What do you do when a parent is a danger to the children?

Every situation is different, but here are some suggestions:

• Hire an attorney to seek relief from the court. Restrictions on parenting time can be required where there is serious endangerment of a child. This includes physical and emotional harm. Some restrictions can include supervised parenting time, prohibition of overnight parenting time, or the use of parenting coaches.
  
• Consider resources such as SoberLink (www.soberlink.com) to ensure that a parent does not drive with children while under the influence of alcohol.
  
• Utilize Our Family Wizard (www.ourfamilywizard.com) so that communications can be monitored by attorneys and the court if necessary.
  
• Call the police. If a child has been injured, abused or is otherwise at risk of harm, do not hesitate to call. A report will document the circumstances and may provide a witness to be used later, if necessary. The police can be helpful in calming people so safety can be restored.
  
• Get the child to appropriate medical professionals such as the Emergency Room, their medical doctor or psychologist without delay.
  
• Contact DCFS, but the agency’s resources are limited so this is never a final solution. Don’t expect to rely on DCFS staff to support your position. Make sure witnesses are identified with phone numbers and addresses.
  
• Navigate to a resolution with the collaborative law process (www.collablawil.org) which often includes a representative for the children, a financial neutral and a mental health professional/coach.
  
• Obtain an Order of Protection. You can utilize Turning Point (www.turnpt.org) to do this. An Order of Protection is NOT a guarantee of safety. If someone is intending to harm another, a piece of paper containing a court order is not likely to be effective and may result in a false sense of security. Many times, it is a piece of paper that makes things worse.
  

Wakeman Law Group

741 S. McHenry Avenue

Crystal Lake, IL 60014

815.893.6800

https://wakemanlaw.net/