The Impact of Prescription Drugs on Child Custody

So, let’s talk about if you do have a prescription for an intoxicating substance, how can that affect your child custody case? My name is Brian L. Jackson. I’m an Oklahoma father’s rights attorney here with Dads.Law, where fathers are not disposable. And we’re going to talk about the issue of you’re prescribed an intoxicating substance and you’re looking at custody litigation. How is that going to affect, what are some things to be aware of going into that case?

One big thing to be aware of anytime you’re on prescription opioids, you’re on benzodiazepines, you’re on any kind of an amphetamine, any kind of a barbiturate, any of those kind of drugs is they will show up on a drug test. And generally speaking, your best bet is to be forthright about it up front because it looks worse if it comes out later and you weren’t honest about it. The other thing is you need to be sure you’re taking your medication pursuant to the prescription. And if you are not, and you find you cannot cut back, then you need to get yourself an appropriate evaluation and get treatment. And don’t screw around with that because even if you have a prescription for it, if you’re abusing it, it’s still a problem.

The other thing to be aware of too is how does that substance impact your behavior? In other words, are you taking a drug that’s going to make you intoxicated? And does that impact your ability to parent? Because that’s really, at the end of the day, what the court will look at. Are you going to be able to appropriately care for your child? And there are a number of dimensions to that, and it’s dependent on the age of the child and some other factors. Obviously, if you’re taking an intoxicating substance and driving, that’s going to be a problem. If you’re so knocked out by whatever medication you’re taking that you’re laid out on the couch and you have young children or a baby, that’s a problem. If you’re not securing your medication, that could be a problem.

What Should You Do in This Situation?

These are things to think about, and a lot of it is common sense stuff that you ought to be doing anyway. But it’s nevertheless, if you know you’re going into these kind of a proceeding, it’s important that you are aware of these things and you can demonstrate to the court that they’re not a problem. And if you are so whacked out on your medication, let’s say you’re taking heavy-duty tranquilizers or something that you can’t care for a child, then you may want to consider a different treatment approach for whatever you’re taking those medications for if that’s an option. And that’s where you need to talk with your lawyer and talk with your physician.

The same thing goes for marijuana. Having the card is not a free pass to be stoned all the time. It doesn’t mean that you’re not DUI if you’ve been using marijuana and you’re driving, and it doesn’t mean that you can be stoned when you have your kids. Because the court can still absolutely consider that. You do have some protection under the OMMA laws that the court can’t discriminate against you merely based on the fact that you use weed. But if your use of marijuana directly impacts the well-being and the best interest of your children, that’s fair game. And it is something to be aware of. And again, having the card is not a free pass. You still have to be responsible about it. And you still have to secure your weed and all of that.

Low-cost Strategy Session for Child Custody Cases Involving Prescription or Intoxicating Substances

So again, same kind of analysis. If you have questions about that, or you’re looking down the barrel of child custody litigation and you know you have prescriptions of that nature, or any prescriptions really, you need the advice of a good lawyer. And one place you can find a good Tulsa child custody lawyer is at Dads.Law, where fathers are not disposable.