15 year old runaway seeking emancipation

Pregnant at 15 moved out of home.

Im 15 and i left home to come live with my boyfriend get in trouble? Is there any way that i can be legally able to stay here? Also my parents allowed me to leave home.

[ccsmod3]

Re: 15 year old runaway seeking emancipation

We’re glad you decided to reach out to us at the National Runaway Switchboard. We are very sorry to hear about everything you have gone through recently. No one deserves to be raped, especially by someone in their family. We imagine what you are going through is incredibly difficult and you sound like an incredibly strong person to continue dealing with everything.

Here are a few resources that you might find helpful:
Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network: Provides support to survivors of rape and sexual violence.

http://www.rainn.org/

1-800-656-4673

Child Help USA: National Child Abuse Advocacy Organization

http://www.childhelp.org/

1-800-422-4453

We cannot tell you whether to runaway or not, but are here to listen and discuss possible options. To our knowledge, running away is just a status offense. However, harboring a runaway can be considered a crime, so it is understandable for you to be concerned with your boyfriend getting in trouble. There are usually just a few options for youth looking to leave home by taking the legal route: getting permission to stay somewhere else, getting Child Protective Services involved in hopes of a different placement, staying at a temporary youth shelter, or emancipation which can be a lengthy process in states where it is offered.

If you’d like to further discuss your situation, you are welcome to contact us by calling 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) or through our Live Chat (big red button at www.1800runaway.org). We hope this helps and hope you are able to keep yourself safe!

-NRS

please give me some edvise

hello i am 15 years old and i live with my mom and lil brother and sister, me and my mom fight all the time she calls me a slut and a whore and tells me i would make a great prosatute and about 6 months ago her husband rape me and i told her thanking she would help me to for get about it but instead of that she tells me every day i know you wanted it, he probly didnt even do, and says that she is gonna go to the cobs and tell them i was liein about the whole thang and i have herpies because of a 45 year old man and my moms does too and she blams me for her not having a man and i didnt do any thang but wake up with a 45 year old man, i thought of as my dad and now i sit in my room every day crying because of the way she treats me i wanted to get away and maybe go stay with my boy friend, he is 17 and he is the only one that makes me feel like i am still worth something but i dont want him to get in trouble how to i get away without getting me or him in trouble please help.. thank you

[ccsmod7]

Re: im 15 and i will be 16 in 5months and 17 days

Thank you so much for reaching out to us and contacting us about your situation. It sounds like you have gone through an awful lot and are really unhappy being at home. You mentioned that you and your mom fight a lot and you have bad memories of abuse by your brother. Have you ever told anyone about what happened with your brother or gotten support regarding that? Was there ever a time when things were good in the home? It’s good to hear that you have support in your friends and boyfriend. It sounds like they are very important to you and have helped you through some of these hard times. It also sounds like if you did decide to leave you would have a safe place to stay. What do you think your mom would do if you ended up leaving? Do you think she would ever agree to let you stay with another family?

It sounds like one option you are looking into is getting emancipated and you want to get a bit more information about that. We are not lawyers here so we cannot give any specific legal information and often times in Florida the first step to looking into emancipation is getting a lawyer. There are a few legal resources that we listed below that may be able to answer some of your questions in regards to this.

GENERAL LEGAL INTAKE NUMBER
1-800-625-2257

GULF COAST LEGAL SERVICES
Phone number: 727-443-0657
9:00am-5:00pm Monday to Friday

We also want to let you know that if you would like to discuss your situation more in depth you can always give us a call at our 24 hour hotline 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). We also have an online chat service that is available from 4:30p to 11:30p CST. There is always someone available to listen, provide support, discuss options, and even find resources in your area. All of our services are completely confidential and anonymous. Please feel free to reach out to us anytime. We look forward to hearing from you. Take care.

im 15 and i will be 16 in 5months and 17 days

im 15 and i want to get emancipated but i dont know how, me and my mom fight alot when my mom yells at me i fight back. i need to get out of here i have bad memories with my brother when i was little he made me do things ..... things i just cant tlk about they are harsh(hes older then me by 10 years) ...... i have a place to go and a family that would take care of me intill i got a job..... they are like a second family to me ........ i have been living in florida for my whole life and now my family is supposed to get up and move to texas i have friends here that support me threw everything and i have a boyfriend (probally fiance soon) that supports me threw everything .... plz help me

[ccsmod3]

uncle trying to help niece

Hello there,

Thank you for reaching out on behalf of your niece. We are sorry to hear about your niece and what she has been going through. No one deserves to be abused or have to deal with a parent who is drunk. It sounds like she is in an incredibly difficult situation and it is great she has you as an advocate. We are not legal experts, but running away is typically just considered a status offense. Other laws associated with running away usually fall on the person who is trying to help the youth. To our knowledge, harboring a runaway, crossing state lines with a minor, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor are usually considered misdemeanors. If you are trying to allow her to stay with you, do you think there is anyway her parents might give her permission to stay, even just temporarily?

Also, if there hasn’t been one filed already, one option might be to file an abuse report. We are not sure what city and state you are in, but most states have an after-hours hotline to file these types of reports. If you feel comfortable sharing what state your niece lives in, we could provide the number for your, should you or she decide to file a report. There is also a National Organization called Child Help USA (1-800-422-4453) http://www.childhelp.org/ and they are dedicated to the prevention of child abuse.

If you’d like to contact us directly, we can be reached 24/7 at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) or from 4:30-11:30 pm CST through at our Live Chat. To Live Chat, simply click on the red “Live Chat” button on our website and it will prompt you from there. We wish you the best of luck!

uncle trying to help niece

what can i do to get my runaway niece in my home without maki9ng her go back to a drunk dad and abusive step mom she has already run away before telling me she will run again and again if she goes back homei dont want her on the street but what can i do

[ccsmod7]

Re: I'm 15 yrs old

Thank you so much for reaching out and telling us a bit about your situation. It sounds like you are going through a really rough time right now and you are trying to get some assistance in regards to what is going on at home. You mentioned that you live with your mom but that your relationship has always been strained and even abusive at times. Have you ever told anyone about the abuse that goes on in your home? Have you ever thought of reporting it to the local child protective services? No one deserves to be hurt or abused in anyway and if you feel unsafe in your home you certainly have every right to report that or let someone know what is going on.

You mentioned that because of the situation going on at home you discussed the option of going to your father’s but that may not be the best idea at this point. Do you have a relationship with your dad? Do you think he would be willing for you to stay with him if you spoke with him directly? You also mentioned that one of your concerns right now is possibly trying to get emancipated and that you do have a safe place to stay with your boyfriend’s older brother. It’s good to hear that you do have some support in your boyfriend and some of his family. It also sounds like you have a lot of dreams and goals and you realize that those are things that you really want to accomplish.

Now we are not lawyers here so we cannot give any specific legal advice but it sounds like you want more information on emancipation. Even if some states don’t have a specific emancipation process they may have something similar that goes through the courts. In PA there are varying circumstances as to how a youth may be able to become emancipated and you would most likely have to speak with a specific legal resource or your local courts to get more information. There are a few resources that could be helpful to look into if you want to get more information in regards to this.

Youth Advocate: 814-849-1237

Legal Services Inc: 717-243-9400

Those may be a few good resources to check into at this point. We also want you to know that there is always someone available here at the National Runaway Switchboard if you should need any further assistance. If you should want to discuss your situation more in depth you can always give us a call at our 24 hour crisis hotline 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). We also have an online chat that is currently available from 4:30p to 11:30p CST. There is always someone available to listen, provide support, and discuss different options and resources if needed. All of our resources are completely confidential. Please feel free to reach out to us anytime. Take care.

I'm 15 years old.

Hi, I'm currently 15 years old and i won't be 16 for another 4 months. I'm having many difficulties in my house hold right now. My mother and i aren't going to well we constantly argue, she's always hitting me, putting me down. On top of that my father left me when i was 16 months old so he is no longer in my life anymore. My whole entire life I've been put down, abused by not only my mother but from my step dad, I've got made fun of, called names etc. I have absolutely no friends at all, where i live the kids call me names like Whore, Slut, Dirty, Depressed girl, low life etc. They call me these names because in 7th grade i had attended a party with some friends and i was dumb and i drank liquor and i ended up getting raped i know for a fact i said no!!! repeatedly!!! and my friends didn't take me home or anything. Ever since then my life has been a living h***!! (Excuse my language) My mom doesn't support me, doesn't help me, doesn't talk to me at all she just makes things worst for me. I had ran away 3 times already the first time was for 2 days, the second a week, and then third one was just recently and that was for almost 2 weeks. I stopped going to school cause of what kids were calling me, and because of the situations that are going on in my house with my family. I have a boyfriend who's been there for me for 4 months already. He supports me in everything, he is always talking to me about so many things that he has been threw and basically he tries is very best to make me happy. Just yesterday my mother and i got into an argument and i had said well then I'm going to live with my dad!! She said he doesn't want you! I busted out in tears that had hurt me a lot. Then she said since you don't wanna live me and your dad doesn't want you then get emancipated so there for im trying my best to get emancipated only one thing i live in Pennsylvania and according to the consular's at my school the state of Pennsylvania has no emancipation law! I'm here on this website asking you if you could help me on finding a state close to Pennsylvania that will allow me to get emancipated. I understand that emancipation means you support your self, and right now I'm going to be honest i can not support my self this instant but my boyfriend older brother is allowing me to live with him until I'm able to pay full rent,utilities, and so forth. My boyfriend older brother had told me that i could work with him, and work at mcdonalds which is a few blocks from his house to be able to buy my self clothes, food, etc. I will be attending school every single day. I will be working. I will be doing the things that i wanna do to make me a successful, happy young adult. Oh yeah!! By the way I'm not able to work right now cause my mother won't let me, she doesn't let me take dance classes, drama classes, instrumental classes, etc. I want to be a very artistic person in life and she isn't letting me accomplish that. So the main reason for getting emancipated is to accomplish my goals and to live without the stress, the depression, the thoughts on killing my self, or hurting my self again, or wanting to run away from my problems all the time. Please please please please I'm asking for your help!!!!!!!

[ccsmod4]

15 year old runaway seeking emancipation

I'm 15. I don't want to live in this house anymore. My parents fight all the time. My dad is always working and when hes not hes at home screaming at us. I've cut myself before over all this I just want to get emancipated but I don't know how I can. I don't have a job.. I have somewhere to go and someone to support me and I'd be willing to get a job. I make A's and B's and I can support myself. My moms the reason I don't have a job. It would be alot better for me not to live here anymore. I'm always depressed or crying because of it. I just want to leave.. will someone please help me ):

Hi,
Thanks for contacting our 1-800runaway.org bulletin board.
We are sorry to hear about your situation at home with your parents.
Home should be a place where you feel secure. We would like to acknowledge your feelings over this and we understand how this has been such an uncomfortable time for you.

Your Parents argue or your dad is screaming at you when he is home.
It sounds like a very stressful environment.
How are you coping with the situation?
The reason we are asking is you mentioned that you have cut yourself before.
Do mind us asking what your intentions were when you did this?
Have you done so (cut) recently?
Your safety is important to us at NRS.
We hope you can find other options to ease your stress like going for a walk,exercising or talking with a friend etc.

What is the relationship like between you and your mom?
You did not say if you have been able to talk with her about your feelings.
What are the chances that your parents are so caught up in their issues to the point they don’t realize the affect it is having on you and or others in the family?
Please understand that whatever the problems they as individuals are having you don’t deserve to be screamed at or mistreated.
You have feelings and they should be considered.

Would you be willing to talk with the person or persons you have in mind to stay with about trying to work out a short term time out agreement between them and your parents?
That’s just one option we wanted to put out there.

Sometimes calling a supportive friend or family member can be helpful when you are going through a crisis.
Have you considered calling our 1-800-Runaway 24hr crisis line?
NRS crisis liners are here to listen and speak with you about your situation.
We can go over your options regarding leaving home, getting a job, continuing school and what the qualifications are to be emancipated.

It appears you are doing well in school.
You being able to focus on your grades are quite an accomplishment.
We hope in some way school is an escape from your home life and gives you a chance to experience some positive relationships.
Does your school have a counselor?
Perhaps another option is a teacher you might feel comfortable speaking with.
What do you think?

Thinking about a plan shows you are trying to exercise good decision making.
Good for you.
It is not easy to live under stressful conditions and we appreciate your courage to look for help.
It can be a comfort to have supportive people during this time so we are glad you have someone there for you.
We hope to hear from you. Remember our 1-800-Runaway crisis line is available 24hrs.

Take Care,
NRS

Please help me

I'm 15. I don't want to live in this house anymore. My parents fight all the time. My dad is always working and when hes not hes at home screaming at us. I've cut myself before over all this I just want to get emancipated but I don't know how I can. I don't have a job.. I have somewhere to go and someone to support me and I'd be willing to get a job. I make A's and B's and I can support myself. My moms the reason I don't have a job. It would be alot better for me not to live here anymore. I'm always depressed or crying because of it. I just want to leave.. will someone please help me ):

[ccsmod3]

Re: what to do?

Hello,

Thanks for posting on our bulletin board. We are very sorry to hear about everything you’ve gone through over the past few years. It sounds like a lot for anyone to handle. One resource that may be of help to you (as far as what happened with your dad) is RAINN (Rape Abuse Incest National Network). They can be reached by calling 1-800-656-4673 and also offer an “online hotline” by visiting their website, http://www.rainn.org.

You ask how you can get out of this and we would be happy to discuss possible options with you. For immediate assistance, you are welcome to either call us at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929) or through our Live Chat (similar to RAINN’s online hotline). To Live Chat with us simply click on the red “Live Chat” button on our website. We hope you stay safe an wish you the best of luck!

-NRS

what to do?

If i am 15 and my life is like hell my mom died of cancer when i was 14 and my dad raped me! i live with my sister but she has a new husben and she dusa not wont me thier she told me many times to leave once i did but she lied to the cops and told them i ranaeway how do i get out of this nightmare that true??

[ccsmod5]

Re: 15 year old runaway seeking emancipation

Hello,

Thanks for reaching out through our bulletin boards. Sounds like you have a lot of specific legal questions that we may or may not be able to help with but we’ll make sure to point you in the right direction.

Emancipation is tricky and possible in several states. California is not the only state that approves emancipation processes for 15 year olds. Are you mainly considering California because it’s the closest state to you that does emancipate young folks? Sometimes a state requires that you be a resident (one year or more, sometimes) before requesting any legal assistance from the state.

Emancipation is usually a mutual process: both the legal guardian(s) and the youth have to be a part of the legal proceedings. When you go to apply for emancipation, the court wants to hear from the people that are supposed to be your legal guardians. If you are in a state that your legal guardians aren’t in, they will sometimes take you in to custody and contact your legal guardians. And again, don’t quote us but these are some things that we have encountered when young people attempt to emancipate themselves. This is a sticky endeavor. There are people that can help, however.

There is an organization that helps young folks get the attention they need for things like emancipation. Justice for Children might be able to give you more information. They can be reached at 1800-733-0059. They could possibly help a little more.

If you want to explore this a bit more, you can also call our hotline 24 hours a day. We can be reached at 1800-RUNAWAY. We can talk about some options for you and go through some resources that we have in the call center.

Best of luck,
-NRS

I’m a fifteen year old runaway and I’m hoping to get emancipated. I know that the only state that will grant emancipation at my age is California. I have never lived in California… I’ve only been out of the house for like a week and I’m going to move to California. How do I go about establishing residency and filing for emancipation if I’m a runaway? I have a place to live and would like to become legal so that I can go back to school and things like that. But how do I do this if I’m just a 15 year old runaway? Also, I don’t turn sixteen for another 10 months so I really need to get emancipated at 15.