FLEMINGTON - On Monday, the state Supreme Court ordered that John Waldorf be released from the Hunterdon County Jail, with conditions.

Waldorf spent a little more than eight weeks in the county jail on a "non-support" charge. Judge Hany Mawla most recently denied his request for release at a family court hearing on Friday, Dec. 14.

On Monday, attorney William A. Riback pleaded Waldorf's case before the State Supreme Court.

Chief Justice Stuart Rabner signed an order that says Waldorf must pay at least $1,000 a week in alimony starting no later than Wednesday, Dec. 19. He has 30 days to get a new job if he can't return to the company he was working for when he was jailed. When he starts working his wages will be garnished.

If Waldorf fails to comply, he could find himself back in jail and/or facing other sanctions.

Also under the order, the Appellate Division of the State Superior Court is to accelerate Waldorf's appeal regarding his alimony.

The decision was not unanimous. Of the six associates, Justice Helen Hoens and Judge Ariel Rodriguez dissented from the order and would have voted to deny Waldorf's release.

Waldorf, 60, formerly of Lebanon Township, was ordered to pay $2,000 a week in alimony beginning Jan. 1 this year. That amounts to $104,000 a year. He was ordered to pay an additional $3,300 in child support per year for his 16-year-old son. The numbers were derived from the income Waldorf was earning before the divorce.

The divorce process was a long and bitter one, with the judge faulting both parties for difficulties, according to court transcripts. During proceedings the judge said Lisa Waldorf wrongfully accused her ex-husband of hiding assets while John Waldorf was less than cooperative about sharing information about debts, violated several court orders and missed several deadlines. The judge also said John Waldorf was "willfully underemployed" for not seeking a better paying job so he could pay the ordered alimony. The judge said he was merely trying to avoid paying the support.

Lisa Waldorf said Friday that keeping him in jail "doesn't help me at all," at least in the short run, but that he had not even made an offer to pay a part of what he owes.

