Q: Can I trust a court-appointed defender in Dekalb County, where DFACS has unlawfully taken my 22-month-old daughter?
I definitely have a case here, I simply cannot afford representation at this moment, at least not all at one time. I start a new job as soon as this case is resolved that will afford me to pay for a private attorney. I am 38 years old, and a victim of repeat abuse from my daughter's father, who was arrested on Feb. 27 on a warrant from Fulton County drug court. He attempted to get me arrested as well, and while I was briefly detained, I was not charged or arrested. I have zero drug charges on my record anywhere, yet the Juvenile Court and DFACS are making allegations against me that were stated to me as, "The mother and father both have a long history of methamphetamine abuse." The father does. I do not. I have offered to take a urinalysis at the DFACS office but they failed to put in the service order to have it done. I have been assigned 3 different caseworkers over the past month, and they have all lied to me, misled me, and been unavailable. I have a lot of questions & little time
A: You can trust the public defender. I will tell you that you aren't the first I've heard make those allegations against DeKalb DFCS. Right or wrong, you will have the opportunity to address these allegations in court. Take advantage of the ability to have a public defender. If you are unhappy with their services, contact private counsel to take over.
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