Things were sooo much simpler when I was a child…
My mother gave up custody to my father because she could not raise me and my sister. She and the man she was married to at the time, moved in with my grandmother and we would go visit anytime we were in town visiting the other grandmother. We didn’t have overnights with her because my he did not want us there. He was abusive to her. When I was about 10, we went for a week long visit for the first time. We were there 2 nights before the first fight happened. My sister called my other grandmother who came to pick us up. My father called my mother and told her that from that point on we were not allowed to be at the house if he was at home. He told her that he would kill him if anything ever happened to either one of us and her best bet was to keep us away from him. I have to this day, never seen him again. They divorced and she is happily remarried.
My suggestion is that the next time a situation comes up like this, have her call and go pick her up. You wouldn’t be keeping her away from visitations just cutting them short. Call DSS when you do this to investigate.
It sounds like the environment in her father’s house is not healthy for your daughter. This may be grounds to file a motion to modify child custody. The court can modify child custody whenever there is a substantial change in circumstances that affects the best interests of the minor child.
Helena M. Nevicosi
Attorney with Rosen Law Firm
4101 Lake Boone Trail, Suite 500
Raleigh, North Carolina 27607
919.787.6668 main phone
919.787.6361 main fax
Charlotte Office
301 McCullough Drive
Suite 510
Charlotte, NC 28262
Main Phone: (704)307.4600
Main Fax: (704) 9343.0044
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Chapel Hill, NC 27514
(919) 321.0780
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My Ex and I have joint custody of our daughter - I have primary physical custody. She is now 14 and no longer wants to go to her dads every Sunday - Wednesday evening. The atmosphere at her dad’s can be very volitile when he and her stepmother are fighting. (the stepmother has called the cops several times - a complaint was never filed) I want to change the visitation to Sunday returning Monday evening. What do I need to do to make this happen? Also there have been many times that she has told him that she wanted to come back to my house early - he refuses. He has only brought her home early because his wife was breaking things in the house and so he brought our daughter back to me.
HELP!
Michele Scherer