Can I move my son out of state at 17 if im no longer the legal guardian?

[Guest]

Hi this is probably a little different than what you have heard before, I'm a mom and my son is about to turn 17. I haven't seen him in going on 3 years because of his dad and my living situation being out of state and homeless. When he turns 17 can I go to Michigan and pick him up and move him out of state with me if its what he wants or is it considered kidnapping because he's not 18 yet?? Please help me with this, I miss him so much and just want to be mommy again!!

[ccsmod0]

Hey 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. We want you to know that we are here as support to help you through this challenging time. As a national hotline, we are not legal experts and only have general knowledge on runaway laws. For specific information on Michigan law, you can call the nonemergency police number in your son's area and ask them how they would proceed in that situation. As there is issues with custody, you might also want to contact a lawyer to determine your rights. Generally though, if someone over the age of 18 helps a minor leave home they can be charged with harboring a runaway. We can best help by phone or chat as NRS is unable to respond more than twice by email or bulletin for assistance. If you would like to talk more in detail and share more about how we can help specifically, please call or chat soon.
Our contact information is 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929); www.1800runaway.org (click on the chat button).

Best of luck,
NRS


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[Guest]

Hey, I'm 14 and my parents are very controlling and keep taking my friends and family away from me and keep calling me a failure and stuff like that. I'm starting to become very depressed and I want to move in with my grandma because I can't take the pain from my parents much longer. I was wondering if it is legal to move in with her at 14?

[ccsmod15]

Hello there,
Thanks for reaching out to NRS, it seems like you are going through a tough time with your parents and are feeling frustrated at home. It is understandable to feel sad and want to move in with someone more supportive of you.
It would only be legal to live with your grandma instead if you got permission from your parents, otherwise they can file a runaway report and have the police bring you back home. There is a chance too of your grandma being charged with harboring a runaway as well.
Another option would be getting Child Services involved and see if they would be able to place you with your grandma. This would usually involve an investigation on their part to see if the home is safe or not. For more information about child abuse and if that seems like it would work you can check out childhelp.org for more information.
You also mentioned feeling depressed, these are feelings everyone feels at some point but they are usually temporary. If those feelings stick around or you just want more information about depression and mental health we encourage you to go to nami.org.
Hopefully these options and resources are helpful for you. We want you to feel supported, and we are always available by our hotline at 1-800-RUNAWAY or through online chat as well at 1800runaway.org.