On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Child Custody on Friday, May 10, 2013.
Any time a family law decision is made involving a celebrity, there is a very high chance this decision will end up being highly pulicized in the media. Of course, most Illinois fathers couldn’t care less about the family law proceedings of someone like Charlie Sheen. However, many times — taking the celebrity status out of the picture — there are many lessons that can be learned from these celebrity cases.
Recently in the ongoing saga that is Charlie Sheen’s life, his ex-wife Denise Richards was granted temporary custody of his twin 4-year-old boys. But, the twist in this story is that Richards is not the mother of the boys. Rather, the mother — Brooke Mueller — is in rehab for prescription drug abuse and Richards has just been caring for the children.
In court earlier this week, the judge did grant temporary custody to Richards. This comes after the boys were removed from Mueller’s home on May 2 by the county’s Department of Children and Family Services. It was deemed the environment was unsafe for the children.
In looking at the judge’s decision, Sheen said he supports his kids being taken away from Mueller and also supports them staying with Richards, who he has two other children with.
For parents in Illinois, when reading about this case, this goes to show that when it comes to child custody the No. 1 priority should be the best interests of the children. For example, if the mother has a substance abuse issue, this should be brought up during the child custody case. Not to hurt the mother, but to make sure the children are in a safe and loving environment. In some cases, this may even mean living with other family members.
All of these concerns related to child custody should also be brought up with a family law attorney.
Source: New York Daily News, “Charlie Sheen, Denise Richards go to court for custody of actor’s twins with Brooke Mueller,” Rachel Maresca, May 8, 2013