EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — The El Paso County Constable’s Office in Precinct 3 is intensifying efforts to enforce warrants for unpaid child support.
Although child support cases are managed by the state attorney general, local authorities are responsible for enforcement.
Sgt. Fernando Carrasco of the constable’s office explained that while these cases are not typically in their caseload, they execute warrants issued by family courts.
“A couple of years ago, we started looking at executing on these types of warrants that were issued by the family courts,” Carrasco said.
Sgt. Fernando Carrasco of The El Paso County Constable’s Office in Precinct 3. Credit: KFOX14/CBS4
RELATED: El Paso has fewest child support nonpayers in Texas with under 20K cases in past 5 years
In July 2025, the office announced a public push to target individuals with active criminal warrants for failing to comply with court orders to pay child support.
An open records request revealed that El Paso County had just under 20,000 cases in the last five years, the lowest in Texas, compared to nearly 75,000 cases in the Houston region.
Sgt. Carrasco noted that the enforcement of these warrants is rare, with only about 50 executed in two years.
“They’re very rare. If you think about it like 50 warrants in two years, it’s not too many,” Carrasco said.
Carrasco highlighted challenges in enforcing warrants, such as defendants living out of state or in Mexico.
“You’ve had people that we’ve had out of state, which we’re not going to go and find somebody and bring them back from, like, California. We’ve had– because we’re… [close to] Mexico, some guys live in Mexico. So we’re limited on what we do,” Carrasco explained.
Residents expressed that various factors could affect payments, and a warrant should be a last resort.
One resident said, “Not a lot of income, people don’t have a lot of money, and if they do have the money, they still don’t wanna pay.”
Another added, “Hopefully, it would push them, push people, to do the right thing and pay when they’re supposed to.”
Carrasco emphasized the importance of keeping the courts and the attorney general informed of any changes in a child support situation.
RELATED: El Paso deputies arrest man owing over $59k in child support after 7 years on the run
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