THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, February 3, 1997 TAG: 9702030068
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LAURA LAFAY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: 33 lines
A House of Delegates committee killed a bill Sunday that would have offered relief to a Norfolk sheriff's deputy forced by law to pay support payments for a child he did not father.
``I think the people who voted against it did not have a full understanding of the bill. And they are very reluctant to change the law,'' said the bill's sponsor, Norfolk Republican Thelma Drake.
``It's a shame because this poor young man has been paying every month, and it took him a very long time just to raise enough money for the DNA test.''
Federico L. Ampey has been paying $153 every two weeks for five years, despite genetic tests indicating he is not the father of the child in question.
In September, Circuit Court Judge John C. Morrison upheld a juvenile court ruling that said Ampey must continue the payments. Only a change in the law made by the General Assembly would change the situation, the judge noted.
Ampey could not be reached Sunday night. But his lawyer, Everett C. Meixel, expressed disappointment.
``I can't believe it was killed,'' said Meixel. ``It's asinine that we would have a situation where everyone knows it's wrong. And you bring it up before the legislature, and they won't help. I mean, what the hell are we there for? If not to represent the people?''
Drake said she plans to rework the bill and try again next year. But by then, said Meixel, the child Ampey is supporting will have turned 18 and payments will stop anyway.
KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY CHILD SUPPORT