Grandparent Visitation and DCFS

Posted on August 30, 2011 by mgoldberg
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A Central Illinois judge recently agreed that paternal grandparents had the right to be heard in a DCFS case involving the termination of the paternal rights of the mother, but would not let them intervene to get visitation.  The grandparents own son (the father of the child) was not very involved at all in the child’s life.  The grandparents had been helping the mother out for years with the child, both financially and with extensive day care, and weekend sleepovers.  Eventually, the mom put the child at risk, and DCFS got involved.  At the time that DCFS got involved, the grandparents had a domestic problem and the police were called.  The domestic problem never led to a charge or court proceeding, but DCFS placed the child with the maternal grandparents,even though they hardly knew the child, and even though their family had some serious issues with the law.  The paternal grandparents sought to intervene into the DCFS case and the Judge applied a seldom cited provision of the Juvenile Court Act to allow the grandparents to be heard as to what should happen with the child, but stopped short of allowing them to intervene to actually get visitation.  Until the child is adopted, the grandparents must wait.