Story

Backstory: I had my son in 2012. I had primary custody with some visitation with his dad. His dad was addicted to drugs and wasn’t in a position to provide for our son the way he should. Fast forward to 2018 when my son was 5 years old, I was incarcerated due to my own decisions and addiction. I was sentenced to 11 years in the Bureau of Prisons and my son was in the care of his father. He was sober at the time and did the best he could with what he knew, and filed for full custody of our son and child support. Fortunately, I did my time during COVID and was a recipient of the CARES Act, early direct home confinement, and was released on May 31, 2023. In August, I received a call from the local police department asking if my son was safe to reside with me and of course he was. There was an active CPS case and safety plan that put him in my care full time, and we also found out his dad was never granted full custody or child support. Unfortunately, due to my status, I was told by an attorney that if I filed for custody, a judge would give him back to his dad. So for the last year, I’ve been doing all that I can, working 2 jobs to pay bills, provide for my sons needs and wants, necessities, etc, and at the end of January my status will change and I’ll be filing for full custody. I just don’t have the resources and unfortunately legal aid is just not an option in my state, trust and believe I’ve called around. This mama is tired…