In most cases, two parents who no longer live together can work with a child custody attorney to come to a legally bound agreement about who has the child or children and when. Making sure a child has time with both of their parents is no doubt important, but there are situations when a parent is unfit for unsupervised visitation. If you are in a situation in which you know your child would not be safe alone with the other parent, you will have to prove to the court that the other parent is unfit. There are a few ways you may be able to prove your co-parent is unfit in family court. 

You can show a history of alcohol or drug abuse. 

Even though someone who has an issue with addiction may not be immediately deemed unfit by the family court system, a long history of drug or alcohol abuse can be a determining factor. Of course, in order for the judge to take these accusations seriously, you may have to obtain proof that the co-parent is not avoiding drugs or alcohol. This can be tough to do in some situations, but your child custody attorney can help you get court-mandated drug screenings to prove if the individual is currently using drugs. 

You can prove the other parent has been physically or emotionally abusive. 

If there is a history of domestic violence toward yourself or your children, this is something that should be brought up to the court during a child custody hearing. Being physically or emotionally abusive can show itself in a long list of ways, including: 

• Being overly controlling over you or the children 
• Yelling and screaming at you or the children on a regular basis 
• Being severely strict on children and enforcing harsh punishments 
• Using physical violence against you or the children 

You know the co-parent has been convicted of a sexual crime. 

If the other parent has been accused of a sexual crime, especially a crime against minors, this alone may be enough to prove they are unfit to have custody of your child. If a crime was many years ago, this alone may not be enough to win you full custody, but it can definitely play a role in the situation in the eyes of the court. Sexual offenses that are more recent are more likely to be more seriously taken in child custody court. 

For more information, contact companies such as Law Offices of Lynda Latta, LLC.