running away to another state

[Guest]

I live in Arkansas and I want to ran away to south Carolina. I have friend that lives there whos going to let me stay in their house for a bit. How am I going to get there or convince my parents to take me there when they don't even know about my friend and they are very strict

[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 on our public forum. We are always here to listen and here to help in any way that we can.

Now we aren't legal experts here and you might have already read on this forum thread about what could happen if you were to leave home before the age of majority. So we won’t get into that since you can find it fairly easily.

Your parent(s) may give you permission to live with another family or relative, but without getting an official document from the court they would still be legally responsible for you. Which means that they can also take away that permission at any given moment and take you back home to live with them once again. So that can be an option for you if you feel like your parent(s) might respond well to you living someplace else or won’t go back on their word when they told you that you could leave home. Maybe coming up with a solid plan about what you’re planning on doing, how everything is going to work, and any miscellaneous things could be helpful in them seeing how much work you have put into this plan and presenting the ideas to both sides (ie. your parents and friend’s parents).

Hope this was helpful and best of luck to you.

[Guest]

hi im S and i stay in florida and i want to leave and go to California. My questions are if i have someone that will house me to drive to california and pick me up would they get arrested? and, will the police bring me back? I've been planning on leaving for months and i want to be able to live happily.

[ccsmod15]

Hi there,
Thank you for writing to us here at National Runaway Safeline (NRS). We understand it takes great courage to reach out, and we appreciate you sharing a little bit about what’s going on. It seems there is a lot that you are faced with right now and you’re feeling like leaving is one of your only options. It seems you want to know some information on runaway laws.
While we are not experts on the law, 18 is generally the age that an individual may leave home without parent permission. If you are under 18 and leave home, your parent/guardian may file you as a runaway and you may be returned home. Also, those you stay with may run the risk of being charged with harboring a runaway. Also if they were to drive to get you it could be considered kidnapping. For more specifics on the law, the local non-emergency police or legal aid may better answer legal questions.
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

[Guest]

Hii im I im writing for a friend who wants to run away from a mentally and psychically abusing family he is only fourteen but wants a way out asap. Hes lives in Florida and im in California is there a way to get him out of the household and with us?

[ccsmod15]

Hi there,
Thank you for writing to us here at National Runaway Safeline (NRS). We understand it takes great courage to reach out, and we appreciate you sharing a little bit about what’s going on. It seems there is a lot that you are faced with right now and you’re feeling like leaving is one of your only options. It seems you want to know some information on runaway laws.
While we are not experts on the law, 18 is generally the age that an individual may leave home without parent permission. If you are under 18 and leave home, your parent/guardian may file you as a runaway and you may be returned home. Also, those you stay with may run the risk of being charged with harboring a runaway. Also if they were to drive to get you it could be considered kidnapping. For more specifics on the law, the local non-emergency police or legal aid may better answer legal questions.
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

[Guest]

hi so im *** and i live in ******* and in a mentally abusive home. and my friend wants to house me in ******* we know that if they were to drive me the ******* it could be considered kidnapping so is there any other way for me to leave the home and by the way im 14

[ccsmod3]

Hi there, we’re glad you reached out. We understand it can be difficult to reach out at times, we’re here to help and support you as best we can.

18 years old is generally the age that an individual may leave home without permission from their parent or legal guardian. We are not legal experts here but we can speak in general terms. If you are under 18 and leave home without permission, your parent/guardian may file a runaway report with the police. What actions the police take once you are filed as a runaway can vary a lot from state to state and even city to city so we cannot predict exactly what would happen in your case. Generally speaking, if you encounter a police officer while reported as a runaway, you will likely be returned home. However, in that case there may be services (family counseling, etc.) available to you as a youth in crisis/runaway but again, police procedures related to offering those services can be different based on your location or the details of your situation. Another thing to consider is that while running away is not a crime, a legal adult who allows you to stay with them may be putting themselves at risk for being charged with harboring a runaway. One way to find out the laws in your area is to call your local police and ask what their policies are regarding runaway youth.
It’s important to note that if you were to cross state borders, you would be still looked at as a resident of the state where you lived so calling the local police department could be more accurate then calling the police department in the state where you’re considering going.
If you would like to talk more in detail about your situation you can also call us 24/7 at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) or chat with us at www.1800RUNAWAY.org.

We hope this response was helpful! We’d love to hear from you about your experience using our crisis email/forum. Your feedback plays an important role in helping us improve our services to youth and families. Please click the link to fill out our survey: Your Opinion Matters to Us

[Guest]

Hi Im Leo im 12 and i live in Virginia im in a constant state of emotional abuse. when i try to call for help my parents take control and blame it on mental stability ive run away once before but the police were called i wish to run to somewhere far like california any advice?

[ccsmod15]

Hey there!
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. We know it can be very difficult and scary to do so. Reaching out takes a lot of courage. We are sorry to hear about your constant state of emotional abuse. No one deserves to be treated that way.

In terms of running away, if you do go somewhere without telling your parents, they are likely to call the police again or file a runaway report. If that happens, the police will likely try to find you and bring you back home. It is understandable that you would want to be far away from your family if they are treating you this way.

Something we offer here at NRS is called a conference calling service. To do this, you would call in and tell us more about your situation and then we would bring your parents on the line as well. A liner would mediate the conversation to try to bring about a good resolution. Deciding to use this option is completely up to you.

Lastly, if you want to talk about the situation or some of your options more in depth, you are welcome to reach out to us more directly. We have a live-chat and calling service available 24/7. You can reach us at 1800runaway.org or 1-800-RUNAWAY.

Best of luck and stay strong,
NRS

[Guest]

Hi I’m *****

im 14 years old and I need to run away from **** to ****. I don’t know how busses work but I need a way to get myself there. I have my dads credit card and I’m going to **** to meet up with my bf. So I wanna know how to get there and also what would happen if I brought my bf to **** with me?

[ccsmod3]

Hey there, and thanks for reaching out to us here at the National Runaway Safeline. We know that it can take a lot of courage to reach out for support, and we're glad you did. Running away from home can be a big step, and it's generally a good idea to have some sort of plan in place before making that move. While it's clear that you've started to think about how to make leaving home work, it looks like you have a few things that you're unsure of and need clarity on. We're happy to help.

When traveling by bus (or really any other form of transportation), you're typically required to show some form of ID. For someone your age, that might be a school ID or a state ID. And because you're under the age of 17, you're required to travel with someone who is over the age of 17. If this is not possible, you can travel alone as an unaccompanied minor, but there are various restrictions in place to ensure your safety. For example, your ticket can only be purchased at a Greyhound station, and you have to travel with a completed (by your parent/legal guardian) Unaccompanied Child Form, giving you consent to travel AND indicating that you'll be picked up by a designated person at the end of your trip. You're also not allowed to travel alone for more than 8 hours, and can only do so between the hours of 7a-8p on a direct trip with no transfers. These rules are specific to Greyhound, but at a brief glance, it looks like every major bus company has similar variations of them as well.

Because the trip to get to your boyfriend is such a long route, and because of your age, it's likely that this won't be the best traveling option for you. The same would be said for bringing your boyfriend with you, assuming you're the same age.

If you'd like to chat in more detail about what's going on, your plans to runaway, or just want to talk through some of your options, please feel free to reach out to us directly by calling 1-800-RUNAWAY or by chatting with us live at www.1800runaway.org. We're available 24/7 and are always happy to listen, and to help.

Take care.

NRS

[Guest]

I'm 16 years old my parents treat me like a maid they force me to take care of my younger sister my brother who is a year younger than me is a slob and gets to do what he want I had a best friend who is 20 and she has 2 kids 4 months and 7 years and her boy friend is 26 and they help me so much I focus on my virtual school more I get to be a teen without having a child I didn't have on my hip and they are moving to ******** and we live in ******* and i just can't anymore I don't wanna be there they don't even feel like my parents anymore what can I do to get to ******* with them safely as possible without my mom's interference

[ccsmod3]

Hi there,

Thank you for reaching out to us at NRS, we hope we can help as best we can. It sounds like its been pretty overwhelming being home with your parents, we’re sorry you’ve had so much on your plate lately. You mentioned wanting to know how you can leave home before turning 18. The easiest way to leave home is with your parents’ permission. We understand that might be challenging, however, maybe there’s another family member, relative, or a family friend who could help to communicate how you’re feeling to your parents. The second way is through Child Protective Services if safety is a concern. Lastly, you can also look into emancipation options. In most states you need to be at least 16 to be considered and demonstrate that you can support yourself financially and independently. Emancipation often can be a lengthy process and may even cost some money for court fees. We would be happy to look into legal resources if that’s something you are considering.

If you are under 18 and leave home without permission, your parent/guardian may file a runaway report with the police. What actions the police take once you are filed as a runaway can vary a lot from state to state and even city to city so we cannot predict exactly what would happen in your case. Generally speaking, if you encounter a police officer while reported as a runaway, you will likely be returned home. However, in that case there may be services (family counseling, etc.) available to you as a youth in crisis/runaway but again, police procedures related to offering those services can be different based on your location or the details of your situation. Another thing to consider is that while running away is not a crime, a legal adult who allows you to stay with them may be putting themselves at risk for being charged with harboring a runaway. One way to find out the laws in your area is to call your local police and ask what their policies are regarding runaway youth.

Please reach out soon so that we may offer support and resources to you. Our number is 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929).

Be safe,

NRS

[Guest]

Hi, I know someone who may plan on running away due to emotional abuse at home, if they were to get to another state, would the police have to follow the laws of the state the runaway originated from, or of the state the runaway is currently in? Just for knowledge

[ccsmod15]

Hi there,
Thank you for writing to us here at National Runaway Safeline (NRS). We understand it takes great courage to reach out, and we appreciate you sharing a little bit about what’s going on with your friend. It seems you want to know some information on runaway laws.
While we are not experts on the law, 18 is generally the age that an individual may leave home without parent permission. If you are under 18 and leave home, your parent/guardian may file you as a runaway and you may be returned home. Also, those you stay with may run the risk of being charged with harboring a runaway. For more specifics on the law, the local non-emergency police or legal aid in the youth's home state may better answer legal questions.
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 forum 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

[Guest]

im 12 I am tired of school and my parents overreacting about it I want to leave for a month to show how I feel about how the are towards me I only have 1 C a 79

[ccsmod15]

Hello,
Thanks for reaching out to us. We are so sorry to hear that you are in such a frustrating situation with your parents. It sounds like you are considering leaving for a while as a result of everything that is going on at home. Although we cannot tell you what to do, we can share information that may help you figure out your next steps.

It can be really tough when you feel like your parents are not considering your point of view of the situation. One option you have is to try to talk to them about your expectations and, if you have a plan to address your school work, letting them know what that is. As you mentioned in your message, you do have the option of leaving if you would like to. We are not legal experts, but from what we understand, if you are considered a minor in your state, you need the consent of a parent or legal guardian in order to live anywhere else. If you decide to leave without consent, your parent or legal guardian can file a runaway report with your local police department. What local police do with that report can vary from state to state, but generally, if the police locate a runaway youth, they either have the parents or legal guardians pick the youth up or drop the youth off at home. If this is something you are considering, it may help you to explore where you might stay for the time that you plan to be gone. Additionally, it may also help to think about how you plan on supporting yourself, ensuring you have enough food and keeping yourself safe.

Whatever you decide, know that we are here for you. Feel free to reach out to us if you need to talk. Regardless of what you decide to do, we will do our best to help you stay as safe as possible. Our contact information is 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929); www.1800runaway.org (click on the chat button).
-NRS

[Guest]

I'm 13, I plan to runaway from MIchigan to California when I turn 14 in June, What would happen legally? Would police still track me down in Cali? If I were to stay with someone what would happen to them? What would happen if I successfully run and need to get into schooling or something? How long would they- look for me?

[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 on our public forum. We are always here to listen and here to help in any way that we can. It can be very frustrating not knowing what to do or what your next step might be from this point on. If you can, please read through these past threads to make sure that someone else hasn't posted something similar that might be able to help.

Of course we can’t speak for all police, but it is to our understanding that if law enforcement were to find a reported runaway it’s in their policy to return them home. When a parent files a runaway report, it usually is also entered into the NCIC (The National Crime Information Center) so if you were to leave the state and go somewhere else, the report will follow you until your 18. If you were caught outside of your state, we have heard of youth being placed in either youth shelters or juvenile detention center until they can be released to their parents and/or legal guardian.

As far as school goes, we aren’t experts by any means but it is to our understanding that an 18 year olds can enroll themselves into a school of their choosing as long as the school accepts their application. You might want to reach out to the school that you have in mind, as well as your current school to figure out how the process of transferring school documents will work and what you have to do. That is the only way to know for sure if you can or cannot do it alone. Most minors can't enroll in school without a guardian as far as we know.

Now we do offer a service that is basically a Conference Call where the parent/guardian, the youth, and us would be on the phone talking about what has been going on. This way there can be a mediator in between keeping things calm and productive. If you’d feel more comfortable with doing that, just know that it’s always available. It might be a great way to talk about what you are going through and where this feelings might be coming from or to maybe build on your relationship and make it better. So maybe that might be an option for you and your parents. Something constructive so that it certainly opens the lines of communication, but that services is completely up to you.

If you need more support, please reach out via our 24-hour hotline and/or online chat. We can try to answer your questions as best as we can.

We encourage you to reach out to us here for more support and to talk further about your situation if you would like to. We are here 24-hours a day via phone or online chat. Best of luck to you.

[Guest]

I am 17 years old and turn 18 in 7 months. I moved in with my dad after my mom and step dad passed away and every moment since has been a nightmare. He came for my moms money and when we realized he wasn't getting it he took the second thing he thought was best. He has taken care of me because he likes the control. He can make me do anything he wants. He can control my family now that he has me. I need out of there. This has taken up about a year and a half of my life and I cantstand by and take it anymore. I am now pregnant and scared of what he will do but the police and family services wouldn't help me get out of there. I am thinking about moving to a new state with my friends but I'm scared about the police finding me and what my dad would do if I was returned home. I was told that they wouldn't look hard for me since I'm 17 and almost 18 and I wanna make sure thats the case

[ccsmod1]

Hi there,

We appreciate that you reached out to us here at the National Runaway Safeline. It sounds like this might be a very unsafe situation for you. Pregnancy can often be overwhelming and creating a prenatal care plan can be a confusing process. If you do not already have an obstetrician, you can contact Planned Parenthood by going to plannedparenthood.org or by calling 800-230-7526 for some assistance. Your local Planned Parenthood should be able to provide pregnancy planning services, prenatal services, childbirth classes, and postpartum exams for after the baby comes. They can also help you explore options to terminate the pregnancy if that is something you are considering.

You also mentioned you are nearly 18, so as for whether or not any runaway laws would be enforced in your case, it’s going to depend on your state. If you’re comfortable with it, you can always call your local 311 line and ask anonymously what your local police policy would be in a case like yours. We’d be happy to discuss more options to help ensure your safety if you’d like. Please feel free to reach out to us at 1(800) RUNAWAY, or you can chat with one of our crisis counselors online at 1800runaway.org. Take care, and we hope to hear from you soon!

-NRS

[Guest]

hello my name is adri im 16 and i would like to move to another state with my boyfriend hes 19
we basically want to move to oklahoma so we can be together we currently live in texas but if i live i know my parents will contact the cops but will i be able to work if im labeled a run away

[ccsmod1]

Hey there,

Thanks so much for reaching out and sharing a little bit about what’s been going on, we know that it takes a lot of courage. Running away is a big decision and it can be very stressful to figure out what you want to do. We want to start out by letting you know that we aren’t legal experts here at NRS, but generally speaking, if you do opt to leave your home your parents can file a runaway report, which is essentially a missing person report. Running away is a status offense; this means that it isn’t illegal, but it’s something you can’t do while still a minor. If a runaway report is filed and you are located by the authorities you will most likely be returned home.

Unfortunately, we cannot say whether or not being a runaway would impede you or not from getting a job. Some states do require youth under the age of 18 to have parental permission or get a work permit in order to work. It may be a good idea to contact a potential employer directly to verify their hiring practices.

If you’d like to go over what’s going on in depth, or if you’d like to explore other options that you may have available to you, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY. You can also chat us by clicking on the “CHAT” button on top of our homepage. We’re open 24/7 and here to listen and support you in any way we can.

Stay safe,
NRS

We'd love to hear from you about your experience using our crisis forum. Your feedback plays an important role in helping us improve our services to support youth and families. Please click the link below to fill out our survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/we_care_what_you_think

[Guest]

Hi,I'm Megan i'm 17 and i'll be 18 in 9 months.I wanna runaway to Utah my bf lives there and he's one of my biggest supporters.He wanted me to reach out to cps because my parents have been abusive most of my lives but it's gotten worse since i've been fighting back and being more independent and seperating myself from them.If I ran away would the police be able to find me? or would my Bf's parents get in trouble for me being in their home?

[ccsmod13]

Hi there,

Thank you for taking the time to contact us here at NRS and we appreciate you sharing your situation with us. It sounds like you are considering moving in with your boyfriend, but you are concerned about possible consequences. Wanting to live away from home is certainly understandable if you are not able to feel safe with your parents. While we are not legal experts we can share some general information with you regarding runaway laws.

18 is usually the age you are able to leave home without permission from your parents. If you leave home as a minor, your parents have the option to report you as a runaway to the police. Running away is not illegal, but it is a status offense. This means that while you will not get into legal trouble, your parents can ask police to return you home if you are found. In most cases, police do not actively search for a runaway, but they will follow up on any information provided by your parents. The police would check in on places where your parents suggest you might be staying and possibly contact anyone who you could be with. If you are found, anyone who you stay with could be charged with harboring a runaway. From what we know, harboring charges are not very common but they are always a risk.

In the event that you leave and police attempt to return you home, you do have the right to inform them that home is not safe for you. Police are mandated reporters so they are supposed to contact child protective services before returning you to an unsafe household. CPS would do an investigation to decide on next steps. If you would like to learn more about the reporting process and how CPS might be able to help, you can speak with an advocate at Child Help. Child Help is an organization that supports youth who are in unsafe situations at home and during the reporting process, childhelp.org; 1-800-422-4453.

We are here to support you during this challenging situation. If you would like to talk more or have additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact us directly by phone 1-800-RUNAWAY or live chat 1800runaway.org.

Be safe,
NRS

[Guest]

hello, im 14 years old from Lithuania and I fully decided that I want to run away to Sweden because of some family problems. I chose Sweden because my bf lives there, but sadly I dont think theres an easy way out. I cant fly by plane without my parents allowance, I cant go by ship either or even go by bus/train/any other land transport because Im pretty sure I would need to get a checkup on Russia. is there another way out?

[ccsmod15]

Thank you for reaching out to us at the National Runaway Safeline. It sounds like you are in a difficult situation, and we understand it takes courage to reach out for help. The National Runaway Safeline is located in the United States of America (USA). Our knowledge of helpful community based resources and our understanding of youth in crisis related laws is limited to the USA. If you are located in a country outside of the USA, you can use this link to find a youth helpline in or around your country: https://www.childhelplineinternation...pline-network/.
We hope that by reaching out to a local resource, you are able to get the support you need from an organization that understands the laws and circumstances that affect youth in your country.
NRS