New Year's Eve

[Unregistered]

Hi, I'm 16 years old and my mom and dad got divorced when I was 4 and I've never liked going to my dads. My mom is the custodial parent. This Christmas break we are at my dads for about a week and a half. Lately, I've been feeling very emotionally unstable. I would say that this is because of my dad. I have a lot of anxiety also that I would also name as my dads fault. I also feel emotionally abused by him. I really want to spend New Year's Eve with my boyfriend and I asked my dad (who lives 3 hours away) if I could go with my boyfriend of just over a year. My boyfriend lives by my mom. My dad said no. I'm planning on leaving my dads and having my boyfriend pick me up and take me back over by my moms where I'll stay with him for 4 nights. What could happen? Would I even get in trouble?

[ccsmod13]

RE: New Year's Eve

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out to the National Runaway Safeline and sharing with us some of your story. It sounds things at your dads house are causing you to feel uncomfortable and anxious. You do not deserve to be somewhere where you are being emotionally abused. We are sorry to hear this and are glad that you have contacted us for help.

You mentioned that your mom is the custodial parent. We are not legal experts here at NRS, but we can speak in general terms. Generally, running away is not a criminal offense, it is a status offense. This means that if you were to leave without your legal guardian’s permission then your legal guardian would be able to file a runaway report with the police. By filing the report, your legal guardian is letting the police know that they cannot be held legally responsible for you. If the police were to find you then they would take you back home to your legal guardian. If you are found at a friends or family member’s house, without the permission of your legal guardian, then your legal guardian may have the option of filing charges against that person for harboring a runaway, which is a criminal offense.

You mentioned that your mom is the custodial parent. Since we are not legal experts we cannot say what would happen in this case. Meaning, we are unsure of who would be able to file a runaway report if you were to leave. If your mom has both legal and custodial custody then she is the one that you would need permission for. If your mom and your dad have joint custody then it can be complicated with who you need permission from. If you know which is which, who had legal guardianship of you essentially, then you can contact your local police department and ask them in general terms who has the right to file you as a runaway if you were to leave your home with your legal situation.

We hoped this helped and if you would like to discuss your situation in greater detail please give us a call on our hotline at 1800.786.2929 or you can chat with us at our website every day from 4:30pm-11:30pm CST. We look forward to hearing from you and we wish you the best of luck.

NRS

[Unregistered]

What if my dad knows I'm leaving and knows where I'm going and he even watches me leave, can he stop me?

[Unregistered]

Also, could I possibly say that I'm leaving because I feel emotionally abused? Not using it as an excuse. I've thought many times of leaving. When I was around age 14, I even planned escapes for my little sister and I just in case he ever posed a physical threat to us because he has anger issues also and would go into screaming fits and just get very aggressive. I've gone to counseling along with my sister but it got us nowhere. The courts refuse to talk to us about where we would like to live even though I am almost 17 and my sister almost 15.

[ccsmod13]

RE:

Hello, and thank you for your response. We are not legal experts, and it seems like your situation has a lot of factors in it because your parents are not together and one is a custodial parent. It really depend on who is your legal guardian (the person that is legally responsible for you until you turn 1, because it is your legal guardian that can make a runaway report. If there is a runaway report that is made, and your dad has knowledge of where you are he could give that information to your mom or the police in order to find you. In terms of if he can stop you, we are not legal experts and cannot say for sure what will happen.

We hoped this helped and if you would like to discuss your situation in greater detail you can give us a call on our hotline at 1800.786.2929 or you can chat with us on our website every day from 4:30pm-11:30pm CST. Thank you and we wish you the best of luck.

NRS

[ccsmod13]

RE:

Thank you for reaching out again. At this time we have provided you with multiple bulletin responses. For further support, we strongly encourage you to contact us directly at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929), and look forward to your call. Lastly, please note that we offer a live chat via our website at www.1800runaway.org every day from 4:30p to 11:30p CST.