help get my niece back any advice !! please

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Mermaid2
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Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Mon Oct 15, 2012 8:42 am

ive had my neice for 3 months her mother bought her to my house and ask me if i woud care for her until she got on her feet she has no job or a place to stay and she fro house to house & she has had a drug problem . i took my niece in i didnt know cps was looking for my niece until 10-9-2012 when they went to my house and left a card i called and called i gave the lady all my info and me nad my fiance went to get out finger print the next day & take my nieces to them they wouldnt let me take her home cause theyve been looking for her snce july but i knew nuthing about it ! and ive been having her for 3 months !! & her mother wrote me a note saying she give me custody until she is well and better ! pleasee help what can i do to get her back !

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Eljay
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Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Eljay » Mon Oct 15, 2012 9:29 am

Usually, once CPS identifies that a child is a victim of abuse/neglect, they will file a petition with the courts to take temporary legal custody. If they did this prior to the time your sister gave her to you, then your sister was evading them and they've got legal custody (and the right to take her). Even if they did this AFTER your sister gave her to you, then they'd probably still legally have the right.

You see, CPS is all about the money... the extra money they will get from the federal government for having a child in custody, putting her in foster care, providing medical coverage, forcing mom in to their "services" (parenting classes, drug rehab, counseling, etc.). They won't be able to force mom into services if you've got the baby and she can take baby back any time. It's very much a kidnap & ransom situation.

Still.......... this does not mean you can NOT be the kinship/foster parent during this time!!! Forget about talking to CPS and convincing them to give her back to you. You need to go to court and ask the judge for custody. There is a form in CA called a JV-180 specifically for this purpose (http://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/jv180.pdf). You need to find the form used in your state and you need to find out what the existing juvenile case number is. You could call the courts or call the CPS office and ask for their "legal counsel" office.... once you get a hold of them, tell them that you are your nieces guardian and need to see the custody order so that you can challenge it (they should fax it to you our your lawyer). If there is no form for this, you need to file a motion with the court, titled something like "Motion to Modify Custody Order" (google it) wherein you lay out for the judge the facts of the case and how your niece needs the stability of her family RIGHT NOW. If you can hire a lawyer, do it. If not, hire a paralegal from within a law firm to help you file the forms. You can represent yourselves as "Pro se" and do all of it on your own. If you can't afford a paralegal and/or you are comfortable creating the documents & forms yourself, then do it. But you have to do it, like NOW.
Advice & opinions provided are no substitute for genuine legal assistance. Laws & rules vary by state/jurisdiction so do your homework and get
an education in CPS laws, rules & practices so that you can FIGHT for your children's rights. I am not a lawyer. Your mileage may vary.

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Mermaid2
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Mon Oct 15, 2012 11:39 am

me & my husband have done my background check and also my fingerprint!
the soical worker said that one they come back they will try to do a emergncy placement
but i only have one bedroom and two children of my own . will they stilll place her with me
me and my husband are willing to do what ever it takes to get her back i also has always been in the system all my life and i dont want my nieces to goo throught anything that i went through !

Mermaid2
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Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Mon Oct 15, 2012 11:45 am

& my sister is willing to sign her right over to me until she can care for my niece . we just dont want her in the system :(

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Eljay
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Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Eljay » Mon Oct 15, 2012 11:51 am

I'm not encouraged by their actions.... to remove her without cause???? That's traumatic for her! They don't care about your niece. Maybe they will approve you, or maybe they will accuse you of colluding with your sister to hide her for all of this time. There is no reason they couldn't have left her with you until your background checks cleared... it takes 1-3 days.

I would still question them as to whether or not they have legal custody.... they can only take a child if they have legal custody *OR* the child is in imminent harm (like you're chasing her around the house with a knife, or parents/guardians are dead). Call them and as for their court order... you'll need it eventually anyhow since you'll now be part of the case.
Advice & opinions provided are no substitute for genuine legal assistance. Laws & rules vary by state/jurisdiction so do your homework and get
an education in CPS laws, rules & practices so that you can FIGHT for your children's rights. I am not a lawyer. Your mileage may vary.

----<>----<>----<>---- BREED WITH CAUTION ----<>----<>----<>----

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Eljay
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Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Eljay » Mon Oct 15, 2012 11:53 am

BTW, if they DO have legal custody, now would be the PERFECT time for mother to go to drug rehab at the state's expense. They are legally mandated to offer her services, and if she can't pay, THEY have to pay. She needs to work this into INPATIENT treatment right now so that she has a roof over her head and treatment to get clean.
Advice & opinions provided are no substitute for genuine legal assistance. Laws & rules vary by state/jurisdiction so do your homework and get
an education in CPS laws, rules & practices so that you can FIGHT for your children's rights. I am not a lawyer. Your mileage may vary.

----<>----<>----<>---- BREED WITH CAUTION ----<>----<>----<>----

Mermaid2
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Mon Oct 15, 2012 2:02 pm

what does my how need to pass the home inspetion? for them to palce her in my home ?

Mermaid2
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

house inspection

Postby Mermaid2 » Mon Oct 15, 2012 2:23 pm

what does my house need to pass the inseption for me to get my nieces place with me ?
i have a one bedroom i have a daughter that 3 (my nieces age) and my son is 5 and me and my husband
what do i need to do to make room or space so they will place her with me ? can i make the room for just the kids?

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Eljay
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Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Eljay » Mon Oct 15, 2012 2:55 pm

CPS is going to dictate that, but generally speaking, your home must be clean & tidy and she will need her own bed. Beyond that, CPS can be very arbitrary (meaning, "we get to make up our own rules as we see fit") about their requirements. If a child has been sexually victimized, they may require that the child has his/her own room. Depending on the age of the child, they may require gender-separate rooms (a 3 month baby girl in the same room as a 2 yr old boy is no big deal, but a 15 yr old girl in the same room as a 17 yr old foster brother is a no go). CPS is going to dictate this.

Best thing to do is to play along with CPS as much as you can to get them to approve you, but manage your expectations.... they may have already made up their minds. Ask them what they want, WRITE IT DOWN!!!!!!!!!! Then, if they deny you, you can petition the judge fur custody saying, "On 10/15/12 caseworker Mary Smith told me over the phone that to regain custody I needed to do X, Y and Z to be approved. We did exactly that by 10/20/12 and informed Ms. Smith and now they are denying us custody."

Generally speaking, you want to speak as little as possible to CPS. Ask them QUESTIONS, pin them down, make them say what needs to be done and then hold them to it. Try not to let them weasel into your life too much, especially if you have a CPS/foster care history. It's completely asinine, but in their minds, they see children who went through the foster care system as damaged, so when those kids grow up and have kids of their own, they are very inclined to take those next generation kids and put them.... yup, in foster care. Stupid, isn't it?
Advice & opinions provided are no substitute for genuine legal assistance. Laws & rules vary by state/jurisdiction so do your homework and get
an education in CPS laws, rules & practices so that you can FIGHT for your children's rights. I am not a lawyer. Your mileage may vary.

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Mermaid2
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Mon Oct 15, 2012 3:21 pm

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR UR HELP !!! <3

Mermaid2
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Tue Oct 16, 2012 11:55 am

ive called my nieces socialworker and she today me mine or my other sister fingerback ground check hasnt came back and that my nieces has a hearing in march 2013 !!!!! what can i do now i think there just playing games ! why would they give her to family that love and hat what best for her instead they rather keep heraway like we are the bad ppl plleaseee i need more help !

Mermaid2
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:43 pm

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Mermaid2 » Tue Oct 16, 2012 11:55 am

this is los angeles county

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Eljay
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Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Eljay » Tue Oct 16, 2012 3:54 pm

Mermaid2 wrote:ive called my nieces socialworker and she today me mine or my other sister fingerback ground check hasnt came back and that my nieces has a hearing in march 2013 !!!!! what can i do now i think there just playing games ! why would they give her to family that love and hat what best for her instead they rather keep heraway like we are the bad ppl plleaseee i need more help !


LA County fingerprint/background checks come back in 24-48 hours (here is a company that does them in CA so you can read for yourself): http://www.certifixlivescan.com/

The caseworker is lying. Get the name of her supervisor and her phone number. Call the caseworker and ask for the results. If she says they are not back, POLITELY call the supervisor and ask that the child be placed back with you because according to LA County DCFS Documents, results take 3 to 48 hours. You can reference this document number "FYI 99-80" and use this quote: (from: http://www.lacdcfs.org/Policy/FYI/1999/99-80fyih.doc )
Criminal record check results are not immediate. DOJ has advised that results turnaround time will generally be approximately 3 to 4 hours but may take up to 48 hours


LA County puts EVERYTHING on-line... you can find every policy, memo, law, etc. on their website, which is where I found that document. Find the laws & policies that they are breaking and hold them to them!!!
http://lacdcfs.org/

Escalate, escalate, ESCALATE!!! Don't ever show them any emotion.... don't get angry, sassy, whiny or cry. They could label you as "emotionally unstable" and deny placement. Write down EVERYTHING they say... you may need to record your conversations and then transcribe them to paper/computer after the conversation. If you get the feeling they are messing with you, start documenting everything. If it's going well, amen! If not, make them accountable!
Advice & opinions provided are no substitute for genuine legal assistance. Laws & rules vary by state/jurisdiction so do your homework and get
an education in CPS laws, rules & practices so that you can FIGHT for your children's rights. I am not a lawyer. Your mileage may vary.

----<>----<>----<>---- BREED WITH CAUTION ----<>----<>----<>----

User avatar
Eljay
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Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 10:01 am

Re: help get my niece back any advice !! please

Postby Eljay » Tue Oct 16, 2012 3:56 pm

You might also want to follow/join the Facebook account, but be careful about what you post (no names or highly specific info) because it can be used against you. Of course, as long as you only write the truth, then there's no harm in that! (that is, FACTS, not opinions)

http://www.facebook.com/groups/35651795 ... p_activity
Advice & opinions provided are no substitute for genuine legal assistance. Laws & rules vary by state/jurisdiction so do your homework and get
an education in CPS laws, rules & practices so that you can FIGHT for your children's rights. I am not a lawyer. Your mileage may vary.

----<>----<>----<>---- BREED WITH CAUTION ----<>----<>----<>----


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