wanting to move out at 18 in IN

[highschooler]

im 18 and my parents keep telling me i cant move out until graduation. can i legally move out at 18 without graduating high school yet. in Indiana? please help.

[ccsmod8]

RE: wanting to move out at 18 in IN

Hello,

Thank you for writing into the National Runaway Safeline bulletin board. From what you have told us about your situation it sounds like that could be a little frustrating that your parents are not letting you move out of the house until you have graduated from high school even though you are already 18 years old.

Unfortunately, here at the NRS we cannot tell you in definite terms what age the age of majority is because sometimes laws on that specific subject vary from state to state, so our advice would be call your local non-emergency police number to get more information on that. With that said, in most states the age where someone is considered to be an adult is typically at 18 years old; regardless of having a high school diploma.

It sounds like you have given a lot of thought in to what you want to do in your situation though. What kinds of things do you think that your parents would do if you moved out? Have you thought out your overall plan (i.e. housing, transposition, financial stability, etc)? Maybe if you have discussed your plan on moving out with your parents in detail, they might feel a little different about the situation.

Once again thank you for writing into the NRS bulletin board, we are always here to listen and here to help you with everything we can. You can also call into our 24hour hotline (1.800.RUNAWAY) for a more immediate response, as well as connect to some resources that we might have on hand. Another service that we offer here at the NRS is our chat room which is offered from 4:30pm to 11:30pm/CST (www.1800RUNAWAY.org). If you feel more comfortable with that opinion we are more than welcome to contact us through that.

Look forward to talking with you and best of luck.

[Unregistered]

You are 18 you are an adult and free to do as you wish.

[ccsmod0]

RE:

Hi there,

Thanks for responding and sharing your insight. It's true that at 18, in most states, someone is considered an adult and able to choose where they want to live. We aren't legal experts, but we have talked with some police departments that would bring someone back home all the way up until they graduate. It certainly is not common, but it does happen. In order to get the specific answer, you can always call your local police department at their non-emergency number.

Please feel free to call us at anytime at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) and we can call your police department for you, if you'd like. You can also chat with us through our website (www.1800runaway.org) from 4.30pm-11.30pm Central Time.

Good luck to you,

NRS

[Unregistered]

Re: wanting to move out at 18 in IN

I live in Indiana and my daughter is 18. She is wanting to leave state to be with a boy that lives in Eagle Pass Texas. She has never really met him in person just through the internet. HOw can
I legally stop this? I have tried talking to this boys mom if it is really her and the detective there in texas as well as my local law enforcement here in Indiana. What are my options
to keep her here where I know she will be safe, I only have 4 days until this boy buys here an airline ticket. My ex- husband her father is not helping me at all and he hasnt been in her life
for 12 years?? please help I am desperate to save my daughter from harm

[Unregistered]

Please help me save my 18 yr old daughter from making a huge mistake

I live in Indiana and my daughter is 18. She is wanting to leave state to be with a boy that lives in Eagle Pass Texas. She has never really met him in person just through the internet. HOw can
I legally stop this? I have tried talking to this boys mom if it is really her and the detective there in texas as well as my local law enforcement here in Indiana. What are my options
to keep her here where I know she will be safe, I only have 4 days until this boy buys here an airline ticket. My ex- husband her father is not helping me at all and he hasnt been in her life
for 12 years?? please help I am desperate to save my daughter from harm. I know a lot about sex trafficking but she will not believe me and I am sick and scared for her life that if she gets on
that plane she will never return home or even found. How do I save her or stop her. She is a high school drop out since her sophomore year of high school has no job and no drivers license and has
never stepped foot in an airport so she will have no clue what to do when she got there or where to turn too if something bad happens.

[ccsmod15]

Re: Please help me save my 18 yr old daughter from making a huge mistake

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out to the National Runaway Safeline and sharing with us some of what has been going on. It sounds like you and your family are going through a scary time right now with your daughter possibly leaving home to live with this boy she met online. We are glad you reached out and we are here to listen and support you guys in what ways we can.
We are not legal experts, but here at NRS we can speak in general terms. Generally at the age of 18 your daughter can leave home without your permission. If you are unaware of her whereabouts you may be able to file a missing person report with your local police department as well as the Eagle Pass Texas police department.

We understand your concerns regarding her leaving home at such a young age, with little education and no experience on how the world can work. It must be very difficult for you to watch your daughter make these kind of choices. It sounds like you have tried to take every precaution you can think of, from contacting the boy’s mother as well as detectives in both states. We are sorry to hear that you have not been getting the support from her father that you would have liked.
We would like to offer you a hotline service, called Team HOPE at 1866-305-4673. This hotline is geared towards parents of children who have runaway in the past or currently on the run. They may be able to give you some suggestions on what to do or what has worked for them in the past with their children. Here at NRS we are not here to tell you what to do, just go over your options. This is one option you have. They are an answering service, meaning you would give them a call and they will call you back.

You mentioned that you have talked to your daughter about sex trafficking and she is not listening to you. This can be very frustrating, and sometimes after the age of 18 kids don’t want to listen. This may be a time to set some ways she can stay safe if she were to leave, such as texting you a sign or unique symbol if she ever felt unsafe or in trouble, as well as having a code phrase or word such as “I’m fine” would mean “not okay, I need help.” Another option is to have your daughter call us and we can talk to her about staying safe. We are caller oriented which means we are not here to tell her what to do or what is safe, but we can reality check her plan and talk to her about what makes her feel she wants to leave. Sometimes hearing it from someone who is not family can be beneficial. If she does not want to call us, you can also talk to her friends in Indiana and have them talk to her about leaving and what that would look like, or a trusted adult she has.

We hoped this helped and if you would like to talk more about this situation you can give us a call on our hotline or chat with us on our website. That also goes for your daughter if she wants to talk about her plan. We look forward to hearing from you and we wish you the best of luck.

NRS

[ccsmod15]

Re: wanting to move out at 18 in IN

Hey,

If you have contacted NRS today through another means (for example, live chat, email or bulletin) for the same issue, it would be helpful to let us know that you have already contacted us. NRS understands it takes courage to reach out for help; therefore, we would like to minimize the need for you to repeat your situation and avoid offering you duplicate services. We hope to hear from you on our hotline or chat service and we wish the best of luck.

NRS

[Guest]

Im turning 18 this coming summer and my parents force to to go to a private school will i be able to enroll my self in a public school rather they want me to go there or not??

[ccsmod2]

Hello,

Thanks so much for reaching out to us. We’re sorry to hear that you’re being forced to go to a school you don’t want to go to. It sounds like you’re interested in finding out whether your state will allow you to enroll yourself in the school of your choosing once you turn 18. Whether you can enroll yourself in the public school can depend on several factors, and although we’re not legal experts we can help you figure out who may be better equipped to answer your questions.

The laws regarding who is considered an adult and what you can do at that point can vary from state to state, so it would be best for you to speak to someone familiar with the laws in your state. One option to call is your local Legal Aid agency, which can give you more information about the laws in your state and what you may or may not be able to do. Another option is to call the local school district where you’d like to enroll, and ask whether they would require parental consent for you to enroll in the local public school. If you need help finding the contact information you need, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We’ll do our best to help you find the resources you need so that you can decide your next steps. You can reach us every day, 24/7 by phone at 1.800.RUNAWAY (786.2929), or by chat every day from 4:30pm – 11:30pm CST. We wish you the best of luck. Stay safe!

-NRS

[Guest]

hi im 18 years old my dad won,t let move still my graduating and my dad girl is mean she called me and name me and fright all the time and i what to stay safe and they dont teath me right at all they mean to and i move out i dont i have a job and my dad has papaers on me i to talk to some one and they really dont help me out at all i want move out get a job and every thing and start a life of my own.

[ccsmod15]

Hi, thank you for reaching out to us; we are glad that you did. It sounds like it’s pretty stressful for you at home and that you want to leave. In Indiana at 18 you do have the legal right to leave, even if you haven’t graduated yet. But you may want to consider getting a job so that you can support yourself. We are not sure what you mean by your dad has papers on you, so if you’d like to discus this all with us, we really hope that you might reach out to us through either our phone hotline at 1-800-RUNAWAY (1-800-786-2929) or by chatting with us through www.1800runaway.org We would like to talk this over with you; we are here to listen and help.
We hope to hear from you soon
Sincerely, NRS

[Guest]

If I'm 18 and still in high school can I move out of my parents house?

[ccsmod4]

Hello,
Thanks for contacting the National Runaway Safeline.

Once you are 18 in most states you are more than likely considered a legal adult which means that you can move out if you want to and you won’t be considered a runaway. As a legal adult, you have a right to make your own decisions about where you live. What will you do if you move out of your parent’s home?
We can help you make a plan for how to deal with your situation and help you find resources to land on your feet. Having a plan for where you will live and how you will survive once you move out can be very helpful. Moving can be a huge step, and you don’t have to be alone. Some steps you can take towards independence might be to find employment if you don’t have an income, or to save up money for moving expenses.

It can also be helpful to research rents in your area, find a roommate, or make a budget. Another thing you might want to consider is what kinds of things you depend on your parents for currently such as any present and future expenses for school, or health insurance. It’s probably important to know if they would continue to provide these things after you leave. There may be social service agencies in your area that can help meet some of these needs, such as Transitional Living Programs, a kind of shelter where young adults can live and get services to help them transition to independent living.

We are here to listen and help however we can.
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.
For more specific information about the legal age in your state contact the local police non-emergency number.

Our contact information is 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929); www.1800runaway.org (click on the chat button).

Take care,
NRS