Q: Will I be arrested if my 12 year old brother wants to live with me against parent’s wishes, if they’re neglecting him?
Parents getting a divorce. 12 year old brother is without health insurance or medical care. Has multiple learning disabilities and severe ADHD but not under medical care. He is being held back in school for failure and is suspended multiple times a month. Parents are using him against each other to manipulate the other spouse. If I allow my 12 year old brother to stay with me, as he’s willing to, but against my parents wishes, can I be arrested? I believe my brother is suicidal and his health is in jeopardy. My mother says she has everything taken care of (untrue as this has been ongoing for several years) and my father agrees about the help the child needs but does nothing to help the child.
A:
Thank you for your question. I know how worried you must be about the custody and safety of your brother.
The short answer is to immediately contact an experienced family law lawyer. If you feel your brother is being neglected or abused there is a confidential 24 hotline where you can report suspected abuse or neglect of your brother (and remain anonymous). That number is 1-877- NJABUSE. Do not hesitate to make the call to protect your brother. In New Jersey, in all cases involving the health safety, and welfare of a child, the court must always determine the best interests of the child. The court can award custody of a child to either biological parent or in certain circumstances, to family members, such as yourself, who is a fit caretaker to the child. Custody is comprised of both “legal” and “physical” custody. The court must apply several factors to determine the best interests of the child while weighing the rights of both parents and the “caretaker” as well as the right of the child to continuing and frequent contact with both parents and the “caretaker”/family member. Among those factors are the fitness of both parents as well as the safety of the child when in each parent’s care and custody, and the needs of the child(including emotional and medical needs). It is important to protect your interests and have an experienced family law lawyer advocate for your interests and ensure that both you and your brother’s interests are protected.
I hope this information was helpful to you.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
