Legal Question in Family Law in Tennessee
possible kidnapping, what are my chances?
My son was born on ft. campbell and his mama was legally seperated but still married to a soldier. my name is on the birth certificate but we could never agree on a parenting plan. after a year and a half of me and her sharing taking care of my son(half day care, half the week with me and then her) she took him without any notice. she turned her phones off and instructed her mother not to tell me where they were. i turned my info in to the case manager for child support and she didnt go through with that either. they dropped the case for child support. i found her in georgia 6 months later. i had to do an alias summons and now jurisdiction is back in tennessee. i was taking care of my son substantially equally and she just took him. what can i look forward to, i want to raise my son. what does tennessee do for a situation like this? the only bad thing i have is a drug possesion charge two years ago but i have almost completed probation and have graduated from college and held down the same job for 5 years. i have bettered my life ever since my son has came into my life. she has 4 kids by 4 different men, she is back with her husband which she has had 2 different children outside of him, and she is pregnant again. please help me.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Try for custody instead of kidnapping
I could prepare a Petition for you to seek full or partial custody of your son by court order. The cost of the petition would be $100. The Parenting Plan is more complex, but I could share with you a form from a previous Parenting Plan (actually written by a judge and not an attorney), and then you could make changes on it to suit your circumstances. See http://michaelguth.com/prose.htm and
http://michaelguth.com/permancyplan.htm
If you can fill out the form and I just have to edit it, then that will be cheaper for you than if I have to prepare it from scratch.
Re: possible kidnapping, what are my chances?
You need to contact an attorney to get assistance on this. I see that someone else has posted that he could sell you a form, but legal representation is more than filling in a form. It appears you first will need to legitimate the child, and while Tennessee law will allow that, even though she was married to someone else when the child was born, it is not a simple process. You may have to demand a DNA test, and then after establishing paternity you should pursue custody. Charging her with kadnapping is not an option -- the child is hers, meaning she did not kidnap it.
But these are all things you need to do quickly because the longer you wait the harder it will be for you to get your child. I would encourage getting an attorney there in the Clarksville area or whereever she might now be living, but if you would like to ask me anything further, you can contact me thru my website at jesbeard.com
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