16 years old, Florida

Re: 16 years old, Florida

Hey,

Thank you for reaching out to us. It sounds like you do not have a great relationship with your family members and we are sorry to hear that, it has got to be tough living with them when you do not get along too well.
So we are not legal experts here, but we will help you with your questions the best that we can.
You said that your mom often tells you to move out, and are wondering if that is verbal consent. We cannot say for certain, but it is likely that you would need some type of proof that this was the case.
Running away is not illegal, it is a status offense. Typically what happens is if you leave the house without permission from a guardian, and they decide to file a runaway report, if the cops find you they just bring you back home. You asked what would happen if you went to your boyfriend's house. We want to let you know that yes running away is not illegal, but if your guardians decided to file a runaway report, then anyone that you stay with could potentially be charged with harboring a runaway. Typically, it is up to the guardians to determine whether or not to press those charges. One option that you always have to get answers to legal questions is calling your local nonemergency police department line. If you were to call in there, you can ask your questions hypothetically and they will be able to provide you more answers regarding your specific situation.
We also offer conference calling here, so if you were not comfortable calling into the nonemergency line alone, you could call into our hotline and we could make an outgoing call with you, acting as an advocate to make sure that all of your questions are answered.
If you would like to talk any more about your situation, or get specific resources then you can always call into our 24/7, anonymous and confidential hotline at 1 800 RUNAWAY (786 2929), or join us on chat from the hours of 4:30pm to 11:30pm CST through our website.

Good luck and stay safe,
NRS

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