Title: August 10, 2005
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 13 years of experience. She operates her law practice from her new office in town, as well her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities. Please forward your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax them to (661)825-8880.
Q. There are two twin children living in the house right next door to us. They appear to be around 7 or 8 years old. On a couple of occasions, I saw them torture an adult cat and her kittens. The last time I saw them, they were busy cutting the kittens’ whiskers off. I don’t know where mommy cat was. I was horrified and screamed at them to stop immediately both times. Apparently, a screaming neighbor does not seem to bother these kids at all, since they did it again. The parents never seem to be at home when these children are committing their atrocities. What should we do?
A. The first thing you need to do is to talk to the parents and let them know what their children are doing in their absence. These children are too young to be left alone at home. Children Protective Services should be warned that young children are left alone at home next door to commit atrocities on animals. You also need to call animal regulation and report the animal abuse. Calling the police might help too. These neighbors of yours should not be allowed to have animals around to be tortured. There is something very wrong with these kids. There may be something very wrong with their parents too. Sometimes, children like these grow up to be criminals of the first order. Thank you for being an animal lover.
Q. I got a speeding ticket on Highway 58 the other day for going at 98 miles an hour. I truly do not believe that I was going that fast. How can I fight this speeding ticket? I do not want my car insurance premiums to go up and they will if this ticket sticks.
A. If you did not attend traffic school in the past 18 months, you will have the opportunity to attend an eight-hour class in order not to get a point on your driving record. Just because you do not believe you were going that fast does not mean that the CHP officer is wrong. As I am sure you know, the speed of a vehicle is usually measured with an instrument used by the CHP which is quite accurate, and that measurement, plus the officer’s testimony will be sufficient to get you convicted. Your feeling that you were not going so fast will be insufficient to prove your innocence. I advise you to concentrate on driving slower next time and attending driving school to avoid the bad mark on your driving record.
Showing posts with label children protective services. Show all posts
Showing posts with label children protective services. Show all posts
Monday, March 2, 2009
Legal Eaze #27 Children Custody/ Common Law Marriage
Title: July 27, 2005
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 13 years of experience. She operates her law practice from her new office in town, as well her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities. Please forward your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax them to (661)825-8880.
Q. My brother has custody of his two young children, a 6-year old boy and a 4-yeard old girl. My brother has been out of work for the last 8 months while his new girlfriend goes to work in Bakersfield everyday. Just a couple of weeks ago, I walked in my brother’s house, uninvited, and found him unconscious in the living room, sprawled on the couch, with a syringe stuck in his arm. Both children were crying hysterically. I called an ambulance and he was taken to the hospital. He overdosed on drugs and had I not come in, he would have died. His girlfriend does not seem to have a clue as to what he was up to. What should we do?
A. If you want to help your brother, you need to either return the children to their mother or if that is not an available solution, you need to petition for temporary guardianship of these children until your brother goes into and completes a drug rehab program. At this point, his actions are endangering the lives of his children and if Children Protective Services (CPS) hears of this situation, the children may be taken away from your brother and placed into foster care. Since you are “family”, these children would be better off remaining in your care, if you are in a position to take care of them.
Q. I have been living with my boyfriend for the last 22 years. I mentioned to him that we should get married, but he says that we are already married because we have been living together for so long. Is this true?
A. No, it is not. There is no such thing as “common law marriage” in California. You are not married and unless you apply for a marriage license and go through either a civil marriage or a religious one, you will remain “boyfriend and girlfriend”. Maybe he just does not want to get married. But as long as you are not married, you have little legal protection as to the property you purchase together, not to mention that any children you have together may eventually suffer because they are illegitimate.
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 13 years of experience. She operates her law practice from her new office in town, as well her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities. Please forward your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax them to (661)825-8880.
Q. My brother has custody of his two young children, a 6-year old boy and a 4-yeard old girl. My brother has been out of work for the last 8 months while his new girlfriend goes to work in Bakersfield everyday. Just a couple of weeks ago, I walked in my brother’s house, uninvited, and found him unconscious in the living room, sprawled on the couch, with a syringe stuck in his arm. Both children were crying hysterically. I called an ambulance and he was taken to the hospital. He overdosed on drugs and had I not come in, he would have died. His girlfriend does not seem to have a clue as to what he was up to. What should we do?
A. If you want to help your brother, you need to either return the children to their mother or if that is not an available solution, you need to petition for temporary guardianship of these children until your brother goes into and completes a drug rehab program. At this point, his actions are endangering the lives of his children and if Children Protective Services (CPS) hears of this situation, the children may be taken away from your brother and placed into foster care. Since you are “family”, these children would be better off remaining in your care, if you are in a position to take care of them.
Q. I have been living with my boyfriend for the last 22 years. I mentioned to him that we should get married, but he says that we are already married because we have been living together for so long. Is this true?
A. No, it is not. There is no such thing as “common law marriage” in California. You are not married and unless you apply for a marriage license and go through either a civil marriage or a religious one, you will remain “boyfriend and girlfriend”. Maybe he just does not want to get married. But as long as you are not married, you have little legal protection as to the property you purchase together, not to mention that any children you have together may eventually suffer because they are illegitimate.
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