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Temporary / Emergency Custody?

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OneWithGod

Junior Member
OHIO

Ok, so my Sister has two children by two different Fathers. The first my Nephew who is almost 4 and his father has never been in the picture. The second my Niece that will be 1 in Feb. Her Father also not in the picture until three weeks ago when a mediation order was served. (No problem with that) Now my sister has anger/mental (ODD, ADD, and addictive behavior seeking) issues and is not around very much to care for the children. She will leave for days at a time no phone calls or anything or say she is on her way and not show up until the next day. The Father of my Niece whom is LD learning disabled (Slow) and also has an anger problem- (Nothing wrong with that just saying it will take him longer to learn to care for a baby competently and how to deal with the baby when she is crying just to cry without acting in anger and possibly hurting my Niece). After a mediation order was set they met once with a few minor issues but at the second meeting my Niece’s Father was screaming at my sister in the middle of a McDonalds degrading her in front of my Niece and Mother. The next visit was canceled due to illness and there were threatening phone calls made to my mother’s home where the children stay. My sister has no job and was evicted from her apartment a few months after my Niece was born and her Father walked out, so she is not able to care for my Niece or Nephew. Her and my Niece’s father will never come to an agreement for visitation or for that matter even if Min visitation is ordered they will not follow it and will play games just to make the other person mad. We have no problem with the father or his family seeing my Niece we just feel as if he should get to know her first as he is a stranger to her and she has medications she has to take daily. My mother and I along with my fiancé have been caring for my niece and nephew providing food, diapers, clothing, shelter and a caring environment for almost 8 months now (my Nephew on and off since he was born). My mother is almost 60 years old and can not handle having all of this stress of worrying about her daughter and having an 11 month old and almost 4 year old to care for. Is there anything I can do to gain temporary or emergency custody of these children as we are caring and providing for them daily already? Also to help give them somewhat of a normal life and not allow for the anger between the parents get in the way of what is best for their daughter. My Mother, Fiancé and I want to be able to enroll my nephew in pre-school so he can have interaction with other children his age and begin his education as he shows signs of learning disabilities already. What happens if we can not reach the Mother or Father and there is a medical emergency? We would also like to make sure that everything is fair and my niece can see her dad and mom without the yelling and risk of physical harm. We just don’t want to see my niece and nephew get hurt as a result of the lack of parenting they are receiving from their “parents”. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

ANWhat is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
 


Just Blue

Senior Member
OHIO

Ok, so my Sister has two children by two different Fathers.
The first my Nephew who is almost 4 and his father has never been in the picture.
The second my Niece that will be 1 in Feb. Her Father also not in the picture until three weeks ago when a mediation order was served. (No problem with that)

Now my sister has anger/mental (ODD, ADD, and addictive behavior seeking) issues and is not around very much to care for the children. She will leave for days at a time no phone calls or anything or say she is on her way and not show up until the next day. The Father of my Niece whom is LD learning disabled (Slow) and also has an anger problem- (Nothing wrong with that just saying it will take him longer to learn to care for a baby competently and how to deal with the baby when she is crying just to cry without acting in anger and possibly hurting my Niece).

After a mediation order was set they met once with a few minor issues but at the second meeting my Niece’s Father was screaming at my sister in the middle of a McDonalds degrading her in front of my Niece and Mother. The next visit was canceled due to illness and there were threatening phone calls made to my mother’s home where the children stay.

My sister has no job and was evicted from her apartment a few months after my Niece was born and her Father walked out, so she is not able to care for my Niece or Nephew.
Her and my Niece’s father will never come to an agreement for visitation or for that matter even if Min visitation is ordered they will not follow it and will play games just to make the other person mad. We have no problem with the father or his family seeing my Niece we just feel as if he should get to know her first as he is a stranger to her and she has medications she has to take daily.

My mother and I along with my fiancé have been caring for my niece and nephew providing food, diapers, clothing, shelter and a caring environment for almost 8 months now (my Nephew on and off since he was born).
My mother is almost 60 years old and can not handle having all of this stress of worrying about her daughter and having an 11 month old and almost 4 year old to care for.

Is there anything I can do to gain temporary or emergency custody of these children as we are caring and providing for them daily already? Also to help give them somewhat of a normal life and not allow for the anger between the parents get in the way of what is best for their daughter.

My Mother, Fiancé and I want to be able to enroll my nephew in pre-school so he can have interaction with other children his age and begin his education as he shows signs of learning disabilities already. What happens if we can not reach the Mother or Father and there is a medical emergency?

We would also like to make sure that everything is fair and my niece can see her dad and mom without the yelling and risk of physical harm. We just don’t want to see my niece and nephew get hurt as a result of the lack of parenting they are receiving from their “parents”.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

ANWhat is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
Poor attempt at fixing the above "block of text". :)
 

mistoffolees

Senior Member
OK. Now that we have the formatting issues out of the way:

OG can answer this more fully. OH does recognize de facto parent status, but the standard is fairly strict. I believe that the Perales standard says that the person claiming de facto parent status must show that the parents are both unfit in order to gain custodial status.

A discussion of some of the factors can be seen here:
http://statecasefiles.justia.com/documents/ohio/second-district-court-of-appeals/2002-ohio-2279.pdf

So, if I'm understanding correctly, you can only gain custody after showing that Mom and Dad are unfit and that you have been acting as parents. If you can do that, it may be possible to gain custody. HOWEVER, note that the hurdle is fairly high and proving both parents unfit won't be easy.

But it's probably best to see what OG says.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
OK. Now that we have the formatting issues out of the way:

OG can answer this more fully. OH does recognize de facto parent status, but the standard is fairly strict. I believe that the Perales standard says that the person claiming de facto parent status must show that the parents are both unfit in order to gain custodial status.

A discussion of some of the factors can be seen here:
http://statecasefiles.justia.com/documents/ohio/second-district-court-of-appeals/2002-ohio-2279.pdf

So, if I'm understanding correctly, you can only gain custody after showing that Mom and Dad are unfit and that you have been acting as parents. If you can do that, it may be possible to gain custody. HOWEVER, note that the hurdle is fairly high and proving both parents unfit won't be easy.

But it's probably best to see what OG says.
In Re Perales is NOT about de facto parent status. It is about what third parties MUST prove in order to get custody -- both parents must be unsuitable.
De facto parent status requires that the individual be making decisions (think healthcare, schooling, and other legal decisions) without the parents being around. Not as someone living with the parent and not as a babysitter. Now:
Ok, so my Sister has two children by two different Fathers. The first my Nephew who is almost 4 and his father has never been in the picture.
Was paternity established?
The second my Niece that will be 1 in Feb. Her Father also not in the picture until three weeks ago when a mediation order was served. (No problem with that)
Who filed the court case that caused the mediation order?
Now my sister has anger/mental (ODD, ADD, and addictive behavior seeking) issues and is not around very much to care for the children. She will leave for days at a time no phone calls or anything or say she is on her way and not show up until the next day. The Father of my Niece whom is LD learning disabled (Slow) and also has an anger problem- (Nothing wrong with that just saying it will take him longer to learn to care for a baby competently and how to deal with the baby when she is crying just to cry without acting in anger and possibly hurting my Niece).
Being disabled will NOT cause him to lose custody of his child. What proof do you have of an anger problem? What proof do you have of your sister's issues?

After a mediation order was set they met once with a few minor issues but at the second meeting my Niece’s Father was screaming at my sister in the middle of a McDonalds degrading her in front of my Niece and Mother.
Really? How? Who was there in McDonalds?

The next visit was canceled due to illness and there were threatening phone calls made to my mother’s home where the children stay. My sister has no job and was evicted from her apartment a few months after my Niece was born and her Father walked out, so she is not able to care for my Niece or Nephew
Parents in homeless shelters have custody of their children.

Her and my Niece’s father will never come to an agreement for visitation or for that matter even if Min visitation is ordered they will not follow it and will play games just to make the other person mad.
You can foretell the future? They don't have to come to an agreement. The court can make an order.

We have no problem with the father or his family seeing my Niece we just feel as if he should get to know her first as he is a stranger to her and she has medications she has to take daily.
You have no say so.

My mother and I along with my fiancé have been caring for my niece and nephew providing food, diapers, clothing, shelter and a caring environment for almost 8 months now (my Nephew on and off since he was born). My mother is almost 60 years old and can not handle having all of this stress of worrying about her daughter and having an 11 month old and almost 4 year old to care for. Is there anything I can do to gain temporary or emergency custody of these children as we are caring and providing for them daily already?
Where is mom? How did the children end up with you? Can you contact the other father?

Also to help give them somewhat of a normal life and not allow for the anger between the parents get in the way of what is best for their daughter. My Mother, Fiancé and I want to be able to enroll my nephew in pre-school so he can have interaction with other children his age and begin his education as he shows signs of learning disabilities already. What happens if we can not reach the Mother or Father and there is a medical emergency?
Medical emergencies will be cared for by the hospital.

We would also like to make sure that everything is fair and my niece can see her dad and mom without the yelling and risk of physical harm. We just don’t want to see my niece and nephew get hurt as a result of the lack of parenting they are receiving from their “parents”. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
You would need to serve both fathers and mother. You would need to prove that mother and both fathers are unsuitable. You would need to realize that if you lose, you are risking seeing neither child ever again.
 

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