Contempt of court is said to be civil or criminal, or both. If a judge puts a person in jail until he pays his child support, or some part of it, then it is considered civil contempt. If a judge puts a person in jail for a certain period of time whether or not he pays his child support, then it is considered criminal contempt because the purpose is punishment, not coercion into paying child support.
When a person receives a summons, subpoena or similar process to attend a child support hearing, but then fails to show up, the judge has the power to issue a bench warrant that the person be arrested and then brought before the court so that the hearing can go on. This isn't criminal - it's just the court enforcing its power to compel people to appear and testify.
None of the above is considered "criminal" in the same way that committing a felony is criminal. But one can be criminally prosecuted for failing to pay child support. Normally district attorneys do not prosecute people under the criminal law unless they owe a lot of money and have had many opportunities to pay.
Contempt is a complex matter. Often judges and attorneys have trouble figuring out whether contempt is civil or criminal (or both) in nature.
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