Former Dukes Of Hazzard star John Schneider is facing jail time for unpaid spousal support, TMZ is reporting.
On Monday, the 58-year-old was sentenced to three days in L.A. County jail for not paying alimony he owed to his ex-wife, Elvira Castle. He reported for his three-day incarceration on Tuesday (more on that in a few paragraphs).
Back in September 2016, as TMZ reported at the time, a judge ordered Schneider to cough up $18,911 to Elvira. He got off light – Elvira had asked for $31,000 per month. By way of comparison, Schneider had made $40,487 the previous month. At the time, he was doing reasonably well, earning money from a production company he owned, plus acting projects here and there, including on Smallville .
But that was then, this is now, as the old saying goes, and things have changed. By February of this year, as TMZ reported, he’d fallen way behind on those monthly payments, to the tune of $150,000 in arrears. According to a companion TMZ report from the time, Elvira told complained to the judge that Schneider had gone broke because he’d been “squandering a large portion of his income via investment in his hobby of making low-budget, poorly produced film and television.” She also claimed that he was not only behind in payments he owed her, but that he was also in red ink with the IRS, and that the feds were ready to foreclose on his movie studio.
John Schneider Sentenced to Jail After Failing to Pay Alimony to Estranged Wife: Report https://t.co/tFkGDCRj5j
— People (@people) June 12, 2018
About that movie studio: according to a Tuesday Fox News report, the Louisiana studio was destroyed during a March 16 flood, and Schneider put most of his money into rebuilding and repairing the studio.
Schneider, for his part, told the judge that he wasn’t a big fan of being broke.
“I’m sorry, embarrassed and humiliated to be in this financial situation.”
At the time, Schneider was given until March 14 to pay up. What happened between March 14 and now remains unclear, but as of this writing, he still hadn’t made good on the back payments and was sent to the clink.
On Tuesday morning, before reporting to jail, Schneider spoke to Fox News by telephone.
“I’m disheartened with the system but my head’s up, and I’m going to go do what I have to do and make it through the next couple of days.”
He also reiterated that he’s broke.
“If I had it [money], I would’ve given it to her just to let this go away but I don’t have it.”
He told the network that he hopes the judge will understand that his willingness to go to jail is evidence of the fact that he just doesn’t have the cash to pay his ex-wife what he owes her.
