Mentally Unstable Mother-in-law... what can we do?

[pinkimarie]

I have been living with my 'hubby' for almost 6 months now. We have been together a little over a year; we committed quickly and so far it's been a great relationship. We have ups and downs and things to work out, but in the end, we love each other and that's what matters.

His mother is mentally unstable, and has the mentality and coping mechanisms of a 14 year old girl. I know some back story on her, her dad physically abused her when she was a child, she doesn't have any real family, she's divorced, her second husband died from caner, really tragic stuff I suppose and I feel for that, but I believe (and I've been through some shit myself) that you can't let your circumstances in life and bad fortunes make you a victim. You have to choose to not let those things rule you. Otherwise you get sucked into a spiral of misfortune. These are my beliefs based on my experiences.

MIL was living with hubby when we first met. She had to declare bankruptcy because her second husband passed away and left her with a huge amount of debt from shady business practices In the short year I have known her. She has almost had him evicted from their place of residence, screamed and cried when we would come in late after going out (We are GROWN adults, by the way) because she 'gets worried and you don't call and tell me', asked him for money, got arrested for shoplifting, which she swears she didn't she just picked something up and forget to put it down before she left (???).She sold her car and was using BFs, on a license she wasn't supposed to have b/c she failed the eye exam (she's ALMOST LEGALLY BLIND) but the person at the DMV 'felt bad' for her and passed her. She can't drive when it's sunny, rainy or dark. We live in Florida. She shouldn't be driving at all. She wrecked BFS car. She moved out of their condo unexpectedly with her boyfriend, stayed with boyfriend after he went crazy on her and threatened to hurt her, have her arrested, claimed she set up cable in his name fraudulently, had someone call her pretending to be a cop investigating that claim. After all of this, I told her to put her things in storage and then just stay in the spare bedroom for 2 months to save up her money to get a place of her own. She didn't. She said the boyfriend was stable and had changed (they had been doing this BS for three years prior and he never changed). She stayed, and then BF showed up one night hoping to catch her doing something. She was friends with some homeless guy who just used her for food and showers and shelter, and he constantly came over to her and BFS apartments, even when BF said he wasn't allowed. He was there when BF showed up randomly so BF went back to her car, got a bat and threatened homeless guy. Homeless then pulled out a small pistol that was MIL, which he had found and stolen from her while snooping through her place when she wasn't home (she left him alone there constantly). BF then broke the lease and she was evicted in a week. BF had told her that if she stayed with this guy again she wasn't welcome back. But she has no friends except the homeless, so here she is.

She has been here four days, and two nights ago, she threw her little gun at me and told me to take it b/c she was going to kill herself. I then took it to hubby who was walking the dog. I told him he needs to call someone, and he just said she had done it a bunch of times before. I don't feel safe (he's since locked her gun away), b/c I believe she will have another outburst. He told her she has to find help in a week or he'll have her committed. But I know you can't do that unless they are a threat to themselves at the moment....

This is breaking me and my hubby. I do not know what to do. This women has lived her life for 60 years being a victim and sucking people into her madness. I do not want to give up on my relationship, but I know she can't get better without his support, and I am just not at the point to be coddling a grown women.

Is there any ANY legal action I can take? Halfway houses? Women's programs? Anything?