Mother did meth, still may keep kids...HELP!

[tracylee]

These are the facts.  The mother has admittedly done meth, heavily, for 2 1/2 years.  She failed an instant drug screen in the first emergency custody hearing on April 26th of this year and had meth, xanax and pot in her urine.  We (the father) has custody of the oldest boy.  The girls (ages 10 and 9 years old) were ordered to stay with the fathers mother until they finished school....we live in Georgia, the girls live with mom in Indiana.  We went up for the next hearing on June 1st.  Her attorney was granted a continuace and we proceeded to consider their time with us here in Georgia like their normal visitation to give her attorney time to prepare.  We weren't really very concerned about the final hearing.  Our attorney kept telling us that it was open and shut.  We had my husband, his mother, his ex-wifes MOTHER, and her best friend of 20 years who was using with her.  They all testified against her!!!!!!  Her best friend told of all the times they got "bumped"...in the car with the kids, in the house with the kdis there, before she went to work at her job at the elementary school...etc.  (The best friend has been clean for over 5 months....she could tell you how many days its been..thats how hard it is to get off meth.)
So, we go into the hearing on July 16th with every confidence in the world that we were bringing the girls home.  After hearing everything on Friday, the judge stated that he would NOT let her have the kids because she was a drug addict and that if he had to decide right then, he would side with my husband.  We ran out of time and had to finish the hearing on Tuesday...July 20th.  By the end of the hearing, the judge handed down a ruling that would make your jaw hit the floor if you knew all the details of this case.  He stated that the kids still be in the temporary custody of my husbands mother and that the mother sign up for a drug rehab program by July 30th.  WE DIDN'T WIN????!!!!  Can anyone help me understand that????  They will also decide on the 30th whether or not we have to pay her attorney fees...$5,000.00!!  She is a meth addict, we tried to get the kids out of the situation and have to take it up the tailpipe!  We are not scum, wither.  We just bought a home and were prepared to build onto it as soon as we knew for sure what was going to happen.  My husband and I work for the same company and have been for the last 4 years.  We make close to $60,000.00 a year.  You tell me....if my husband had been the one to test positive for drugs, they would have ripped those kids away and never let them look back!  Anyone that has any advise...please let me hear it...I'm about to lose my mind with anger right now...why does something horrible have to happen to a child before these stupid judges make these ignorant decisions?  I swear there is nothing else to the story...if you think it seems hard to believe...imagine how we feel!  Any help would be appreciated....

[Peanutsdad]

What is this judges name?  and what district?


The ONLY thing you can do,, is keep the course. You know as well as I do,, EVEN if she goes thru rehab,, its because its ordered, she will NOT be able to stay clean after release.

[tracylee]

It was Judge Busch in Tippecanoe county superior court 2 in Lafayette Indiana.  We (family and friends) are going to write letters to the judge...do you think it will do any good?  I think I had replied to one of yours on another forum.....thank you for replying.  You can email me anytime.....I know you are dealing with the whole meth thing and you and I know that she won't stay clean....she'll just learn how to hide it from the girls better.  Any other suggestions you may have are appreciated....thank you peanutsdad.......

P.S.  "Peanut" is what he calls his youngest daughter!

[Peanutsdad]

Writing to the judge will likely do NO good.

However; writing to the local PAPER might.


Exposing a judge who makes these kind of calls,, makes them downright uncomfortable.