Q: How can I petition terminating guardianship of a minor who was previously a foster child with DSS?
The child was a former foster child and we were granted guardianship of the child. However the child has become extremely unsafe, has several mental health challenges and it's become way more than what we can offer to support them. Where would we go to petition the court, the juvenile court has terminated the jurisdiction on this case and said we need a competent court to address our petition
A: You file in the Circuit Court for the county (or City of Baltimore) where you and the child currently resides. However, if the child is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Juvenile Court because he has reached the age of majority (18-21 years old) and has not otherwise been declared mentally incompetent and needing a guardian, it may be that whatever "guardianship" was granted to you has also been terminated by that same aging-out process. If an adult, contact the Adult Protective Services office in your local jurisdiction, and if a juvenile, contact Child Protective Services for advice, or whatever government agency that was involved in placing the child into your care in the first place.
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