Is it possible to get custody of a younger sibling?

[skyeangel]

What is the name of your state? Florida, but my little brother lives in Pennsylvania.
Hi, does anyone know if it is possible or how to go about gaining custody of a younger sibling? My mother is taking my father to court this summer over my sister, claiming he is in contempt of court. Some of the accusations that come up may have the court looking at putting my half brother in the care of the state. I was hoping to figure out how to get cusody of him if this were to happen, because my brother wouldn't do well with a stranger. He has a learning diability, and adhd, so needs to go to a school for children like him. My father is a drunk, and is mentally and emotionally abusive, and his girlfriend, my brother's mother, is physically abusive. It's been that way awhile, but I was never in a place where I could do anything. I am 19, have a 5 mnth old daughter, am now looking for work, and am living with my fiance. Is there any hope of me getting custody of my little brother? He'd be better off with me and mine. I'm the only one (out of my father, little sister <16>, and his mother) that he respects and listens to. Can anyone help?
Thanks

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state? Florida, but my little brother lives in Pennsylvania.
Hi, does anyone know if it is possible or how to go about gaining custody of a younger sibling? My mother is taking my father to court this summer over my sister, claiming he is in contempt of court. Some of the accusations that come up may have the court looking at putting my half brother in the care of the state. I was hoping to figure out how to get cusody of him if this were to happen, because my brother wouldn't do well with a stranger. He has a learning diability, and adhd, so needs to go to a school for children like him. My father is a drunk, and is mentally and emotionally abusive, and his girlfriend, my brother's mother, is physically abusive. It's been that way awhile, but I was never in a place where I could do anything. I am 19, have a 5 mnth old daughter, am now looking for work, and am living with my fiance. Is there any hope of me getting custody of my little brother? He'd be better off with me and mine. I'm the only one (out of my father, little sister <16>, and his mother) that he respects and listens to. Can anyone help?
Thanks

The best I can say is maybe. You are a little young and CPS might not agree to place him with you. Are there any other relatives?..aunts, uncles or grandparents?

 

[Ohiogal]

What is the name of your state? Florida, but my little brother lives in Pennsylvania.
Hi, does anyone know if it is possible or how to go about gaining custody of a younger sibling? My mother is taking my father to court this summer over my sister, claiming he is in contempt of court. Some of the accusations that come up may have the court looking at putting my half brother in the care of the state. I was hoping to figure out how to get cusody of him if this were to happen, because my brother wouldn't do well with a stranger. He has a learning diability, and adhd, so needs to go to a school for children like him. My father is a drunk, and is mentally and emotionally abusive, and his girlfriend, my brother's mother, is physically abusive. It's been that way awhile, but I was never in a place where I could do anything. I am 19, have a 5 mnth old daughter, am now looking for work, and am living with my fiance. Is there any hope of me getting custody of my little brother? He'd be better off with me and mine. I'm the only one (out of my father, little sister <16>, and his mother) that he respects and listens to. Can anyone help?
Thanks

Is your dad even legally the father of this child? You say that his GIRLFRIEND is the mother of your brother meaning this is at best your half sibling. If dad has not been adjudicated the father you have no chance. Because dad is a legal stranger. And the state of PA is not going to send a child to a legal stranger in Florida for foster care. How old is your little brother? How stable are you? Looking at your situation the state may not see you as stable -- you are unmarried, have a child out of wedlock and are young. Those may be strikes against you.
If however dad is the father, and you can make a strong case showing your maturity, ability to support your brother and care for him then you might. but there are a lot of strikes here and more information is needed.

 

[mb94]

Along with your age the other big problem you have is the fact you are so far away. If the child did enter state custody the goal is reunification after getting the parents some help. It would be hard to have visitation and work towards reunification if the child is in another state. It isn't impossible, but any relative or family friend you have in Pennsylvania would be a better option. Not to mention that moving your brother away from his school, friends, and hometown to a strange place would be setting things up for failure.

 

[rmet4nzkx]

You are young, unmarried with a young child and unemployed and live a long way form your 1/2 brothers other family members, it is unlikely that the court would grant guardianship of your half brother, unless there was a strong history of CPS documented interventions or abuse. Your mother taking your father to court for contempt or making allegations, unless they are well documented is unlikely to result in your 1/2 brother being made a ward of the state for any length of time.

Unless you are able to in some way encourage your father and the child's mother to agree to giving you, temporary guardianship and permission to leave the state or YOU move to PA and some sort of child support and medical your brother may be better off with foster parents or placement in a special needs group home. I suggest you contact the court in the county where the child lives and request the court appoint a Guardian ad Litem to represent your brother's best interest. Often parents with children with these special needs also have similar special needs and therefore, great difficulty with the pragmatics of parenting.

 

[yourock]

wont happen

What is the name of your state? Florida, but my little brother lives in Pennsylvania.
Hi, does anyone know if it is possible or how to go about gaining custody of a younger sibling? My mother is taking my father to court this summer over my sister, claiming he is in contempt of court. Some of the accusations that come up may have the court looking at putting my half brother in the care of the state. I was hoping to figure out how to get cusody of him if this were to happen, because my brother wouldn't do well with a stranger. He has a learning diability, and adhd, so needs to go to a school for children like him. My father is a drunk, and is mentally and emotionally abusive, and his girlfriend, my brother's mother, is physically abusive. It's been that way awhile, but I was never in a place where I could do anything. I am 19, have a 5 mnth old daughter, am now looking for work, and am living with my fiance. Is there any hope of me getting custody of my little brother? He'd be better off with me and mine. I'm the only one (out of my father, little sister <16>, and his mother) that he respects and listens to. Can anyone help?
Thanks

legally, you have no real standing to get custody of your half brother.you are only a half sibling, and really have no rights here.even if you were full blood, your chances of getting custody would be slim to none, siblings, half or otherwise, really dont have any standing when it comes to getting custody of their brother or sister, im sorry.

 

[GrowUp!]

legally, you have no real standing to get custody of your half brother.you are only a half sibling, and really have no rights here.even if you were full blood, your chances of getting custody would be slim to none, siblings, half or otherwise, really dont have any standing when it comes to getting custody of their brother or sister, im sorry.

Aww thanks, Kelly! I am sure the OP appreciates the sympathy.

Now isn't there some distant blood relative you can get on top of? Or were you posting while taking a break?

 

[LdiJ]

legally, you have no real standing to get custody of your half brother.you are only a half sibling, and really have no rights here.even if you were full blood, your chances of getting custody would be slim to none, siblings, half or otherwise, really dont have any standing when it comes to getting custody of their brother or sister, im sorry.

That really isn't correct. There have been many instances where older siblings have received custody of younger siblings via placement by CPS....and even in other instances.

This OP has some things that would make it difficult for her, but your generalization that siblings can never receive custody is inaccurate.

 

[skyeangel]

Ok, first of all, I do have a job lined up. And it's Disney, so I'm not worried about not getting the job. They are always hiring. Yes the child is my half brother, and yes my father is the father. He's on the birth certifacate... and there really isn't any doubt about the paternity. My fiance and I are in the process of building a 3 bedroom house, I'm in the process of looking for a school that would take my brother, and I have a fantastic daycare lined up for both my brother and my daughter. It's a nationally accredited daycare that I have worked at before. I've already discussed the guardianship issue with my father, and if anything were to happen to him and his girlfriend, I am listed as my brother's legal guardian. Does that help at all? My brother's mother is not in the right state of mind to care for a child let alone one with a disability, and I can prove that. The family we have there either won't or can't take in my brother. Along with my brother's disability, he also has a number of medical issues, such as severe allergies and asthma. Also, my father and his girlfriend are kind of apart yet together. She only lives in the house sometimes, but most of the time she lives with her sister. My brother stays with our father. I know this isn't well organized but on another note, the hospital has documentation of frequent visits to the E.R. with concusions and other various reasons. Hope that helps.

 

[Ohiogal]

Ok, first of all, I do have a job lined up. And it's Disney, so I'm not worried about not getting the job. They are always hiring. Yes the child is my half brother, and yes my father is the father. He's on the birth certifacate... and there really isn't any doubt about the paternity. My fiance and I are in the process of building a 3 bedroom house, I'm in the process of looking for a school that would take my brother, and I have a fantastic daycare lined up for both my brother and my daughter. It's a nationally accredited daycare that I have worked at before. I've already discussed the guardianship issue with my father, and if anything were to happen to him and his girlfriend, I am listed as my brother's legal guardian. Does that help at all? My brother's mother is not in the right state of mind to care for a child let alone one with a disability, and I can prove that. The family we have there either won't or can't take in my brother. Along with my brother's disability, he also has a number of medical issues, such as severe allergies and asthma. Also, my father and his girlfriend are kind of apart yet together. She only lives in the house sometimes, but most of the time she lives with her sister. My brother stays with our father. I know this isn't well organized but on another note, the hospital has documentation of frequent visits to the E.R. with concusions and other various reasons. Hope that helps.

Well the father being legally the father is a plus. But you still have to show that you have a stable home life. Married people are generally seen as more stable than unmarried.

You are jumping the gun on finding schooling for your half brother because schools will not enroll him without knowing that you are legally entitled to him.

If the parents are living apart, then the first person they will look to for placement is the other parent.
Foster care also desires to achieve reunification which the distance makes extremely difficult.

Just because dad and girlfriend have named you as a guardian upon their death doesn't mean you would get your half brother if they both die. If only one dies they keep their child and can name someone else as a standby guardian which the court would then CONSIDER. The court would STILL have to see that it was in the child's best interest to be with you You cannot will a child and there is no guarantee that you would get the child in that instance.

The best chance you have is IF BOTH PARENTS decide to appoint you the child's current guardian and allow him to come live with you now. Fighting for your half-brother would require proving BOTH his MOM and DAD unfit.

 

[skyeangel]

I am not going after him unless A) he gets taken by the state or B) something happens where he's in imediate danger. Plus I'm not enrolling him, I'm just making sure there is a school that can accomidate his needs. So I'm not going crazy with this, I'm just trying to be prepared. And I am named his legal guardian if something happens to his mom and dad.

 

[acmb05]

Ok, first of all, I do have a job lined up. And it's Disney, so I'm not worried about not getting the job. They are always hiring. Yes the child is my half brother, and yes my father is the father. He's on the birth certifacate... and there really isn't any doubt about the paternity. My fiance and I are in the process of building a 3 bedroom house, I'm in the process of looking for a school that would take my brother, and I have a fantastic daycare lined up for both my brother and my daughter. It's a nationally accredited daycare that I have worked at before. I've already discussed the guardianship issue with my father, and if anything were to happen to him and his girlfriend, I am listed as my brother's legal guardian. Does that help at all? My brother's mother is not in the right state of mind to care for a child let alone one with a disability, and I can prove that. The family we have there either won't or can't take in my brother. Along with my brother's disability, he also has a number of medical issues, such as severe allergies and asthma. Also, my father and his girlfriend are kind of apart yet together. She only lives in the house sometimes, but most of the time she lives with her sister. My brother stays with our father. I know this isn't well organized but on another note, the hospital has documentation of frequent visits to the E.R. with concusions and other various reasons. Hope that helps.

This does not make him the legal father. If however he signed a AOP at the hospital or had a DNA test done to prove he is the father that would be a different story.

 

[LdiJ]

I am not going after him unless A) he gets taken by the state or B) something happens where he's in imediate danger. Plus I'm not enrolling him, I'm just making sure there is a school that can accomidate his needs. So I'm not going crazy with this, I'm just trying to be prepared. And I am named his legal guardian if something happens to his mom and dad.

However, if CPS or whatever its called in their state takes custody of your brother then his parent's wishes regarding your guardianship would be moot. So if it seriously could come to that, and they seriously want him to be with you, it would be best if they transfer guardianship BEFORE CPS gets involved in the child's life.

Seriously, CPS is not cooperative about placing a child with an out of state relative. They make the relative jump through serious hoops and it can take months or even longer to get them to approve placement. On top of that your youth factors against you. It could be difficult to get CPS to approve placement with you even if you were in state.

If you can talk them into legally giving guardianship to you now, even if he doesn't live with you at the moment, then at least you could scoop him up quickly and there wouldn't be anything that CPS could do about it.

If the court issues that could cause the problems are imminent...before school starts, then that may be a wise thing to do. Even letting him stay with you in your state, with a Power of Attorney for medical issues etc., may keep your brother out of the CPS "loop" if court is imminent. CPS can't take custody of him if he isn't physically present in their jurisdiction.