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Title IV-D

Family Court Fury: A whistleblowing mom-turned-podcaster exposes Title IV-D cash incentives, court corruption, and a growing reform movement.

Family Court Fury: Cash, Corruption & a Call for Change

    There’s an earthquake in America’s family courts—and parents are done staying quiet. On a Special Report of The Unknown Podcast, investigative journalists Richard Luthmann and Michael Volpe sit down with whistleblowing mom-turned-reporter and podcaster Maryann Petri to expose a cash-for-kids system fueled by Title IV-D money. Petri’s life was shattered by false CPS claims and financial ruin—but she fought back. What emerges is a damning portrait of courts that profit from broken families—and a growing national movement demanding accountability, shared parenting, and real reform before more children are destroyed.

    The Double Standard of Family Court: Enforcing Support, Ignoring Custody

      By Michael Phillips | The Thunder Report & Father & Co. On June 30, 2025, the Maryland Supreme Court issued a sweeping, unanimous decision in In the Matter of the Marriage of Houser, affirming that parents cannot waive child support—even by mutual agreement—because child support is a right of the child, not a bargaining chip between parents. The ruling makes one thing clear: when it comes to financial obligations, the court has no hesitation asserting its power in the name of the child’s “best interest.” But here’s the question no one in the Maryland judiciary dares ask: If child support is a right that cannot be waived because it belongs… Read More »The Double Standard of Family Court: Enforcing Support, Ignoring Custody