Legal Question in Family Law in South Carolina

child custody questions

how do i as the most able willing relative as a grandmother, get custody of my grandson who has been put in a foster care system in In.? Both parents have been incarcerated and the state has placed the child with the stepsister of my daughter and she is not willing to be able to keep the child for a very long period of time. The other choice is her grandparents and they are in the 70's and my daughter is telling her caseworker she wants him to go there and the caseworker says it is my daughters choice. I am afraid the state of Kentucky (where the grandparents reside) will determine them too old or unhealthy and the location they live in is very desolate and hard to get to a doctor or hospital. I am in South Carolina. I cannot move back to In. because I will have no job there. I have already put in a call to caseworkers in In., and South Carolina and am getting nowhere. Please asvise me as what to do. I cannot have my only grandson stuck in the system there, for both parents are not getting out of jail anytime soon, and when they do it could take months or years of counseling for them to get him back. After 15 months the state will not let him out of the system. He has been in it since Feb.16th. Please help me.


Asked on 2/26/09, 4:31 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Ben Stevens The Stevens Firm, P.A. Family Law Center

Re: child custody questions

You can (and should) consult with an attorney about filing a private action seeking custody of the child. Taking this approach will get DSS much less control over what happens and will put those issues before a Judge instead.

These are complex issues, and it is important that they be handled correctly. Therefore, it is important that you consult an experienced family law attorney to find out what options are available to you based on the facts of your particular case.

If you need more information, you can visit my family law blog (www.SCFamilyLaw.com) or our website (www.StevensFirm.com). I wish you the best of luck.

Ben Stevens

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Answered on 2/27/09, 6:42 am


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