Actor's Child Support Debt
Actor Faizon Love Arrested for Contempt, Owes Nearly $250,000 in Child Support
Actor Faizon Love — known for playing the elf manager in the 2003 holiday film "Elf" — was released from a Florida jail on Friday after spending 16 days behind bars over nearly $250,000 in unpaid child support, according to ABC News. Love, whose legal name is Langston Faizon Santisima, was held at the Orient Road Jail in Tampa on two counts of contempt of court.
Judge Mark Kiser ordered Love released on "time served" after a June 19 hearing, according to People Magazine. But the case is far from over. Love must submit a full financial affidavit by July 1 and return to court on July 27. If he fails to comply, he could go back to jail for the rest of a 90-day sentence.
A Seven-Year Child Support Battle Reaches a Boiling Point
The case dates back to 2019, when Tiffany Lee reopened a paternity case against Love in Hillsborough County, Florida. A court ordered Love to pay $2,500 per month in child support. He allegedly stopped paying, and the debt grew to roughly $250,000, according to TMZ. Courts also previously moved to suspend his driver's license over the missed payments.
Love missed a key hearing on April 8, 2026. His attorney cited a "medical emergency," but no paperwork was given to the court, according to FOX 13 Tampa Bay. A judge issued an arrest warrant in May. Love was then caught in Riverside County, California, and extradited back to Florida — a sign, legal experts say, that the court viewed his absence as deliberate evasion.
Love Claims He Earned Zero Dollars in 2025
Love's attorney, Glen R. Lansky, argues his client is not dodging payments — he is simply broke. Love claims he earned $0 in 2025 and no more than $13,000 in any single year over the past five years, according to USA Today. Lansky says Love has relied mostly on small residual checks from his 2003 role in "Elf."
Love appeared in court in a wheelchair. His team paints a picture of a man living off friends' charity, unable to meet a $250,000 debt because his Hollywood career has faded. However, LA Times reports the court has previously ruled his non-payment was "willful" — meaning the judge did not buy a hardship defense before.
Mother Says Love Has Repeatedly Ignored Court Orders
Tiffany Lee, the mother of Love's child, tells a very different story. She says Love has ignored multiple court orders over the years and simply refused to pay, according to Baller Alert. Her legal team argues this is not a case of a struggling actor — it is a pattern of deliberate avoidance that spans years.
The court's decision to extradite Love from California backs her argument. Florida courts rarely go to that length unless they view a defendant as a high-level flight risk. Rapper 50 Cent also piled on publicly, mocking Love on social media and calling him a "brokie," according to The Express Tribune.
What Happens Next Could Define Love's Financial Future
The July 1 financial affidavit is the next major test. If the court finds undisclosed assets or income, Love could return to jail immediately to serve the rest of his 90-day sentence, according to Rolling Out. If the court accepts his hardship claim, his $2,500 monthly payment could be reduced going forward.
But the $250,000 in back payments will not disappear. That debt can follow Love as a legal judgment. Courts can garnish future acting wages or royalties to collect it. Love also faces a separate felony assault case in San Diego, stemming from a 2024 incident where he allegedly threw a credit card machine at a hotel clerk, according to NBC 7 San Diego. That case could make it even harder for him to land new work.
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