16 Year Old wants to move out/emancipation in New York State

[ccsmod1]

Hi there,

Thank you for reaching out to us at the National Runaway Safeline. We're sorry to hear about how things have been, and want you to know that you deserve to feel safe and happy in your home. You mentioned experiencing emotional abuse which may be reportable against your father. Please keep in mind you by no means deserve any type of abuse, emotional or otherwise. That said, we can’t be 100% sure what the outcome will be if your local CPS decides to open a case based on what you share. Sometimes CPS decides to remove minors from the home and other times they offer services such as family counseling or mediation instead. The only way to know the outcome might be to reach out to them directly and if you’re ready to do that we are here to help you through that process. Reaching out to Child Help USA at (1-800-422-4453) or www.childhelp.org may help to get a better understanding of what may happen before and after a report is made.

We are not legal experts, but we can tell you that because you are a minor, if you leave and your father files a runaway report, you could be returned home. There could also be legal consequences for whomever you stay with for what is called harboring a runaway. Abuse reporting could change the way your case would be handled, though. If you want a liner to help you walk through other options like thinking through possible adults that you could turn to or could advocate for you or things like emancipation and legal aid numbers, don't hesitate to give us a call at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929).

Stay safe,

NRS

I’m 16 my fathers really abusive and I need to do what’s best for me and I have somebody over 18 that’s willing to take care of me. am I able to leave without consent?

[ccsmod15]

Hi, thank you so much for reaching out. Conflict with parents can be super stressful and it is understandable that you would want to be emancipated.

While we aren't legal experts, generally emancipation is a long and expensive process. Some states don't offer emancipation, but where it is available, there are usually certain requirements. Usually, you have to be able to prove that you can support yourself. This means you need income from a job, you need to have a place to live, you need to continue your education until you receive a high school diploma/GED, and you need to be able to pay for things like health insurance and food and clothing.

The emancipation process can be super confusing, but there are legal aid resources available to help you navigate the process. We can find those resources for you over the phone or on chat. We are available 24/7 at 1800RUNAWAY, and we are completely confidential. Thank you again for reaching out and feel free to do so again at any time.

Hello, I am 16. and I can't deal with my parents, What could I do to be emancipated, I am willing to wait til my birthday to be 17. What would I do?

[ccsmod11]

Hi there,
Thanks for reaching out to National Runaway Safeline and sharing a little bit about what is going. It takes a lot of courage to reach out and especially in a time where you have a really tough and complex situation.
The one way you can leave your mom’s place and go live with your grandfather is to get permission from your mom. If this isn’t an option, then running away may be a thought you have. We aren’t legal experts, but we have general knowledge about running away. In most states, running away isn’t illegal, but what is called a status offense. You can’t get arrested for it but it will mostly likely go on your record until you are 18. The police will only know if you have runaway if your parents/guardians file a police report. We can’t say for sure how the police will respond, but we hear a lot that police will take potential places you might be and will actively search for you. If they come across you, the most likely will return you home to your parents. Sometimes we hear that if you are staying with someone who knows you are a runaway and are not actively trying to return you or finding shelter for you, your guardians/or police can press charges against the people who are housing you, with something that is called harboring. One of our main goals is to make sure you are safe, so if you ever seriously decide to run away and need shelter, resources, or a safe place to go you can find safe locations at nationalsafeplace.org or reach out to us directly and we can find local resources in your area.
It can be difficult to know how to talk to your parents and express your feelings about how you are feeling. We would encourage you to reach out to a trusted adult, teacher, relative, and friend that you can talk to and potentially help you mediate a conversation with your parents about your current situation. At NRS, we do offer a service call conference calling, where you can call into our hotline and then we would reach out to your guardian and help advocate for you, help you express the needs of to your parents.
We are here for you and will support you in anyway that we can. Please feel free to call into us directly as we can talk further about your situation and find resources that are best for you in your area. Stay strong and you are not alone in this! Our hotline ( 1-800-RUNAWAY) and chat are open 24/7.
-NRS

I’m 15 about to be 16 and I don’t wanna deal with my mother anymore and wanna move in to my grandfathers but she has soul custody of me is there any way I can leave and live with my grandfather???

[ccsmod15]

Thank you for contacting us at the National Runaway Safeline. It sounds like you are going through a stressful situation right now. It takes great courage to reach out for help and we are glad that you decided to reach out for help.

Until you turn 18 your parents are legally responsible for you and it is not ok for your parents to ask you to move out. You could contact the Child Protective Services at 1-800-342-3720 and they can help provide you appropriate resources. Since we are not legal experts it can be helpful to talk to your local police department at (716)851-4444 to see what might happen. Emancipation is a process which can take time and it is something you have to qualify for. You could contact Brookhaven Youth Bureau at 631-654-7878 (9:00am-4:30pm Monday To Friday) or Dutchess Co. Youth Services at 845-486-3665 for information about getting emancipated. For your pregnancy needs you can contact the Planned Parents office at (866) 600-6886

You are acting strong is this stressful situation by reaching for help. If it might be an option for you could also call us at our 24 hour confidential hotline at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) and we can listen to you, explore your options and provide any resources. We wish you the best and hope to hear from you soon.

Best,
NRS

I am 15 living in buffalo ny and pregnant due to my pregnancy my father banned me from my home I've been house to house for a couple months now but I haven't found a stable place to live where I am currently living it is said that I will have to leave when I get close to having my child because of they do not want to be involved in legal issues I was wondering if It is possible for me to get emancipated so that I can get a house of my own and have a stable place to live

[ccsmod6]

Hello and thank you for contacting the National Runaway Safeline. We are sorry to hear about your situation and will try to help in any way we can. You seem concerned with living at home where you feel you have been neglected. We want you to know that you do not deserve this. If you would like to report the neglect to CPS we can report together on a conference call or you can report on your own. You also have the option of reporting the abuse to Child Help a National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453, or www.childhelp.org .
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 may better answer legal questions.
You mention wanting to stay with your sister in Atlanta. Maybe talking with your mother about this being an option she allows you to have may be beneficial. If she agrees to let you stay with your sister you may want to get her consent on paper. Also, possibly getting the letter certified or notarized may be beneficial to make the letter a legally document. This may be helpful so that you have proof in the event that your mother changes her mind and tries to make a runaway report.
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.
-NRS

I am 16 years old and I’ve been getting neglected by my parents for a while now. My sister is willing to take me in but the catch is she’s in atlanta. Will i still be able to leave without my parents consent?

[ccsmod8]

Hello there –

Thank you so much for reaching out to use 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. It sounds like this youth is going through a really hard time and it can be very frustrating now knowing what you can do to help.

Keep in mind that we aren’t legal experts here at NRS, so we can’t speak in definite terms. From what we know the only way that the youth can be removed from her father’s custody legally and live somewhere else is if she were to report any abuse that was happening at home and there was an investigation and they deemed it unsafe or if the youth filed for emancipation (every state is different, but they have to be 16 years or older) or if there was a court decision to transfer custody to someone else. Those are the only three ways that we know of that the youth can do in order to legally leave home. For transferring custody from one person to another isn’t that easy. They will have to go to family court, petition to be their legal guardian, and the father would have to be willing to give up his own rights and give them to someone else.

What we know is that getting emancipated by the court is a process that does take a while. There also needs to be proof that the youth is able to support him or herself on their own. Other requirements sometime indicate that they have had to have lived independently from their parents for a certain amount of time, wishes to be free from parental control, has an acceptable plan for independent living, and be able to manage their own financial affairs. So it doesn't look like there is going to be a fast track to getting emancipated or website because it does go through the court system and you will have to wait for a judge to see the youth and hear the case details.

Her father may give her permission to live with another family (i.e yourself), but without getting an official document from the court her father would still be legally responsible for her. Which means that he can also take away that permission at any given moment and take her back home to live with him once again. So that might be something that you guys can explore if you feel like the father might respond well to having the youth move out of the house and live somewhere else.

We hope that information helps! Don't hesitate to reach out to us here if you need further help.

Hello my daughter's friend is going to be turning 16 in August. She lives with her dad who gained custody of her after her mother passed away 3 years ago. He's never been an active father and hasn't paid his child support in the past. Not with her living with him she is in a constant battle for her sanity every day. He's extremely verbally, and mentally abusive toward her. He has gotten physical a few times and once a picture was sent to me from her. CPS has been callore times than I can count. He drinks heavily and the last I heard he wasn't supposed to drink if she was in the house or around him. He has a few guns not sure what kind they are but he has threaten to use them on her and many other threats. After her mother died she came to live with me for about 5 months because her father said he didn't know how to be a dad. Courts have told him that he needs anger management and she needs counseling and nothing has happened. I'm so affraid this poor girl will do anything at this point to leave the abuse. There's a strong possibility that she will run away and none of us will ever hear from her again. She called me today asking for my help before she does something she can't take back. So I'm wondering what are the steps that I can help her with as far as becoming emancipated or possibly coming to live with my husband and I??

[ccsmod2]

Thank you for reaching out to us here at National Runaway Safeline (NRS) It sounds like you want to move in with your brother and you are interested in emancipation. We are not legal experts, so we can only give you general information. In the state of New York, emancipation is referred to as “the renunciation of parental rights to a child.” Although New York does not have a formal statute for acquiring emancipation, the minor can acquire emancipation if they are legally married, is in the armed services, is able to establish an independent home, or if the parents have failed to fill their parental obligations. If you would like resources for legal aid in New York, please contact us directly via our 24 hour crisis hotline (1-800-786-2929), or via email.

I am 16 and currently living in New York State with my sister who has Power of Attorney over me. I used to live with my Aunt, who has adopted me, in CT. In New York as far as in aware, for emancipation all I need to do is be over the age of 16 and then just leave the household and say I don't want to live here and want to be on my own. Can someone correct me if that is not the case? My main goal is to either move in with my brother who is over 18 and has a house who lives right across town so if be enrolled in the same school, or move out in CT with a friend. Obviously id rather live with my brother. The reason why I speak of emancipation instead of custody is because we don't want to go trough the courts as either my aunt or sister would approve. So if I were to walk out of my hoarse, upon my own free will, to my brothers, and if a cop shows up asking me to head home, could I say I am emancipated and therefore my sister and aunt would not be obliged to take care of me further on out, meanim I could live with my brother in peace?