can we get married?

[Unregistered]

first off, im 17 years old and i live in tn. i was put into states custody last july and ive been a runaway for about 7 months. ive been living with my fiancée. basically, ive become fed up with not being able to finish school, get a job, etc. weve been discussing our extremely limited options and decided to get married. my parents want nothing to do with me. so, their consent is out of the question. i have been researching state marraige laws and learned that some states only require written consent (most require it to be notorized). naturally, i have a few questions:
1. could my grandmother give the written consent?
2. would they find out i am a runaway?
3. would it break ties with the whole states custody situation?

-if we choose to not get married-

i heard "they" will still look for me until im 19. somehow they can extend it for a year? i also heard that i can be charged with contempt of court and could spend up to 30 days in jail. i was wondering if there is any truth to that..?

[ccsmod8]

re: can we get married?

Thanks for contacting us at the National Runaway Safeline. It sounds like you are dealing with a lot of tough stuff right now and aren't sure what options you might have. It's great that you reached out to NRS. You aren't alone in this. It sounds like you have been looking into your options and have some questions that are related to your legal situation. We aren't legal experts at NRS so unfortunately, we aren't able to give specific legal advice. You seem to be very thoughtful in how you want to move forward and are considering the options you have. If you'd like to give us a call, toll-free at 1-800-RUNAWAY, we'd be glad to look up legal resources in your area in Tennessee so that you might be able to get your specific questions answered. Again, thanks for reaching out to NRS. We are here 24 hours a day on the phone or you can chat with us from 4:30-11:30pm CST at 1800runaway.org. Hope to hear from you soon,

-NRS

[Matsumi]

SZaftnXpotto

i want 2 run away .but im scared my mom will call the plocie ..im 14 yrs old i wanna go stay with my ex boyfriend but when he has his own place i need 2 get out of my house .my dad comes home drunk all the time i cant be on the phone with my boyfriend cause my cousin will tell on me my dad calls me useless my parents fight all the time my dads girlfriend comes over all the time and tries bossing me around my dad verbally abuses me my cousin thinks she is my mother and nobody in my family loves me ..im tired of it ..ive cut myself so many times because of it ..how can i run away without getting my ex boyfriend in trouble with the cops i dont know how much longer i can stay in this house please help me

[ccsmod4]

Can we get married?

Hello,
Thank you for contacting the National Runaway Safeline.

We are sorry to hear you are going through a tough time at home no one deserves to be abused in any way.
It must have been a difficult decision to contact someone for help you are very courageous to do so.

We are not legal experts at NRS so we cannot say exactly what consequence your friend could have for taking you in. We can let you know in general about certain laws as they pertain to a runaway youth or teen.
Most city and states have laws against aiding or harboring someone who is a minor or runaway.

We understand your concern for your friend it’s nice that you are trying to protect them from legal harm.
It must feel confusing and frustrating with so much controversy going on and a lot of it being directed at you. You stated that sometimes you have cut yourself as a result of the conflict at home.
That’s really tough.

We understand you don’t want to be in this situation any longer what are some other options that might help you to change your situation?
Maybe you would consider calling our 1-800-Runaway (786-2929) 24hr crisis line to talk about your situation a little more.
We have a national data base of information and referrals for emergency shelter, Legal services, Individual and family counseling etc.

You can also try our website for our NRS Live Chat service at www.1800Runaway.org or send a crisis email to [email protected]
The NRS live chat service is available 7days a week from 4:30pm until 11:30pm

We hope you will feel better and are able to come up with a plan to help cope with your situation.
Thank you for reaching out to the National Runaway Safeline.
Take care.