I have sole physical custody of our children. Several times my ex has not returned the kids on time after taking them for a visit, and I'm scared one day he won't return them at all. What are my rights as the custodial parent?

If appropriate, try to discuss punctuality with the other parent. It may be that will clear up any misunderstandings.

In most states, taking a child from his or her parent with the intent to interfere with that parent's physical custody of the child (even if the taker also has custody rights) is both a crime and a violation of civil law. And it almost always violates visitation and custody orders. Usually, the parent deprived of custody can get help from the police to have the child returned and may sue the taker for damages.

The offender may also be charged with kidnapping. In many places, if the parent takes the child out of state, the crime becomes a felony. Of course, there are exceptions. Those include taking a child out of state in order to prevent imminent physical harm to the taker or the child. Another exception is taking a child out of state when requesting custody in court, so long as the police are notified of the child's location.

If your ex continues to be late, consider asking the court to reinforce the drop-off times. If your ex threatens not to return the children, and you believe he or she is serious, you can file an what's called an "order to show cause" in court. This will get you an emergency hearing to discuss this issue and any possible remedies, like supervised visitation or no visitation pending a court evaluation.