"Baby Mae's" Last Stand Against Abuse

"Baby Mae" as I call her is my beautiful five-year old granddaughter who urgently needs your help.   I am only Grandma, but my home is the only one Mae has ever known. In addition to raising my other kids, I took care of her mom (my daughter) while she was pregnant for Mae. We were all overjoyed to welcome Mae home and shower her with so much love. In return, we have been blessed with the love, joy, and laughter she brings to the family.  At first, I was Grandma doting on my beautiful granddaughter. Not long after Mae turned one, her mom started working two jobs and I became Mae's primary care provider. I spent every day playing with her, creating with her, teaching her, feeding her, reading to her, caring for her, and loving her. I even committed time to helping her have a healthy relationship with both her mom and her dad. It hasn't always been easy. Raising kids never is. But I was and remain committed to making sure Mae is thriving in a safe and loving home. When Mae was just 3.5-years old, her world came crashing down. Both of her parents relapsed on their addictions and Mae began showing signs that a biological family member may be physically, sexually, and psychologically abusing her. I filed a police report and immediately sought help from professionals including her pediatrician, the Department of Child Services, and a Pediatric Psychiatrist. I was horrified to learn that at the same time the biological family member had filed for custody of Mae. Awarded unsupervised custody, Mae began spending more time with the biological family member. The signs of abuse grew. She returned from the visits with unexplained bruises, rashes, and urinary tract infections. She started saying things that a 3.5-year old shouldn't know. She even reported being threatened.  With the help of an attorney, I was able to gather enough evidence that the court temporarily revoked the biological family member's unsupervised custody. Instead, the court granted the biological family member supervised visitations which were to be performed by another family member. There is reason to believe that the individual has not been performing the court-ordered duty and is instead allowing the biological family member continued and unsupervised access to Mae.  I tried to retain the attorney to continue building my case against the biological family member, but the fees grew too large. The attorney filed a petition and withdrew from the case. I called numerous other attorneys across the city asking for their support, but they, too, asked for more than I can afford. I even tried seeking Legal Aid and was told they do not support custody cases.  Since the last court date, Mae's medical issues have worsened. She is seeing new specialists and has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). I spend every day fearing for her safety and working with the professionals to document anything they suspect is physical evidence, help Mae find her voice, and ensure Mae receives the proper medical treatments.  The professionals believe there is more than enough evidence - depositions, medical records, photographs, etc. - to show that Mae is being abused. They feel very strongly that the biological family member will continue to abuse and neglect her until she either finds the courage to speak up or she is no longer able to do so.  I set up this page to ask for your prayers and support in raising money to hire a second attorney to help me gain primary custody of and protect my granddaughter. One who can bring the evidence together and paint the true picture - that the biological family member is unable to provide a safe or stable home. I am certain that without an attorney the judge will award the biological family member full custody of Mae because the court system generally defaults to reuniting children with biological family members. I have spent nearly every day of Mae's life with her. In fact, I can count on two hands the number of days we have been apart. One was the day my own father passed away and I was with family. The others were the days and nights she spent with the biological family member and I feared for her safety.  If the courts award the biological family member custody of Mae, I will not be able to protect her and I may never even see her again. I will never know if things progress beyond the horrors she is already experiencing today. My heart is broken. The professionals say I have done everything I can do absent an attorney, but I will not stop fighting for my granddaughter, "Baby Mae."  Whether you donate, say a prayer, share our story, or some combination thereof, thank you in advance for your support! ** Disclaimer ** Mae's Grandma provided the contents of this story. She has enough to worry about today, so Mae's Aunt set up and will, on her behalf, manage both this page and any donations the family is blessed to receive.