Q: I have discovered that the mother of my child who is breastfeeding is smoking marijuana, what legal recourse do I have?
Just prior to her delivery, the estranged mother of my child admitted to smoking marijuana to the hospital and had the umbilical chord tested which came back negative, her urine test also came back negative. I was at a dinner gathering where I actually witnessed her leave to smoke marijuana with friend and then breast fed our baby. I was extremely angry and asked her what was going on and she admitted to me that she has been smoking "probably" twice a week since CPS dropped their inquiry. I also discussed this with her parents to see what they thought of it and was told that they are OK with it. She is already withholding my 5 month old son from staying overnight with me. I have been scared to take a hard stand on this issue out of fear that she will try to further prevent me from being a father, and that it will create a stressful situation that prevents us from being civil to one another. As a precaution, I have kept dated leftover samples of frozen breast milk.
A: You need to file an action for allocation of parental responsibilities. Then the court can exercise some control over the situation. The court can also set a parenting time schedule and enter orders for child support. You should retain an attorney for this.
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A: More information is needed to assess your situation and there is no clear cut rule or law on this issue. Unfortunately, the perceptions today in CO are that marijuana is legal and no different than alcohol. Though not optimal, mothers who are breastfeeding from time to time might have a drink. Some courts might be concerned with her pot smoking while others might not. You shouldn't have to live in fear regarding whether she will keep your child from you. To ensure she cannot you should file a custody case and get specific orders in place. You can certainly raise the issue as part of the case.
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