Q: Is this considered child neglect?
I live in the state of Michigan and my sister is 21 and is known for having some mental illness with ADHD and depression, refuses treatment. She rarely has a job and when she does, doesn’t always go in and ends up being fired. She has a 5 year old daughter (birthday Jan 2nd) and she isn’t enrolled into kindergarten. Her mom sleeps until 1pm with her in the apartment with no motivation to get her to school. My family and I have all tried helping her get her daughter into school but she refuses everything. It’s not fair to my niece. What can I do to resolve this?
A:
There is a big difference between being an abusive or neglectful parent and being what some might consider a "bad" parent. With what you're saying, it's hard to say whether any abuse or neglect is going on. People have children and some even excel as parents with mental illness, so mental illness alone - even untreated - doesn't necessarily cross the line.
Children must be in school by the year they turn 6; so your sister has until this time next year to make that determination.
If there is more to this situation that you're concerned about, you can of course make a report to CPS for investigation. Other than that, you can't really make her do anything.
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