Legal Question in Family Law in Pennsylvania
child custody
my friend has a court order giving him visitation with his two children 3rd wkend of everymonth.he cant take them out of state except on his week long visit during summer.my question is.his wife (they are still married) as been in mental health twice now and this last time beacuse she wanted to kill herself.if he cant return the children back to her at the end of visitation because she is in the hospital .can he take them back to the state he lives in until she is released from the hospital they both have joint legal and physical custody.would it be considered kidnapping even if he was going to return them to pennsylvania apon her release from the hospital.would he be in contempt of court? also nothing in the order states where or what to do if this situation would arrise.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: child custody
What do you mean by "has been in mental health"? In an institution?
I am also assuming your friend is in Mass. and
the wife and children are in Penn.
Given that he has joint legal and physical
custody, it would NOT be considered kidnapping,
because -- it can be argued -- he
would be doing what is in the best interests of the children. After all, to whom would he return them if she were in the
hospital?
I do not know Pennsylvania's position on matters
like this. If it is anything like Massachusetts, which even when it determines
that it has jurisdiction, it doesn't do a thing
to enforce its orders, Pennsylvania is unlikely to do anything. So he should be fine to keep the children. By the time they straighten
it out legally, it could be years and the
children would be safer, stronger, and older, and could state with whom they
prefer to live.
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