Temp. Guardian Rejected? Will DCF really pursue this?

Info for giving temp. guardianship to someone else..

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lainey
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Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2006 10:40 pm

Temp. Guardian Rejected? Will DCF really pursue this?

Postby lainey » Wed Jul 05, 2006 11:08 pm

This is not for me but for a good family friend. She ("A") is 18, her son ("Little") is 3. She has been having some problems lately and her son has been living with A's father (Little's maternal grandfather), while she has been living with us very recently (me and my mom and sister). She got involved with drugs after she left her son with her dad, and had a run in with the cops and went to a psychiatric ward one bad night, threatening to kill herself in front of a police officer. (This is all in Florida.) DCF has opened a case on her, as DCF workers (CPS I guess) visited her dad the next day. She has been planning on signing over temporary custody to her dad, and he told her that CPS said they needed to get that done ASAP to help him with aid to get a bigger place (they currently live in a very tiny studio, smaller than most living rooms).

At first this seemed to be a good thing, and A. was getting things together. Today was Little's birthday and also the day of the meeting with DCF to sign the papers for temporary guardianship. None of us went with A. and when we heard from her she was hysterical. It can be hard to get a straight answer from her sometimes, and she hasn't really wanted to talk about it-- but apparently the woman she talked to was "crazy", "barely spoke English", "didn't know what she was talking about"-- but she sent A. off to take a drug test and told her that her father could NOT be appointed as a temporary guardian for Little due to a past arrest history.

This is a little different from most posts here as A. does NOT want (nor can handle) custody of Little right now. Little is doing really well with his Granddad, he is enrolled in daycare and generally very happy, he has been living with him for at least three months now.

The arrest on Gdad is a domestic battery charge about three years ago. The drug test results come back tomorrow. I am worried DCF is waiting on a court order to go and take Little into foster care, which is something NO ONE wants to have happen. Gdad is extremely upset about all this, basically saying "Little is not going anywhere!" A. can't even handle this right now, doesn't want to think about it or talk about it-- just breaks down and cries when it is mentioned. A.'s mother cannot get temp custody for sure, she is out of state and lost custody of A. herself. Little's bio dad has never been in the picture, he has never seen Little and he is not even in this country, he was an illegal immigrant-- no way to track him down.

NONE of us want Little to end up in foster care. My mother is willing to take temp. guardianship if necessary, we have room here and he has lived with us in the past and knows us. A. doesn't want to do that, for two major reasons: 1. Little is very happy and stable where he is, she doesn't want to disrupt that, and 2. She is living here with us and can not handle living with Little right now. What I am wondering is if it's even necessary for A. or us to take Little right away, or if perhaps the DCF worker was trying to scare A.? Do they really have a say who she can voluntarily give temporary custody to? If he's biologically related to the child and the child is doing well, doesn't that count? If they truly decide that Little's Gdad cannot have custody, what will they do? Will they seize Little from Gdad? From his daycare? Or just tell A. she needs to take him? I'm afraid that if it's the former by the time we decide to do something, it will be too late and Little will be in foster care... something I am thinking A. might not have the resources or willpower right now to fight.

My first impulse when I heard they even mentioned taking Little away and that DCF said her dad can not be guardian was to bring him here RIGHT AWAY, today, as a preventative measure, since as far as I can tell DCF is on the case and acting pretty fast... they have seen Gdad's place and I assure you it is not impressive, that coupled with the arrest history, it just spells trouble... the worker assigned to the case specifically said that Gdad could NOT get temporary or any kind of custody of Little. But A. does NOT want to disrupt Little and is of the opinion that the DCF worker is just "crazy." Crazy or not, she may hold Little's future in her hands!

We celebrated Little's birthday today anyway and afterwards dropped him back off at his Gdad's, now it is late at night and I am desperately searching for anything pertaining to Florida guardianship laws.

Any advice at all would be appreciated.

Marina
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Joined: Sat Feb 25, 2006 3:06 pm

Postby Marina » Thu Jul 06, 2006 9:09 am

The 2004 Florida Statutes

Title XLIII
DOMESTIC RELATIONS Chapter 751
TEMPORARY CUSTODY OF MINOR CHILDREN BY EXTENDED FAMILY View Entire Chapter

CHAPTER 751

TEMPORARY CUSTODY OF MINOR CHILDREN BY EXTENDED FAMILY

http://www.flsenate.gov/statutes/index. ... pter%20751

TEMPORARY CUSTODY OF MINOR CHILDREN BY EXTENDED FAMILY

751.01 Purpose of act.

751.011 Definitions.

751.02 Determination of temporary custody proceedings; jurisdiction.

751.03 Petition for temporary custody; contents.

751.04 Notice and opportunity to be heard.

751.05 Order granting temporary custody.
- - - - -

751.02 Determination of temporary custody proceedings; jurisdiction.--Any relative of a minor child who has the signed, notarized consent of the child's legal parents, or any relative of the child, including a putative father, with whom the child is presently living, may bring proceedings in the circuit court to determine the temporary custody of the child. A putative father may bring a proceeding for temporary custody only when he is unable to perfect personal service of process upon the mother of the child. When the putative father is able to perfect personal service of process upon the mother of the child, he must petition for custody and other relief, including the establishment of his paternity of the child, under chapter 742.

(posting under Florida)


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