Barring an 11th-hour, out-of-court settlement, Macy will meet her father for the first time at the Cumberland County Courthouse on Tuesday when her mom and dad appear before Judge Jim Bean to hammer out final details of child support and related issues.
The lawsuit has attracted state and national media interest and could end up being Cumberland County's most famous support case if high-profile Nashville attorney Jim Neal of Neal and Harwell, and Crossville attorney Roger York of York, Bilbrey and Davis meet Tuesday at the 12:15 p.m. hearing.
Mr. York is representing Martha Spivey, a former Cookeville resident and mother of Macy Frasier. The Nashville firm represents Roger Clinton, an aspiring musician living in Redondo Beach, CA.
Mrs. Spivey met the First Brother when he was selling souvenirs at a George Jones concert in Cookeville in July 1990. Mr. Clinton was out of autographed photos of the country music singer Mrs. Spivey wanted to buy. He took her address and later personally delivered an autographed photo to her at her work, a Cookeville floral shop.
They developed a relationship, meeting periodically. "We talked constantly," Mrs. Spivey told The Tennessean. "I knew when I found out I was pregnant it was his child. I hadn't been with anyone else." She is seeking a regular visitation schedule for Macy, back child support, establishment of present and future child support rates, medical coverage, and changing Macy's last name to Clinton. Estimates place back child support at $78,000 and present monthly payments at just over $1,000 per month.
The back support will be put in an educational fund for Macy and is not being sought for Mrs. Spivey's use, she said and Mr. York confirmed.
After Mr. Clinton moved to California in pursuit of his music career, he and Mrs. Spivey quit communicating, about the time Bill Clinton was elected president the first time. She asked for child support last year and he started sending $500 a month after DNA tests showed Clinton to be the father. A test result of 99.98 percent accuracy has been reported.
Last August he accepted those results and shortly after started sending $500 a month in child support. Based on Clinton's 1994 and 1995 tax returns, Mrs. Spivey feels the payments should be doubled. Under Tennessee guidelines for child support, a parent should devote 21 percent of his or her income to child support.
Macy is fully aware of who her father is as well as her famous uncle. She wants to meet her dad and asks about him often. Like any 6-year-old child, she also apprehensive about the first meeting. "She wants me there," said Mrs. Spivey.
The mother says Mr. Clinton has also expressed an interest in seeing Macy and starting a relationship with his daughter.
The case has drawn the interest of daily and weekly publications in Tennessee, national media like the New York Post and The Enquirer, as well as state electronic media and national television magazines like Inside Edition, Entertainment Tonight and Court TV.
Mr. York said this week he was not at liberty to discuss specifics with the lawsuit pending. He did explain that Macy's mother had the option of filing the complaint in any county in Tennessee and that the decision, unopposed by Mr. Neal, to file the suit in Crossville was a matter of logistics.
"Judge Bean is a fair judge and I think Mr. Neal recognizes that, so he had no problem with the suit being heard in Cumberland County," Mr. York said.
Some outside media is expected to travel to Crossville if the lawsuit is not settled before Tuesday. Judge Bean said this week he has not received formal requests for live television coverage of the hearing and that neither side, as of Wednesday, had not requested a closed hearing.
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