Ok my situation is this. I have just gotten visitation with my children for the first time in 2 years as the mother would not let me see them before now and I did not have the money to take her to court. I live in California and the mother lives in Louisiana. When the children arrived here they were both very sick with severe sinus infections and they both had second degree burns on their back and legs. They were also filthy and they smelled horrible as did their clothes. The other thing I noticed was that all of their clothes were at least 2 sizes too small and I had absolutely nothing for them to wear. I am still paying child support even while the kids are with me for the next 3 months and when I asked my ex to allow me to keep a little bit of it to be able to provide them clothes she said no. She is not paying for anything for the children right now, she lives with her mom and doesn't even pay any bills. On top of those things the kids were both very thin and pale and had huge dark circles under their eyes. They had zero energy and were both very withdrawn. I then came to find out that my ex has not been buying the children clothes, or adequate food, or even paying for daycare with the child support money. She owes around $15,000 now in back child care. I also came to find out that my ex is bouncing men in and out of the kids lives and making them call them all daddy, as well as having sex in front of the kids and talking to them about sex. The children are 2 and 4 years old. My daughter runs around pretending to be mom when she is playing house and says things like "I am so sick of you" and "If you dont do what your told I am going to hit you". Also when my daughter has accidents in her pants or thinks she is in trouble she becomes totally hysterical and begs me not to tell her mommy, my son flinches at every little sound or noise. My son does not seem to have any kind of emotional bond with his mother and has not once asked for her in 2 months time. He refuses to even talk to her on the phone. Basically I feel that my children have not only been severely neglected, but also emotionally abused and possibly physically abused. The problem that I am running into is that the original custody order is in Louisiana and I live in California. I have been told that the courts can move jurisdiction over to here but that there has to be a very good reason. What I am trying to find out is if I have enough to go after emergency custody of my kids and have the court dates changed to California. There is quite a bit more to this story and many other things I have noticed and documented with my children and their behavior. However I just don't know if what I have would be enough to be able to do anything to help my children. So I am trying to find out if I could possibly win in California or if I would have to find a way to go back to Louisiana, and if so would I even have a chance there? I am so scared for my babies and I don't want them to go back to this situation but I am just not sure if there is anything I can do. Thank you very much for any help or advice.

Did you take pictures of their injuries yet? If not, you should. I think that's plenty to ask for emergency custody. Sometimes our courts and social services do crazy things, but the poor hygiene, burns, and lack of clothing screams neglect. Exposing them to sex is worrisome as well. I'm not sure where you would file, hopefully one of our experts will come along soon.

What you have on your hands is a true EMERGENCY if there ever was one, if everything you've said is true.

The California court can assert temporary emergency jurisdiction in this case. If you cannot afford a lawyer, go to the family law facilitator's office for your county and tell them you need help in obtaining an ex parte order for temporary custody. Ask for sole legal and physical custody and no visitation with the mom. Put everything in a declaration that you've told us here and you should get your order. Also, be sure to attach a copy of the existing Louisiana custody order to your application. That's the order you are modifying on an emergency basis. Finally, report the entire matter to Child Protective Services (CPS).

Your order may be limited in time-- in other words, the court may give you custody for a month or more and tell you to apply for modification in Louisiana. In other words they might give you an exit order than gives you time to get custody in Louisiana and then pass you off to them. But do this NOW. Do it on Monday when the courts open again. This is serious stuff-- no horsing around! Get on it without delay and good luck.

And I assume you had to take them to the dr's for their sinus infections. Keep copies of those records too. It's always better to keep a record of too much then not have everything you need later.