11-20-2003, 01:08 PM
I always liked Henderson. Sorry to see him going through this.
Ex-wife forgives $11,000 debt
By John Stevenson : The Herald-Sun
jstevenson@heraldsun.com
Nov 19, 2003 : 10:36 pm ET
DURHAM -- Former Duke University basketball standout Phil Henderson received a judicial tongue-lashing and was jailed over the weekend for failing to pay almost $11,000 in back child support. However, he got a quick reprieve Monday from a forgiving ex-wife.
The 35-year-old Henderson, one of three seniors who led Duke to a near-national championship in 1989-90 and who went on to play for the Continental Basketball Association, told District Court Judge Jim Hill last week that he was unemployed and could not afford to meet his child-support obligation.
Henderson told the judge that he recently attempted to set up and run basketball camps in Cary, investing $9,000 of his own money for equipment, uniforms and shoes. But the camps failed to turn a profit, Henderson said, leaving him in debt.
Henderson also told Hill that he was planning to move to Trinidad as soon as possible, and that his current wife and another child live on the nearby island of Tobago.
But the judge, who was unsympathetic, said he warned Henderson: "You made the baby. You've got to pay for it."
Henderson's arrears, totaling $10,896.08, accrued while the former basketball player was not making monthly payments of $300 to support a female child born in March 1997, court documents indicated.
As a result, Henderson had to appear before Hill on Nov. 13, when the judge threw him in jail and wrote in court documents that the former basketball player "is able-bodied, has had and still has the present ability to pay more [child support] than he has ... ."
"Many people, who do not have anywhere near the advantages, education and contacts [Henderson] does, work and support their children," Hill added. "He has failed to demonstrate why he cannot likewise do so. Therefore, he is in willful contempt of the orders of the court."
Hill, however, did not let it go at that.
He also wrote that Henderson has "chosen not to use his contacts with the Duke basketball program" to find employment, and that he also has "chosen to invest in unprofitable basketball camps and neglected without excuse his primary obligation to the child who is the subject of this case."
"His lack of excuse is especially glaring in light of the fact that he essentially has no financial obligation to his other children who are being supported by their grandparents," Hill added.
The judge ordered that Henderson should remain locked up for 30 days, or until his child-support payments are made current.
But, according to court documents, after spending a weekend in jail, Henderson was rescued Monday by his ex-wife, Sharon Rashad.
The documents stated that Rashad consented to forgive Henderson's arrears. In addition, a relative of Henderson's showed up Monday and paid $600 in legal fees for attorney Dan Read, who had represented Rashad in the matter.
As a result, Hill signed a new order freeing Henderson from jail.
Even though the arrears have been wiped out, Henderson still remains under a judicial obligation to pay $300 a month in child support to his ex-wife, officials said. The next installment is due Dec. 1.
Henderson could not be reached for comment. Court documents indicate that he lives part time in Trinidad and part time with his mother in Durham.
The documents also note that Henderson received a degree from Duke in philosophy and history and then played basketball with the CBA, last taking to the court as a professional basketball player in 1993.
According to the documents, he set up the Emily Krzyzewski Foundation last year through Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Durham, getting such work as a result of contacts with Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. While Henderson was employed with the foundation, his child support payments were collected through the garnishment of wages, the documents stated.
However, Henderson did not seek Krzyzewski's help in getting additional work after the foundation was set up, the documents stated.
Read, a lawyer who helps with child support enforcement in Durham on a voluntary basis, said Wednesday that Henderson got a huge break when his ex-wife forgave the debt.
"The moral of the story seems to be that love dies hard," Read told The Herald-Sun. "She never said it to me, but she must still have strong feelings for him, because she was willing to let him out of jail."
If Henderson succeeds in moving to Trinidad, his child-support obligation no longer will be enforceable, Read added.
"She'll probably never see another penny after he leaves," the lawyer said of Henderson's ex-wife. "But she can do what she wants. By law, it's her money. It's not the child's money."
Ex-wife forgives $11,000 debt
By John Stevenson : The Herald-Sun
jstevenson@heraldsun.com
Nov 19, 2003 : 10:36 pm ET
DURHAM -- Former Duke University basketball standout Phil Henderson received a judicial tongue-lashing and was jailed over the weekend for failing to pay almost $11,000 in back child support. However, he got a quick reprieve Monday from a forgiving ex-wife.
The 35-year-old Henderson, one of three seniors who led Duke to a near-national championship in 1989-90 and who went on to play for the Continental Basketball Association, told District Court Judge Jim Hill last week that he was unemployed and could not afford to meet his child-support obligation.
Henderson told the judge that he recently attempted to set up and run basketball camps in Cary, investing $9,000 of his own money for equipment, uniforms and shoes. But the camps failed to turn a profit, Henderson said, leaving him in debt.
Henderson also told Hill that he was planning to move to Trinidad as soon as possible, and that his current wife and another child live on the nearby island of Tobago.
But the judge, who was unsympathetic, said he warned Henderson: "You made the baby. You've got to pay for it."
Henderson's arrears, totaling $10,896.08, accrued while the former basketball player was not making monthly payments of $300 to support a female child born in March 1997, court documents indicated.
As a result, Henderson had to appear before Hill on Nov. 13, when the judge threw him in jail and wrote in court documents that the former basketball player "is able-bodied, has had and still has the present ability to pay more [child support] than he has ... ."
"Many people, who do not have anywhere near the advantages, education and contacts [Henderson] does, work and support their children," Hill added. "He has failed to demonstrate why he cannot likewise do so. Therefore, he is in willful contempt of the orders of the court."
Hill, however, did not let it go at that.
He also wrote that Henderson has "chosen not to use his contacts with the Duke basketball program" to find employment, and that he also has "chosen to invest in unprofitable basketball camps and neglected without excuse his primary obligation to the child who is the subject of this case."
"His lack of excuse is especially glaring in light of the fact that he essentially has no financial obligation to his other children who are being supported by their grandparents," Hill added.
The judge ordered that Henderson should remain locked up for 30 days, or until his child-support payments are made current.
But, according to court documents, after spending a weekend in jail, Henderson was rescued Monday by his ex-wife, Sharon Rashad.
The documents stated that Rashad consented to forgive Henderson's arrears. In addition, a relative of Henderson's showed up Monday and paid $600 in legal fees for attorney Dan Read, who had represented Rashad in the matter.
As a result, Hill signed a new order freeing Henderson from jail.
Even though the arrears have been wiped out, Henderson still remains under a judicial obligation to pay $300 a month in child support to his ex-wife, officials said. The next installment is due Dec. 1.
Henderson could not be reached for comment. Court documents indicate that he lives part time in Trinidad and part time with his mother in Durham.
The documents also note that Henderson received a degree from Duke in philosophy and history and then played basketball with the CBA, last taking to the court as a professional basketball player in 1993.
According to the documents, he set up the Emily Krzyzewski Foundation last year through Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Durham, getting such work as a result of contacts with Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. While Henderson was employed with the foundation, his child support payments were collected through the garnishment of wages, the documents stated.
However, Henderson did not seek Krzyzewski's help in getting additional work after the foundation was set up, the documents stated.
Read, a lawyer who helps with child support enforcement in Durham on a voluntary basis, said Wednesday that Henderson got a huge break when his ex-wife forgave the debt.
"The moral of the story seems to be that love dies hard," Read told The Herald-Sun. "She never said it to me, but she must still have strong feelings for him, because she was willing to let him out of jail."
If Henderson succeeds in moving to Trinidad, his child-support obligation no longer will be enforceable, Read added.
"She'll probably never see another penny after he leaves," the lawyer said of Henderson's ex-wife. "But she can do what she wants. By law, it's her money. It's not the child's money."