Tricked into Temporary Custody by My Parents

[mdfarris]

My question involves a child custody case from the State of: Florida

I do not know if I am in the right forum or not and I am not a grandparent but my parents do have temporary custody of my child. I want to know what can happen, if anything, if I was to go pick my son up from my parents’ house & leave with him? After all Grandparents have NO rights in the state of FL. The place we will be moving to is my best friends’ house, which I have known for several years, she has plenty of room for me and my son although she does have 4 kids all ranging from 4-16 years old, I have a job, & a reliable vehicle. My son wants to be with me, and I don't have the money for a lawyer & that's the only reason why I haven't pursued anything legally. It's been almost 4 yrs since they tricked me into signing over temporary custody of my son.

My child and I were living with his biological father when my parents came to me asking me to move back in with them due to the circumstances with my child’s father. Which I did so, soon following I was employed with an insurance company working off commission while looking for another job. They came to me one night out the blue telling me I had to move out which was not even 2 months after them wanting me to move back in with them with my son and they never gave me a reason. They then said that my child could stay there while I got anther place and got situated, but they needed me to sign a piece of paper for them to be able to take him to the Dr. when needed. I specifically asked if this had ANYTHING to do with custody and the said NO! I asked not once, but quite a few times and each time they told me the same thing…No it does not have anything to do with custody. I then moved out and then later that week they presented me with a single piece of paper that needed mine & my child’s father’s signature; there was only a spot for a signature…NOTHING ELSE!!! So, thinking they were being honest and it had nothing to do with custody and I was thinking what was in the best interest for our child at the time and until I got another place and situated, the both of us signed it. Then later on that week I received a paper in the mail stating the paper we had signed was in fact for temporary custody. I had never went to court to see a judge or talked to their lawyer or anything. They only presented me with the piece of paper for us to sign and then I received the other paper in the mail. I can not really tell you anything about the paper at this moment because I do not have it with me.

I was then at my Best friends house when I received the paper in the mail and it hit me like a train what they had done!...THEY HAD LIED! We then called the cops to see what I could do. The cop stated that was very wrong on their part & suggested I go get a lawyer ASAP! But then again, I DO NOT have that type of money. I did go to talk to someone, but they didn't really give me any advice. Well, when everything was all said and done and everything had calm down, me and my parents sat down and had the discussion that when I got a stable house of my own, bills met and everything straight for 6 months that they would go down and hand back over custody, I did exactly that! I got a better job, a house of my own, bills met and money saved up for over a year, in that time I even got his room fixed up, he had everything he needed plus more. I waited exactly 6 months after moving in and getting everything settled to go talk to my parents and they just brushed it off. AGAIN they had deceived me! I had to eventually move back in with them because of certain circumstances, they are retiring next year to move to Georgia and they threaten me all the time to take my son with them. They say that I owe them money and yes they have helped me with miscellaneous things but it will only be my word against theirs because there is nothing that I signed that proves that I owe them any money at all except they have written down in their handwriting of things they say I owe them. Can they still be able to take me to court on that if I do not pay them back? Every time I seem to get a heads up they shoot me back down like they are trying to sabotage me just so they can keep my son! My child is almost 5 years old and needs his MOTHER! My parents have nothing on me. I do not do drugs or drink, I am a homebody and I have never been in trouble with the law. What can I do to get my son back and again I do not have any money to get a lawyer!!!! Please help me. Thank you so very much!

[Mr. Knowitall]

If you have not done anything about the situation over a four year period, it would be a very good idea to consult a lawyer. The protest "But I can't afford one", being duly noted, sometimes you need to find a way.

Whether or not you went to court, it is important for us to know if there were court proceedings that occurred in your absence.

You don't appear to know what you signed. You don't know what document was served on you. If this was a court document, go to the courthouse and get a copy. Without the facts, nobody here can advise you about your rights.