CYPRESS : Father Jailed Again Over Child Support

Joseph C. Codsi won a dubious distinction Thursday: He became one of the few people who have been jailed twice for contempt of court in a child support case.

Codsi, a Cypress man who has made a crusade of refusing to pay his ex-wife $17,000 in child support, was taken into custody by a deputy marshal in Superior Court, where he had gone to deliver an eyebrow-raising letter to the judge who has been hearing his case.

Codsi’s letter to Superior Court Judge William F. Rylaarsdam began, “With my utter contempt,” then went on to accuse the judge of being “stupid, incompetent and abusive.” Codsi proclaimed himself a “dissenter and a refusenik,” saying he is entitled to disobey the law based on his “personal feelings.”

The judge declined to discuss the letter, which was signed, “Joseph C. Codsi, a free man.”

Rylaarsdam issued an arrest warrant for Codsi, 56, on Tuesday when Codsi failed to appear for a hearing. But civil arrest warrants take a few days to process, so marshals had not yet been sent to his home to arrest him. Codsi’s unannounced court visit saved them a trip.

In a string of hearings that began last fall, Codsi steadfastly refused to detail his assets and unloaded a streak of insults on the judge. He was jailed for contempt, but his ex-wife’s lawyers finally gave up and released him after 26 days, concluding that jail time was not softening his resolve.

When Codsi again refused to answer questions about his assets on Thursday, he was jailed. He has vowed never to cough up the money, saying the child support law is “stupid and immoral.”

Denver, Colo., attorney Thomas P. Malone, an expert on alimony and child support cases, said it is rare--although not unheard of--for someone to be jailed twice for refusing to pay child support.

“Most judges say it’s amazing how money turns up after someone spends even a few hours in jail,” he said.