“Dukes of Hazzard” actor John Schneider spoke out against the judicial system after turning himself in to jail on Tuesday for failing to pay alimony to his estranged wife, Elvira Castle.
Schneider said that he was unable to afford his alimony payments, blaming high levels of debt and hard financial times. In a phone call with Fox News, Schneider emphasized his lifetime of hard work and criticized the system for supporting those who feel entitled to receive money without working.
“It’s common sense versus entitlement,” he said. “I’ve worked seven days a week, 80 hours a week, at least since 1978. I have, as every working person has, a mountain of debt that was attached to my dream. And there’s a group now that somehow feels they’re entitled to life or even luxury without work and the judicial system apparently agrees with that.”
Schneider and Castle have been estranged since she filed for divorce in 2014, after more than twenty years of marriage. They have three children together, two of whom were from Castle’s previous marriage. Schneider is best-known for playing Bo Duke on the hit series from 1979 to 1985, as well as in several revivals in the early 2000s.
He said that he plans to spend his three days in jail writing songs and finishing his book.
“I’m disheartened with the system but my head’s up, and I’m going to go do what I have to do and make it through the next couple of days,” he told the network.
Schneider was sentenced on Monday to three days in Los Angeles County jail, according to TMZ, which reported the TV star was given a March deadline to pay more than $150,000 in alimony.