Court sets Hinton child-support and contempt hearing for Feb. 19 amid training-lockdown dispute

A judge scheduled the child-support and contempt proceeding in Talisa Hinton v. Stefan Hinton for one day at 9 a.m. on the nineteenth, after defense counsel said the father is attending a peace-officer training academy currently under a weather-related lockdown and asked for an in-person date.

Defense counsel told the court the defendant had obtained employment with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Department and was at the training academy to become post-certified; counsel provided a letter from the academy's director noting a lockdown "as of January 31." Opposing counsel, identified in the transcript as Miss Roberts, emphasized a history of unpaid child support and that the mother had previously sought an order of protection and filed multiple contempt petitions since October. "If mister Hinton were to miss any training classes during these dates listed above, he would be required to return during the next academy to make up the missed classes in order to become a certified officer," the transcript records counsel saying on the record.

The judge balanced the disruption caused by severe weather against the need to hear the matter and offered two dates; the court set the hearing for the nineteenth and told defense counsel to arrange the client's availability. The judge also addressed procedure for contempt: "If it's a criminal contempt, it has to be bifurcated. If it's civil contempt, it can be heard in the middle of it," the court stated. The record shows the defendant accepted service on the contempt petition; the court said the case will be the only matter heard that morning.

The hearing is scheduled to proceed on the date set; the transcript does not record a final adjudication of contempt at this session.