child endangerment?

My grandchildren go to their biological father's house every other week-end and spend
about 6 weeks with him during the summer months plus alternate holidays. After their last visit they told us that their father was planning to move out of state as soon as he gets off probation at the end of the month when he will start his summer visitation. They also casually mentioned that he smokes funny stuff out of a couple of pipes. When questioned further, they drew pictures of what appears to be a bong and a small pipe used for marijuana. They said he keeps these hidden under his couch. They also identified pictures of these type pipes from the internet. He has a long history of drug and alchohol abuse and has taken one child out of state and held him until forced to bring him back in the past. My question is would this be grounds for child endangerment charges in the State of Montana? What are the children's mother's rights in this situation. She has had very little help from the law in the past as he has violated their parenting plan often and even attacked her at a visitation exchange last summer while drunk and in the presence of the children. They are aged 9, 8 and 7.
Thank you,
Concerned grandmother.

As part of the divorce decree, there may have been a section, about one parent not questionong, or grilling the kids as to what the other is doing, and even tho' you may not have been specifically named, if you presented this to ME, I would first suspect that there was something else going on.
Are you asking if he has a right to move? Of Course he does.
Are you asking if he can take the kids, sure, unless specified in the decree. Kids have a right to know as much about dads new place as possible,
How do you know that he was drunk last summer? If the kids mom really felt concerned, then she should have refused the shared time, and explained, if contempt charges were brought.

You're going to have to be more specific, if you intend on removing the dad from the lives of his kids, and there's a chance that it will appear that they are being coached.
Any kid can "identify" drugs and pipes, just by watching the TV commercials. How did they get to drug sites anyway?

First of all, the kids drew the pictures before we showed them other pictures on the internet. There was no coaching involved as we were at first sure that he would not do this in front of his kids and that possibly he was smoking tobacco from a regular pipe because he ran out of money for cigarettes.

Second of all, I know he was drunk because I was with her as was their elementary school teacher when she went to pick up the children and he was waiting for us in front of the post office and leaning against the wall drinking. He came up very close to me and smelled of alchohol and slurred his words. He talked to my daughter a little ways away from the car and when he began to shout at her we gathered up the children and put them in the car and he followed her to the car. He circled the vehicle shouting threats and obscenenities while we pulled out of the parking lot and drove away. That is how I know he was drunk. Both the teacher and myself wrote out reports of this incident and filed them with the sheriff's office. They were called and could not find him for two days after as he did not show up for work. He lived in a different county at that time. He also admitted in court to being drunk but said that he could not help it as he drinks when he thinks he might see her. The judge allowed him to continue to have visitation at that time as he had not threatened the children only my daughter and in exchange for dropping the contempt of court charges against her.

Today my daughter filed a complaint along with the pictures which were very convincing in the detail of the bong by the nine year old with the Sheriff's office who agreed that he would not know so much detail and would not just say that about his father and tell them the exact hiding place if it were not true. His probation officer plans to do a "spot check" and a house search and we will see if they find anything. I resent the implication that WE or as you put it ME are out to get him out of his children's lives when we have spent a considerable amount of time trying to convince these children that their father really loves and is concerned about them and have never said anything negative about him to them. Two years ago during a visitation out of state for the summer they came home and demonstrated how Daddy sucks powdered sugar up his nose with a straw and how he would fall asleep on the floor and they could not wake him up until the next day. At this time, the eldest was 7 years old and left to care for his two younger siblings until his father came too. He lost his job over his selling and using drugs and ended up in jail serving a sentence for drug use and sale and continued DUIs. Now, if all we wanted was to get him out of their lives we probably could have long ago but felt it was important that they know their dad. Now, he is actively teaching them how to use these pipes so they can have "fun" with him. What would you do at this point??

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Concerned Grandmother

Oh by the way, I forgot to mention that I did not say he could not move. My daughter's concern was that he was planning on leaving the state the minute he got the kids for his summer visitation without notifying her beforehand. Montana State Law requires that any parent moving out of state must first file a written notice to both the ex-spouse and the presiding court at least thirty days before the move or face kidnapping charges. They must then mediate a revised parenting plan. This is not something that was a case of trying to deny him the right to move or have his visitation after the move. Since he has already kidnapped one of the children before the divorce and refused to return him until my daughter got a lawyer there is some concern that he may believe he can disapear with the children. In a conversation with him tonight he said that he did not intend to notify her or the court as it was his business and it would be up to her to find him and the kids after he gets them. Please put your obvious prejudice aside and consider the best interests of the child here. Thank You.


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Concerned Grandmother