my husbands ex (never married to her) dropped kids (now 9 and 10) off in summer of 2004 and just started coming back into their lives in 2006. now, my husband is leaving for military boot camp and she wants to take the kids. daughter is very upset with this and wants to stay. husband will be back in 14 weeks. is there anything we can do to keep the kids. can she really just take the kids ?

help....

thanks !

You would get much more accurate responses if you kept all your questions to one thread.

If your husband has never established his rights, then he does not have legal custody, and yes, she can legally take the kids whenever she chooses. That said, even if he DID establsish his rights, AND has legal custody, she would likely still be able to gain custody (at least temporarily) while he is away. Unless she is a danger to the children, the court will place them with the mother before they place them with the stepmother.