livin n hell

[Guest]

i have four and a half months until i am 18 but right now i cant live here at my own home with my parents i keep threatening to leave but right now the only place i could go is a half hour away from here and i dont have a vehicle yet to get myself to the most important years of my life in high school. My dad told me last night that he doesnt have to feed me, put a roof over my head, or put clothes on my back if i am threatening to leave is that true? how can i handle this? is there any way i can move out with out getting in trouble with the law? besides emancipation?

[ccsmod5]

Re: livin n hell

Hello,

Thank you for contacting us through the bulletin boards and sharing your story. Sounds like you are going through a very intense situation and you are doing your best to get out of it the proper way.

In terms of rights and legalities, you are a minor until you are 18 and that means that you have to be home and follow rules that your parents set for you. That also means that your legal guardians are responsible for you and they have to feed and house you. If they are failing to do so, that is called neglect and can be reported to social services. Once that report is set, case workers can come to your house and investigate the situation with you and everyone else that lives there.

Do you think there is a way you can stay home until you're 18 and then you could go where you need to? Can you reduce the number of times that you have to frequent your family/people you are having issues with?

This is a very difficult situation because you have rights but they have responsibilities and it seems like there are heads butting and problems aren't solved. If you are willing and able to talk more about solutions, please give us a call at 1800.RUNAWAY 24hrs a day.

Best of luck...we'll be here when and if you call.

-NRS

[Guest]

Re: livin n hell

okay i honestly dont think that i can live here anymore. i start a job today and they need me to help close meaning i wont get off of work until one in the morning and my dad keeps saying that if thats the case he is going to take everything away from me and he says that he doesnt have to do anything for me if i keep threatening to leave. If i keep threatening to leave is it true that they dont have to feed me anymore? im just so confused i really cant stand to be here anymore. I told my dad that i was going to go stay at someones house for a couple days to cool down and he said that once i step outside the house there is no coming back. I would not be aloud back in my house. Can he really do that?

[ccsmod5]

Re: livin n hell

Hey,

Running away is a status offense and threatening to do that does not free your guardians of any legal responsibilities towards. Maybe once you do physically leave the house they don't have to feed or house you but until you are 18, they have to feed and house you no matter if you threaten to run away.

If your dad is saying that if you keep threatening to run away he won't feed/house you anymore, why do you keep threatening to run from home? I know you want to leave but it sounds like you can still stay if you don't make that threat anymore.

But to answer your question, you cannot leave without their permission but at the same time, he can't lock you out...it's considered neglect.

-NRS

[Guest]

Re: livin n hell

they arent saying they will stop feeding me if i move out its just i guess since i eat alot like i have my three meals a day but my parents dont eat that much and we go thru food quicker thats why they dont want to feed me anymore. My mom jsut said that once my paycheck is big enough for my own food that im not aloud to eat any of their food after that. Its going to be all my responsibility.

[ccsmod1]

Re: livin n hell

Thanks for the clarification. Sometimes it’s hard to have an ongoing conversation via the bulletin boards because both sides don't get a chance to clarify what they mean. Sorry to hear that your parents are wanting you to pay for you own food. It sounds like for that reason on top of a bunch of other things, you want to live elsewhere. Our past posts have explained some of the legality of running away.

If there’s anything else you need or would like to talk more in depth about any of this, feel free to call our hotline anytime. Someone is always available. If you’re not able to call the hotline, if there’s anything else specific that you need, feel free to post again. Best of luck with everything. Hope some of the information we provided will help you make the best decision for yourself.