My 9-year-old Doesn’t Want Contact With His Incarcerated Dad, But The Court Requires Letters. What Are My Options In Kentucky?

My son’s dad was sentenced to 27 years in prison for murder. My son is 9 now, and his dad hasn’t been part of his life since he was 3. He waited about 3 years before taking me to court asking to have contact with him.

The court ended up ordering that whenever he sends my son a letter, we have to send one back within 2 weeks. He was also ordered to pay $70 a month in child support, but most months I only receive around $10.

The biggest issue is that my son does not want to write to him. He barely remembers him, doesn’t really know him, and has no interest in having a relationship with him right now. I’ve always felt like it would be better to let my son get older and decide for himself if he wants contact. His dad will be in prison until my son is around 30, so this isn’t a situation where he’s getting out anytime soon.

I also recently started a new job working second shift from 3:30 PM to midnight, and I work weekends too. Between work and everything else, it has been really difficult to find time to sit down with my son and make him write a letter he doesn’t even want to write. We’re currently about a month late responding, and I just received something in the mail saying his dad is taking me back to court over it.

At this point, I really don’t know what my options are. I don’t want to get in trouble for not following the court order, but I also don’t feel right forcing my 9-year-old to communicate with someone he doesn’t know and doesn’t want a relationship with.

Honestly, at this point I would even be willing to drop the child support if that were an option. He has never really been part of my son’s life, and the small amount of support I receive is not worth continuing to force a relationship my son does not want. I’m not trying to keep his dad away out of spite. I just want my son to be able to make his own decision about having contact with him when he is older and actually understands the situation.

Ideally, I would like to stop the required contact and allow my son to make that decision for himself. Is it possible to go back to court and ask for the order to be changed based on my son’s wishes and the circumstances? Could a judge require a child this young to continue writing letters even if he doesn’t want to?

I’m mainly looking for advice on what legal options I may have or what I should ask an attorney about.
Location: Kentucky