First Court Instance, Attempting To Get Some Sort Of Custody (at Least Legal) Of My 16 Year Old Brother As A 19 Year Old Female In Pa

location: PA

Not sure even where to start. I cannot go into too much detail as I could write a book really and I cannot afford a lawyer or else I guess I wouldn't be typing this up on here.. My brother lives in a house with our mentally-ill addict mother and our grandmother whose health has been declining. this move all started because i wanted to be able to get him his permit for his birthday, as I didn't have the opportunity at his age. it took me longer than it should have to notice we don't have his birth certificate or ssn, so of course I made the attempt at getting them. but i cant do that without proof of guardianship or my mothers ID. now, my mom has custody and she does not have an ID... there is no way for her to obtain one either. and my grandmother is not at an age where she can be taking care of him to that extent. every end of the month they run out of money and things are tight for one to two weeks at a time. multiple occasions of not having heat or water in the house... the house they are living in as also just.. falling apart. literally. the walls, floors, the house is rotting. they cannot all stay there much longer. this does not include our mothers emotional and mental abuse and neglect. she has been using drugs the entirety of our lives. our little sister used to live there as well, but her father took her to live in another state and left my brother there alone. now i need to step up since our parents do not believe they have to.

i really just need to know how I should word what I need to say for the custody argument packet. I am hopefully going to be able to get my mother to sign the papers for the agreement but of course I need to file the argument for the courts. now.. I know what I need to say and/or show about our mother and the situation my brother is in.. but how do I word that in a manner appropriate enough for this? Should I just cave and work some extra overtime hours for more detailed advice? I keep reading on how obtaining custody as a sibling can be very difficult as the parents always get "first choice" due to the "best interest of the child" but seriously I can be the example for them. I had such a late start to the early opportunities everyone around me had, and I had to find them by myself.

Please, if anyone could offer any advice at all on what I should do. Just some sort of guidance. I have been guiding my own hand for a while now but I am still learning too. Even if it is just tell me to find better advice. Be aware, my mother has no means for an argument against me either. No income, no property, no ID, no valid license, no housing, no transportation, no web access, and minimal access to outside communication as the phone she is near she would rather take apart than answer. I would like to also add that my brother and I have an amazing relationship. He is an amazing fucking kid. he does anything he can to help take care of my grandmother even with the abuse and neglect he faces from my mother.. that poor kid has been alone in that unstable environment for too long.

For anyone who has anything to say, know you are wholeheartedly appreciated. I would be grateful for anything...