17 year old runaway turning 18

[Unregistered]

17 turning 18 in 3 months.

I'm 17 and turning 18 in a few months. My fiance and I are wanting to get a place together. I know my parents wouldn't agree to it because they still see me as a minor. If I just leave can they file a report on me and if so could the cops come find me?
My fiance told me his attorney had told him that the police wouldn't look for me due to that I am almost 18.
We live in Texas btw

[ccsmod3]

Re: 17 turning 18 in 3 months.

Hello there,

Thanks for reaching out on our forum. It sounds like you and your fiancé are pretty serious about moving out together.
We recognize some states view 17 as a gray area and may not actively search for a 17 year-old runaway even if parents/guardians file a runaway/missing juvenile report. We also understand that some states view 17 as a minor in civil or status offenses (such as running away) and as an adult for criminal offenses.

One option for a more direct answer would be to reach out to your local law enforcement. If you aren’t comfortable calling on your own, perhaps you could have someone else call on your behalf. Or, you could always call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY and we could try calling out for you. Hopefully that helps and feel free to reach out on our Live Chat or hotline for further assistance.

[Unregistered]

18 in one month

I'm about to turn 18 in one month. I love with my mom and aunt and uncle. All together there is 10 of us in a house which we can't all fit in. There is constant fighting between all of us and I have a boyfriend who my mom cannot stand and she will not let me see him. We have been together for over a year and we want to live together. He already has a house and car and a job. He just turned 19 in September. I don't know what to do. My mom won't let me see him as well as any of my friends cause she's mad that I am with him. But I'm about to turn 18 In a month can she really not let me see my boyfriend or friends ? Can I move out without any consequences ?

[ccsmod3]

Re: 18 in one month

Hello and thanks for reaching out on our online forum. It sounds like you’ve only got a month to go until your 18th birthday and are trying to figure out a way to leave home. We imagine it is stressful living with constant fighting in a crowded household. Not being able to see your friends or boyfriend sounds like it would only add to the stress and frustration. We aren’t legal experts, but do recognize how things might be easier from a legal standpoint if you are able to wait until 18. If not, it might just depend on how your local law enforcement views 17 year old runaways/youth leaving home. If you need help figuring out a plan, we’d be happy to talk to you about that. We encourage you to try out our Live Chat whenever you get the chance. Best of luck!

[Unregistered]

Dhs run away

Hi, I'm 17 about to be 18 and a couple of days and I am in dhs. I was wondering if I ran away once I turn 18 from dhs will I get and any type of trouble

[ccsmod1]

RE: Dhs runaway

Thanks for reaching out to us for help. It sounds like you want to leave DHS when you turn 18. We are not legal experts, so we cannot say for sure what the laws in your state are, but we can do our best to answer in genera. When a you turn 18, you are considered a legal adult. In most cases, any person over 18 is not considered a runaway because they have reached the age of majority, which means they have a right to live where they want to. You might even be able to sign yourself out. Leaving without signing yourself out might make it difficult for you to get any services if you need to come back for some reason. If you aren't sure, a good way to find out would be to ask your case worker or social worker if you can sign yourself at 18, and what would happen if you don't. If you need help coming up with a plan for how to stay safe, we are here to listen and support you in any way that we can. Please don't hesitate to reach out to us any time. We are looking forward to hearing from you soon, and wish you the best of luck.

[Unregistered]

im 17 turning 18 and im in placement. i feel nothing is ever gettung better if i run away untill im 18 can i get in trouble from running from placement. in michigan.

[ccsmod0]

RE: Blank Title

Hey there,

Thanks for reaching out to us here at the National Runaway Safeline (NRS). We are here to provide you support and help you in the best possible way during this time.

It sounds like you are going through a really rough time right now in placement. If you have a case-worker have you considered reaching out to them to express your concerns about what it is going on? We understand that you are going through a difficult time. It may help to talk with your case worker to see what options are available to you.

We are not legal experts here but we can provide you with some general information. At 17, in some areas you are still considered a minor. If you are, then your guardians have a right to make a runaway report. If a runaway report is made and you are picked up by the police then there is a chance that you can be taken back. As well as if you are found staying with someone there is a chance that they can be charged with harboring a runaway. Running away is not a criminal charge, but a status offense, what that means is that your name will go into the police system as a runaway and if they do find you they can run your name and it will basically say that you are a runaway.

One thing that you may consider is reaching out to your local police department non-emergency number to gather more information about running away when in placement, or reaching out to your case worker, if you have one and asking them some of your questions that they can provide more information to.

We are sorry to hear that you are having such feelings. We are here for you. It sounds like you are considering your options and trying to see what is best for your situation. We are glad we are a resource that comes to mind in this time of crisis. We want you to know that we are here to listen and to help in the best way that we can. It also seems like there is a lot going on, if you are able to give us a call or chat with us we would be able to explore your situation a little further with you.

Thank you reaching out to us. We look forward to hearing from you. You can reach us at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929).

Best,
NRS

[Unregistered]

What will happen?

So I'm 17 now and will be 18 in July. Last night I ranaway from home. I'm in a safe place and have many people offering to take me in. The reason I left is because my parents are alcoholics and are verbally abusive towards me, but physically abusive towards two of my siblings. They are controlling, manipulative and vindictive. I have my own car. My mother filed me as a runaway this morning or so she says, but I called the station to see what would happen and they told me they'd probably take it but not go knocking on doors to find me. I live in Utah.

[ccsmod8]

RE: What will happen?

Hello there –

Thank you for getting into contact with us here at the National Runaway Safeline on our public forum. After reading your post, it does sound like you are mostly worried about what would happen to you since you have already run away. Things must have been getting overwhelming for you at home if you have run away. No one deserves to be treated that way at all, especially by a parent at home. It sounds like you were trying to get away from a hostile environment. We are always here to listen to you about anything and here to help in any way that we possibly can.

Now we aren’t legal experts here at NRS, so we cannot say for sure what will happen because every state is different and sometimes even different law enforcement handle things differently. So it’s great that you did reach out to your local station to ask some questions about the situation that you’re currently in. We do get callers that tell us that at 17 years old, the police are less likely to take a runaway report especially if they are closer to turning 18. Another thing is that if a runaway report is taken, the police aren’t going to be knocking on door to door to try to find a 17 year old. That would only be the case if your mother knew where you were currently staying that she could send the police directly over there. The only thing that would happen if they were to find you is they would take you back home to your parents. It's not a crime to runaway from home so you won't be put into jail.

Since you have stated that your mother has filed a runaway report on you, it is a possibility that she might have alerted other places that you have run away (i.e school, family members, friends, etc). So it could be a possibility that if you do return to school they might be inclined to notify either the police, your parents, or how ever they chose to handle a runaway youth. So that might be another scenario in which they might know you’ve run away from home.

If you give us a call on our 24/7 hotline at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) we could help you find resources in your area and could potentially help you brainstorm a possible solution to the issues you are having. We would love to talk to you about what has been going on recently. We also have an online chat service available every day.

[hisgirl12313]

17 turning 18 in march 29

Hi i wanted to know if i can leave my house with out my mom reporting mik as a run away. My birthday is in 2 months and i cant stand living with my mom. I have a apartment readg for me to move into already with my child nd i but i dont want to leave and i cant

[ccsmod7]

Re: 17 turning 18 in march 29

Often, youth may reach out to NRS in several different ways to discuss their situation. If a response from NRS is not visible to a bulletin posting it may be that we have already provided services to that individual through another platform we provide such as email, our crisis hotline, or our live chat service (in operation every day from 4:30p to 11:30p CST). NRS encourages anyone in need of assistance to contact us through our 24 hour crisis hotline at 1-800-RUNAWAY to receive immediate support.

[Unregistered]

I'm 17 turning 18 in July.

I legally have a guardian since last year and I'm only 5 months from turning 18 can I leave the house. When I live with my guardian is far from my job so I'm trying to move closer to where my jobs are at and my family. Last year, I was also pregnant and lost the baby is Is there anything I can do? Or do I have to stay here?

[ccsmod16]

Re: 17 year old runaway turning 18

Hi there,

We’re so glad that you contacted us. It sounds like you’ve been experiencing some major changes this past year. That’s a lot to handle. It also sounds like you would like to leave the house immediately, to move closer to your jobs and your family. Let’s see if we can address some of those concerns.

Sounds like you have a way to support yourself and you have family who may be able to help you find housing. Those things might help to reassure your guardian that you will be OK if you left. If you would like some help having that conversation with your guardian, we offer a conference call service that might be useful. With that service, we could be on the line to help you talk to your guardian about leaving and discuss any concerns or questions that come up. Give us a call or send us a chat if you want to explore that possibility.

We’re not legal experts, but in most cases you can leave the house with the consent of your legal guardian. If your guardian says that you can’t leave and you do anyway, they have the right to file a runaway report with the police. Depending on your city and state, if the police find you, they can return you back home. We could help you call your local police department to ask specific questions if you wanted.

Again, we’re really glad that you reached out to us. It takes a lot of courage to ask for help in making tough decisions like this one. It’s good to see that you are figuring out your options. If you would like to talk further about your situation, please call or chat with us. We’re here to listen, here to help.

~ NRS

[Unregistered]

Hi. I just turned 17 and am on probation. I cant stay at the house i am at anymore but im. Not "aloud" to leave. I just need to know is that when i get a warrent for not going to court or school will my charges be dropped when i turn 18 ? And will my name be free n clear