Dear Prudence,
I own a two-bedroom house. My sister and her 6-year-old are currently in a shelter after a violent incident with her latest ex. I would take them both in a heartbeat—if it wasn’t for her 20- and 18-year-old daughters. My nieces have a serious history of drug use, theft, and violence. They have stolen money from nearly everyone in the family and got their stepfather falsely arrested for possession (they told the cops he was the one who gave them the drugs). My sister did nothing but make excuse after excuse for them. She wouldn’t even take their phones away because she was afraid they would run away if they didn’t have access to TikTok. It cost her her marriage, her job, and any stability left for her youngest. I know the minute I open my door to my sister she will invite the chaos of her daughters back in. The last time one of my nieces took the backup key and nearly wrecked my car going for a joy ride. She was only 14 and my sister just twiddled her thumbs. I love my sister, but as much as she begs and makes promises, I can’t believe her. What do I do here?