I am 16 right now and planning to leave home when I turn 17

[Unregistered]

I live in St.Louis, MO and a lot has happened. I got "kicked out" of my moms house about 4 months ago and am now living with my dad. I don't want to live with my dad, and I don't even know if I can move back in with my mom because of her husband (the one who kicked me out). It's hard for me without my mom but her husband is in the way, and she won't leave him no matter what. My dad's house is too crowded for me he has 4 other kids living with him in a 2 bedroom apartment, along with his girlfriend. He always thinks im lieing about everything I do, I just don't want to be here anymore. I heard that in MO you can legally leave home at 17 without police action. Is this true? Im planning to move out if so at 17 and live with my boyfriend. What can my parents do if I go live with him? Can they take me back? Can they get his mother arrested? I need answers

[ccsmod15]

Re: I am 16 right now and planning to leave home when I turn 17

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out to us. We’re so sorry to hear that you got kicked out of your mom’s house. It sounds like you’ve done your best to take care of yourself in a really tough situation. You’ve asked some great questions about what might happen if you moved out. We’re not legal experts, but we will try our best to share information that might help you decide how to approach your situation.

Because laws can vary from state to state, we can’t say with certainty whether you’d be able to leave home at 17 without police action. We can say that, from what we understand, running away isn’t technically illegal, it’s considered a status offense, very similar to getting a parking ticket. If you are considered a minor in your state, your legal guardians may have the right to file a runaway report with your local police department. The police may or may not look for you depending on how your local police department handles runaway reports. Generally, if they do look for you and locate you, they usually either return you home or have your legal guardians pick you up. The consequences for your boyfriend’s family if they allow you to stay with them depends on where you live. You also brought up the fact that you were kicked out of your mom’s home by your mom’s husband. Depending on who is considered your legal guardian, you may be able to reach out to your local police department to let them know you’ve been locked out. Letting them know you’ve been locked out informs them that you didn’t run away, but that you were not provided housing by your legal guardian. A good way to get the answers to these questions is to reach out to your local police department at their non-emergency number. If you’re feeling apprehensive about calling them directly, we can help you make the call. If you don’t have this information, feel free to give us a call and we can help you get this information. Whatever you decide, we will be here to support you. We won’t tell you what to do, but we will do our best to help you stay safe.