HelpMyMom84
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Ohio (Hamilton County)
There is a lot of backstory, but I am going to try to be succinct. My mother obtained emergency custody of my cousin Brenda's children in October of 2014. Brenda had come to stay with my mom (Brenda's mother is deceased) and my mom found heroin needles in her possession. Brenda went to rehab, my mom filed for emergency custody, and right around this time, Dylan, the children's father, was arrested for violating his probation. He had gone to New Mexico and been arrested for having pills and marijuana packaged for distribution. He was let go on bail, came back to Ohio and was arrested for violating probation. New Mexico, for whatever reason, never pursued him (he has 11 open felony counts - they weren't dropped, just not pursued). Both Dylan and Brenda have had multiple drug charges (Dylan for growing, Brenda for using) and have felony convictions. Brenda gave custody of her oldest child to Dylan, but retained custody of the youngest, so when my mom took over, she was basically taking custody from each of them.
This case has been dragging on since October of 2014. Dylan spent ten months in prison, while Brenda has been unable to stay clean or to retain custody of her third child (which was born in the intervening time, to a different parent) without the use of a safety plan and supervisor. Dylan has recently moved two hours away for work in Kentucky. He also has a very obvious anger problem. Neither of them have paid any support to my mother in this time period, though Brenda was ordered to, Dylan keeps getting continuances.
The trial was supposed to be in January, however, my mom's attorney had some serious health issues and asked for a continuance. The trial was pushed back to later this month. Last night, my mom received word that her attorney would be closing his practice completely and referring her to someone else, as his health issue is essentially untreatable (I don't want to go into too much detail about his personal medical issues). My questions are as follows:
1. When my mom finds a new attorney or hires his referral (which she will, this is too big to do pro se, especially when the other parties are represented), can they request another continuance? She thinks not, because of the one granted in January, however, both Dylan and Brenda have requested quite a few, so I would think that since hers is for a valid reason, it should be okay.
2. My mom's attorney told her that if Dylan or Brenda get custody, they would be doing shared parenting - my mom thinks that is 50/50 custody, but I don't think that would be possible given their volatile relationship and the distance. Can anyone clarify?
3. If Dylan or Brenda get custody, would my mom be able to file for visitation? The kids were 14 months and two and a half when my mom got them, and she has had them now for a year and a half. She isn't their grandmother, so I know she doesn't qualify for grandparent rights, but it would be really traumatic for all involved if she was cut out of their lives completely. Brenda and my mom have been making things work, but Dylan has made it clear to both my mom and Brenda that if he gets custody, no one will ever see them again.
I know this is long, and I know I am a third party posting, but from what I've read, it normally seems like that is forgiven a bit more if it isn't a stepparent situation. I appreciate your help, and please feel free to ask anything that needs clarification.
There is a lot of backstory, but I am going to try to be succinct. My mother obtained emergency custody of my cousin Brenda's children in October of 2014. Brenda had come to stay with my mom (Brenda's mother is deceased) and my mom found heroin needles in her possession. Brenda went to rehab, my mom filed for emergency custody, and right around this time, Dylan, the children's father, was arrested for violating his probation. He had gone to New Mexico and been arrested for having pills and marijuana packaged for distribution. He was let go on bail, came back to Ohio and was arrested for violating probation. New Mexico, for whatever reason, never pursued him (he has 11 open felony counts - they weren't dropped, just not pursued). Both Dylan and Brenda have had multiple drug charges (Dylan for growing, Brenda for using) and have felony convictions. Brenda gave custody of her oldest child to Dylan, but retained custody of the youngest, so when my mom took over, she was basically taking custody from each of them.
This case has been dragging on since October of 2014. Dylan spent ten months in prison, while Brenda has been unable to stay clean or to retain custody of her third child (which was born in the intervening time, to a different parent) without the use of a safety plan and supervisor. Dylan has recently moved two hours away for work in Kentucky. He also has a very obvious anger problem. Neither of them have paid any support to my mother in this time period, though Brenda was ordered to, Dylan keeps getting continuances.
The trial was supposed to be in January, however, my mom's attorney had some serious health issues and asked for a continuance. The trial was pushed back to later this month. Last night, my mom received word that her attorney would be closing his practice completely and referring her to someone else, as his health issue is essentially untreatable (I don't want to go into too much detail about his personal medical issues). My questions are as follows:
1. When my mom finds a new attorney or hires his referral (which she will, this is too big to do pro se, especially when the other parties are represented), can they request another continuance? She thinks not, because of the one granted in January, however, both Dylan and Brenda have requested quite a few, so I would think that since hers is for a valid reason, it should be okay.
2. My mom's attorney told her that if Dylan or Brenda get custody, they would be doing shared parenting - my mom thinks that is 50/50 custody, but I don't think that would be possible given their volatile relationship and the distance. Can anyone clarify?
3. If Dylan or Brenda get custody, would my mom be able to file for visitation? The kids were 14 months and two and a half when my mom got them, and she has had them now for a year and a half. She isn't their grandmother, so I know she doesn't qualify for grandparent rights, but it would be really traumatic for all involved if she was cut out of their lives completely. Brenda and my mom have been making things work, but Dylan has made it clear to both my mom and Brenda that if he gets custody, no one will ever see them again.
I know this is long, and I know I am a third party posting, but from what I've read, it normally seems like that is forgiven a bit more if it isn't a stepparent situation. I appreciate your help, and please feel free to ask anything that needs clarification.
