248 "2012-07-31T17:03:21Z")
And on the flip side you can pretty much be sure he won’t be be paying child support if he isn’t working. So, which of the following situations is more likey to result in child support actually being paid? And if not paid, at least potentially available to be chased down by the courts in one fashion or another. No money? Enough money so he doesn’t starve? More money than that? A pretty good amount of money? I dunno. This logic shit is just too damn complicated. ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/249 "2012-07-31T17:12:34Z")
Thank you, MissTake. I employed a guy who brought paperwork on his first day that directed me to mail a portion of his pay to VA child support enforcement. But he was honest and concerned with staying out of trouble. So many in this thread insisted that there are alternative ways of collecting support I thought there must be ways of tracking offender’s whereabouts and sources of income that aren’t commonly known. The argument for continuing to employ this guy based on his past charge for failing to pay child support is pretty weak considering the methods for tracking cash payments and independent contract work. ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/250 "2012-07-31T17:18:29Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > And on the flip side you can pretty much be sure he won’t be be paying child support if he isn’t working. So, which of the following situations is more likey to result in child support actually being paid? And if not paid, at least potentially available to be chased down by the courts in one fashion or another. No money? Enough money so he doesn’t starve? More money than that? A pretty good amount of money? > > I dunno. This logic shit is just too damn complicated. I agree with this. If the guy had a job with a W2, child support would practically be guaranteed. Present circumstances mean money due to the kid/s might or might not get paid. Even if I felt comfortable with this man in my home, I wouldn’t employ him without calling MO child support enforcement or a public service officer for advice. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/251 "2012-07-31T17:41:03Z")
Again, he’s probably not the OP’s employee. Do you inquire as to the child support status of the employees of every small business you patronize? ---
**Author:** ![MissTake](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misstake/32/3189_2.png) [@MissTake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissTake)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/252 "2012-07-31T17:52:52Z")
> [@Troppus](#): > > Thank you, MissTake. I employed a guy who brought paperwork on his first day that directed me to mail a portion of his pay to VA child support enforcement. But he was honest and concerned with staying out of trouble. So many in this thread insisted that there are alternative ways of collecting support I thought there must be ways of tracking offender’s whereabouts and sources of income that aren’t commonly known. The argument for continuing to employ this guy based on his past charge for failing to pay child support is pretty weak considering the methods for tracking cash payments and independent contract work. I spend the majority of my day hunting people down using only state authorized systems. They fail greatly. I can find a person through social networks, but may not be able to do anything with that info (since it’s not allowed by TPTB). An obligor is also required to notify us within 10 days of moving or changing jobs - HA! Like that happens. More often than not, I obtain address / employment info from the other party, through aid program notes, New Hire reporting, or through the criminal court system. Yes, some people willingly pay child support. I wish I had that type of caseload. I don’t. The handyman could easily be one of the few hundred people I currently support. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/253 "2012-07-31T21:44:27Z")
> [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > Nope. You have it backwards. Saying what someone else should do doesn’t have any meaning. It’s just a way to say what you would do in their place. Either it has no meaning, or it is a way to say what you would do in their place. It can’t be both–if it had no meaning, it could not be a way to say anything. If it’s a way to say what you would do in their place, then you’re contradicting your earlier claim that you’re _not_ saying what anyone should do. (For X to be another way to say Y requires that X and Y mean the same thing.) But if it has no meaning, then we’re left with no clue why you’re telling us what you would do in the OP’s place. What’s the relevance? Why should anyone care what you would do in the OP’s place. If you think no one should care, then your participation in the thread is utterly incomprehensible to anyone, including yourself. But if you think someone should care, then it is very difficult to see why that should be, unless you mean, by telling him what you’d do, to _recommend_ that course of action for him–and are thereby making a claim aobut what he “should” do after all. ---
**Author:** ![Crab\_Rangoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Crab\_Rangoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crab_Rangoon)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/254 "2012-07-31T21:46:29Z")
Sooooooo… **Crime Scene** did you fire the guy or take him in??? An update is needed. If the OP doesn’t reply, could someone check to see if he’s been murdered and stuffed in a wall somewhere… ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/255 "2012-07-31T23:06:05Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > Either it has no meaning, or it is a way to say what you would do in their place. It can’t be both–if it had no meaning, it could not be a way to say anything. > > If it’s a way to say what you would do in their place, then you’re contradicting your earlier claim that you’re _not_ saying what anyone should do. (For X to be another way to say Y requires that X and Y mean the same thing.) > > But if it has no meaning, then we’re left with no clue why you’re telling us what you would do in the OP’s place. What’s the relevance? Why should anyone care what you would do in the OP’s place. > > If you think no one should care, then your participation in the thread is utterly incomprehensible to anyone, including yourself. > > But if you think someone should care, then it is very difficult to see why that should be, unless you mean, by telling him what you’d do, to _recommend_ that course of action for him–and are thereby making a claim aobut what he “should” do after all. Wow. You sound like either a sophomore philosophy major or a pot smoker, or perhaps both. The OP asked a question, I answered it, that’s it. I award you no points and may pedo handymen have mercy on your soul. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2012, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/256 "2012-07-31T23:44:38Z")
> [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > Wow. You sound like either a sophomore philosophy major LOL. You don’t know why you’re posting in this thread. Or at the least, you don’t know how to explain yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Crime\_Scene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e495f1/32.png) [@Crime\_Scene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crime_Scene)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/257 "2012-08-01T07:17:55Z")
Update: Still doing work around one of the rentals. A few things I do when he is around: I make sure he works after 5 pm when I can be home from work. He is never alone. He is trusted with some up-front money for materials and expenses. He has done an OK job of keeping in touch when he will not make it in or may be late, but not great. Overall, I may hire him again. As for now, he will stay doing small things. I do not think I would trust him on a large scale project as he does not have a reliable vehicle. Morally, I still am not sure how I feel. I understand he has to make a living, but it still gives me pause to think that if his judgement was so skewed at an age that I believe you firmly know the difference between right and wrong that I feel responsible for him. I really feel it puts me in an uncomfortable decision to keep tabs on him as if I have to ensure he doesn’t re-offend. I understand nearly all of the points presented and have considered and discussed them with my wife. Like I said, once this job as over I may use him in the future for small projects, but if I can’t be around to supervise, I’ll go with someone else. ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/258 "2012-08-01T11:48:46Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > LOL. > > You don’t know why you’re posting in this thread. Or at the least, you don’t know how to explain yourself. No. I know how not to waste brain power explaining trigonometry to my cat (or untwisting the convoluted mess of bullshit that is your post above). ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/259 "2012-08-01T12:02:18Z")
> [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > No. I know how not to waste brain power explaining trigonometry to my cat (or untwisting the convoluted mess of bullshit that is your post above). By calling it convoluted and bullshit you’ve made plain your abject ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724/260 "2012-08-01T14:25:07Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > You don’t know why you’re posting in this thread. Or at the least, you don’t know how to explain yourself. I do. It’s not every day he finds someone he can feel morally superior to. That said, I have no effing clue what you were talking about in the post he quoted. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-handyman-is-a-convicted-sex-offender/629724.md?page=14)