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Mother enrolls in program in effort to regain child custody

On Behalf of | Apr 5, 2017 | Child Custody

The availability of illegal drugs is greater now than at any time in history. It is easy for an overwhelmed parent to indulge for an escape from the increasingly demanding job of raising children. However, many parents who find themselves slaves to addiction also find themselves fighting for child custody — a battle that some lose at least temporarily. Some Pennsylvania parents may empathize with a woman who is fighting a child custody battle for her four children, two of whom have yet to be born.

Mary had lost custody of her two children after testing positive for marijuana and cocaine. While she had been able to function just fine, so she thought, as an employee and a mother while in the throes of addiction, an altercation with her own mother led to a first-time encounter with child services and drug testing. Although her mother was given temporary custody of the children, Mary was not able to visit them, and her drug use worsened. She soon found out she was pregnant with twins and was determined to make the most of the second chance she had been given. She enrolled in a county-run family drug program that supports parents who are fighting to win over their addiction and regain custody of their children.

While in the program, Mary consents to random drug tests, the treatment course as well as parenting classes. She wanted to go all-in in order to have custody of all four children and entered an inpatient rehab program that lasted 45 days. There is some worry that her twins will be taken by child welfare as soon as they are born, but she is hopeful her activity in the court program, along with several clean drug tests, will prove she is ready to be the mother her babies need. She also has a court date next month where the judge will decide whether or not her two older children will be returned to her custody.

Whether it is from drug or alcohol dependency, divorce or another reason, most parents who have lost custody of their children are in a fight to get them back. It can seem like they are all alone with nowhere to turn. A Pennsylvania attorney can be of great assistance to parents when they are besieged with the legal red tape that can come with child custody cases.

Source: al.com, “For parents grappling with addiction, Family Drug Court offers a way out“, Amy Yurkanin, April 2, 2017

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