In need of help to change custody in an emergency

[schmidt520]

My husbands ex-wife had agreed to allow my step-son to live with us to go to a better school and have a better quality of life and then took it back a week before school started. She has 9 people living in a 3 bedroom house with 5 dogs, a cat and complete filth. She is not mentally stable and can be abusive towards her kids. We need to do something in a hurry but I am not sure where to begin.

 

[irish223]

Your husband should start with an attorney. Unless circumstances have changed significantly since the original order, I don't think he has grounds to file for emergency custody.

 

[schmidt520]

She only received full physical because he could not at the time of divorce do anything about it since he worked 2 jobs. She also had a reliable stable person living with her. She no longer has that nor is she reliable. They miss school because she has no vehicle, they are allowed to be by a fire with no supervision (he fell in the other day and received 2nd degree burns and she wasn't going to take him to see a doctor). There are a lot of extenuating circumstances. To list everything would be quite a long message.

 

[irish223]

If you are concerned about his safety, you can call CPS. If you think you have enough to merit a change in custody, you can try googling your state's or county's court to see if they have a self-help section or other resources. It's possible that the forms and instructions are online. If not, you can try asking at the courthouse. The best thing to do IMO, however, is to consult an attorney.

BTW, when I say 'you', I mean your husband. You don't want to be perceived as an over-stepping stepparent.

Good luck.