"Ms. Turner appealed the case to the Western District Court of Appeals, where Mr. Salazar's conviction was affirmed by a 6-5 margin in February. "
I have to wonder what they are thinking.
State of Missouri v. David Salazar
David Salazar ("David") and Shannon McClure ("Shannon") were married on June 17, 2000, in Grundy County, Missouri. They separated in September 2000, but remained married at the time of trial. Shannon gave birth to a daughter, A.S., on November 29, 2001. David and Shannon both claim they did not have sexual relations with each other in the fourteen months preceding A.S.’s birth. David is named as A.S.’s father on her birth certificate because, according to Shannon, a clerk at the hospital where A.S. was born insisted that the name of Shannon’s husband be placed on the birth certificate.
The Division of Child Support Enforcement ("DCSE") served a "Notice and Finding of Financial Responsibility" on David alleging he had a duty to support A.S. David and Shannon contacted DCSE and denied David’s paternity. David requested a hearing to contest the finding. After David failed to appear at the hearing, the Director of DCSE, pursuant to section 454.490, entered a default decision and order on April 1, 2003, declaring David to be A.S.’s father and requiring him to pay child support to Shannon for A.S. in the amount of $278 per month, beginning December 15, 2002. Shannon subsequently filed for public assistance in Buchanan County, and the Buchanan County prosecutor’s office charged David with nonsupport, a class A misdemeanor, on January 2, 2004.
David waived a jury and a trial was held on November 29, 2004. David testified that he was aware of the administrative order declaring him to be A.S.’s father and requiring him to support A.S., and he admitted that he provided no support for A.S. during October and November 2003. The judge found David guilty and sentenced him on February 7, 2005, to twenty-eight days in the Buchanan County jail.