Running away in AZ

[ccsmod9]

Thanks for contacting us here at NRS. We can understand the youth is going through a lot and it might be a bit too stressful to handle. Though we are not legal experts from what we can say is that he can reach out to us and we can help him find either a homeless shelter or a Transitional Housing Program. These places help you get on your feet and provide the essentials until you can manage to be on your own. Another thing to think about is if he is gone from home would it not make sense that because he is gone would that not switch the abuse over to his extended family? Please remind him his safety is his best shot and the shot of his siblings as well.
We are here as support to help through this challenging time. We can best help by phone or chat as NRS is unable to respond more than twice by email to assist you. If you would like to talk more in detail please call or chat soon.
Our contact information is 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929); www.1800runaway.org (click on the chat button).
If you are at risk of any danger or feeling unsafe, we encourage you to reach out to 911 or seek emergency assistance immediately.
Be safe,
NRS

my daughter's friend is 16 & being physically, emotionally, and verbally abused by his mom. She is a drunk and doesn't feed him or provide warm clothes during winter; he ran away and i let him stay with us. He is afraid of her and doesn't want to go back. Now after reading these posts, I'm afraid she will be vindictive enough to come after me for harboring him. What alternative does he have? He has a 10 yr old brother still living there but says he's safe, she only goes after the 16 yr old.. he doesn't want to call cps and get the 10 yr old taken away.

[ccsmod7]

Thank you for contacting us.

We are glad you reached out to us and will try to provide you with answers or resources that can help. Please keep in mind there are inherent limitations to our forums, however we are available to chat online and/or talk via our toll-free number (1.800.RUNAWAY) 24/7/365. We should also note that we are not legal experts and should not be considered as such.
To begin, everyone’s situation is different and there is no definite answer when it comes to contemplating running away and the ramifications of a return home, be it forced or voluntary. You mentioned you are living in an unhappy home where neither you nor your brother get much in the way of support. You deserve to grow up in a kind and nourishing environment and you are being very mature in seeking out information, regarding such a big decision.

You asked about whether continuing to go to school will get you in trouble. If you do not have any truancy issues the school will likely not have any issues with where you are staying. We cannot comment on the trouble you may find upon your return home, however it is possible the conditions within the home could worsen. Resource that you may find helpful as you consider your options are:
Child Help Phone: 1.800.422.4453 URL: childhelp.org
NCMEC (National Center for Missing and Exploited Children) Phone: 1.800.843.5678 URL: missingkids.com

Hope this information helps. Remember your safety and care is important and you and your brother deserve to be treated fairly and free of abuse. If you do feel that you are in immediate danger contact your local police. They are also a good resource for information regarding the logistics of what running away may look like and how they may respond to a missing/runaway child report. If you would like to talk or discuss other options and resources do not hesitate to call us at 1.800.RUNAWAY.

Good Luck,

NRS

I am 13 and I live in an unhappy home, where I am neglected and sometimes verbally and medically abused. My mother gives me a whole list of chores every day, to where if we don't get it done, we (me and my brother) are put into punishment. They will yell at us, and send us off with another list. Most nights, she's not home until 9 at night, and my dad would come home just to mess up the stuff we cleaned. Is it bad for a 10 and 13 year old to be given a list of chores, along with being home alone for 6.5 hours? Would it be bad if I ran away, and left my brother at home? Would I be in trouble if I came home after a week or 2? Would I still be able to go to school?

[ccsmod4]

Reply: I`m 14 I'm depressed....

Hello,
Thank you for writing to us here at the National Runaway Safeline.

We understand it takes great courage to reach out, and we appreciate you sharing a little bit about what’s going on. Running away is a big step. Sometimes it’s good to talk about what your options are when trying to cope with a situation.

We want you to know that we are here as support to help you through this challenging time. We can best help by phone or chat as NRS is unable to respond more than twice by email or bulletin for assistance. If you would like to talk more in detail and share more about how we can help specifically, please call or chat soon.

Our contact information is 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929); www.1800runaway.org (click on the chat button).
If you are at risk of any danger or feeling unsafe, we encourage you to reach out to or seek emergency assistance immediately.
We hope to hear from you soon.

Take care,
NRS

I’m 14 I’m depressed I have self harm issues my dad is an abusive drunk my mom makes me feel misplace and like I’m a pest and she won’t let me move back to my home town so I can be happy and get better will my state and I’m really considering running away...

[ccsmod5]

Hi,
Thank you for reaching out. We are not legal experts, but we can give some general information. Since you are a minor (under 1, you would need your mom’s consent to live somewhere else and if you leave without permission your mom would have the right to file a runaway report to have you returned how. If you are interested in living outside of your mom’s custody, there are two options to consider. First, you can ask your grandmother to file for custody of you; to do so, she would need to get in touch with a lawyer. Another option is to file for emancipation, which is a legal process where you would become your own legal guardian. The first step of this process is getting in touch with a lawyer. You would generally need to prove that you are able to support yourself without the support of a legal guardian. That usually means having a job, proof of income, and other adults to vouch for your emotional maturity.
Thank you again for reaching out. We hope this was helpful and we encourage you to reach out by phone if you need additional resources or need help figuring out your options. Our number is 1-800-786-2929 and our lines are always open. If you have a moment, we'd appreciate your feedback of our crisis services at the following link:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/we_care_what_you_think

I'm 16 and living in Arizona. I would like to legally be put out of my house with my mom and live with my grandma. She said if I were to stay at my grandmas without her permission than she will call the cops and say I ran away. I don't wanna live under her supervision anymore. Is there a way I can change this and legally have my grandma as my legal parent/guardian and to have my mom off that list?

[ccsmod8]

Hello there –

Thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to reach out to us here at the National Runaway Safeline and posting on our public forum. By helping you during your crisis, hopefully there are other youth that are in similar situations can read this for help as well.

As you have probably saw on our other post or threats that we aren’t legal experts and the laws on that specific subject of just leaving home and/or running away vary from state to state. In most states, if you are 18 years old or older, you are considered an adult. Now once considered a legal adult, you can’t be forced home and your parents can’t file a runaway report with the police. Until then you are still concerned a minor and cannot leave without parental permission. If you were to leave and runaway, your girlfriend’s parents will have the right to reach out to local law enforcement to report that she has run. If she were to leave the city or even the state, what most likely will happen is that if her parents filed her as a runaway, the report will be entered into the NCIC. That is a national database for missing people and runaways that law enforcement use. So if she did get into trouble with the police in a different state, they will still be able to tell that she is an active runaway. Then they will possible hold her until arrangements can be made to get her back home; in detention or local youth shelter. If she didn’t leave the city or state and was caught, she would just be brought back home and not taken to jail or juvie since it’s not a crime to runaway.

Hope that information helps!

if my girlfirend ran away from home and she was 15 could she go to jail or juvy

[ccsmod5]

Hello,
Thanks for your question. We’re not legal experts, but we can give you a general answer. Your local police would ultimately have the clearest and most accurate answer for you, so you can call them if you feel comfortable doing so. That being said, it is generally true that if a minor leaves home without parental consent, the parents would the right to file a runaway report. If the police are able to locate you they will return you home. Beyond that, there are generally no legal consequences. We cannot speak to what your family’s reaction would be, of course, so that’s something to consider.

Thank you again for reaching out. We hope this was helpful and we encourage you to reach out by phone if you need additional resources or need help figuring out your options. Our number is 1-800-786-2929 and our lines are always open. If you have a moment, we'd appreciate your feedback of our crisis services at the following link:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/we_care_what_you_think

Stay safe!

Can I runaway from home and be gone for a couple of days (3days) then come back home what will happen if this happens?

[ccsmod0]

Hello, thank you for taking the time to write to us here at the National Runaway Safeline. It sounds like you have already ran away but you want to know if you can get arrested for leaving. We want you to know that we are not legal experts but to our knowledge running away is not a crime it is considered a status offense. This means that you cannot get arrested for it because you are a minor. So you won’t get arrested but you will be returned to your parents.
We are sorry to be the barriers of bad news but the only ways that we know of to legally leave your parents’ home before the age of majority is to either get your guardians permission, become emancipated or have child protective services remove your parents’ rights. If you would like to talk more about these options you are always welcome to give us a call anytime. 1-800-786-2929
Best of Luck,
NRS

I have currently ran away....but it has been less then 24 hours....i showed up to school and im scared im going to get arrested for running away. Can that happen? Its been giving me really bad anxiety and ive told my mom that i am ok. What should i do? Is there a way i dont have to go home for a while?

[ccsmod10]

Hey there,

First of all thank you for reaching out to the National Runaway Safeline! It sounds like you are really worried right now but it’s great that you are trying to better understand your options. You mention that your boyfriend is 17 and left home so his parents are calling the police. We here at NRS are not legal experts but what we can say is that his parents can file a runaway report with the police. Based on your city and state your local police department will handle a runaway report differently. They may just put your boyfriend’s name on a list, or actively search for him, or charge any 18 year olds he’s with, with harboring a runaway. If you call your local police department and ask them what they do when a runaway report is filed you can better understand what will happen. If you need help finding that number call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY. We are available at anytime and can help give you more resources like shelters as well.

We wish you good luck with everything!