13 yr old daughter runs away with 16 yr boy

T

tdtaylor

New Member
my thirteen year old daughter runs away with a sixteen year old boy,and the local sheriffs dept says that its a matter or priorty in which the case gets handled i really just need to know what charges if any can be pressed against the boy.
 
If your daughter had been kidnapped, the system could act.
Had he killed her, the system could act.
If he had raped her, the system could act.
As you state it, she chose to run away with a 16 year old companion.
Sorry, but he did nothing wrong, unless he had been 18 years old.

They're both two kids who need help.
A minor cant be charged with contributing to the delinquency of another minor.
Besides, do you wanna help her ruin her life?
No you don't, just get her help, mom.

You can file a CHINS (child in need of services) petition in Juvie court and ask the court to declare her incorrigible, and order her to undergo a psych eval and counseling.
But, why bother the court? You as her mother can make her get help, can't you, mom?
 
tdtaylor said:
my thirteen year old daughter runs away with a sixteen year old boy,and the local sheriffs dept says that its a matter or priorty in which the case gets handled i really just need to know what charges if any can be pressed against the boy.
Click to expand...

Yes, it is a matter of priority as to what cases get investigated.

If it can be shown that the 16 year old encouraged the 13 year old to be out of her parents' control, yes, he can be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor per ARS 13-3613. Whether the boy will be charged is a question for the Sheriff's department and the prosecutor.

Is the 13 year old still on the run?
 
Criminal charges? None for running away.
You know who this boy is? Have you spoken with his parents?
If you want you could look into whether your state will allow for a restraining order compelling him to stay away from her. If his parents don't like legal problems they will straighten him out real quick.
 
The child that ran away will not be charged with a crime for that act, but, if the other child aided or encouraged the younger one, HE could potentially be charged. Whether he would be depends on other factors that we an only guess at.
 
Even if the 16 year old were to be charged, it would be in juvie court.
If that were the case, he wouldn't face criminal charges, just with being delinquent or committing a delinquent act.
Then there's the whole, THEY rarely rat out their pals.
Plus, unless he admits to being a Pied Piper, rather than offering another version of events that differ from mom's, not much is gonna happen to either kid.
As you said early on, there are priorities.
 
It's not all that difficult to sort these out. I have emphasized in juvenile offenses for most of my career and kids do not tend to cover their trails well - and they rarely act in a vacuum (i.e. their friends know about it, the details are on social media, phones, and computers, etc.). If the 16-year-old lad is encouraging the child to run away or assisting her, there will almost certainly be a trail. The question is whether or not anyone will take the time to look for it. It all depends on the details. But, when you have a child under 13 that may be being lured away by a 16 year old for what may well be assumed illicit purposes, I suspect they will look pretty hard at it.
 
CdwJava said:
It's not all that difficult to sort these out. I have emphasized in juvenile offenses for most of my career and kids do not tend to cover their trails well - and they rarely act in a vacuum (i.e. their friends know about it, the details are on social media, phones, and computers, etc.). If the 16-year-old lad is encouraging the child to run away or assisting her, there will almost certainly be a trail. The question is whether or not anyone will take the time to look for it. It all depends on the details. But, when you have a child under 13 that may be being lured away by a 16 year old for what may well be assumed illicit purposes, I suspect they will look pretty hard at it.
Click to expand...

There was a time when most people didn't look, nor did they touch children.
The lines were blurred for many reasons, all bad.
I'd love to believe that society still believes kids deserve to be protected, and those who violate them get punished.

Sadly, it gets harder each day to believe society (and some parents) does (do) much more than blabber about keeping kids safe when I see "Romeo & Juliet" laws, and adults asking if she or he is 16 (they always will be 17, as if that matters, in a couple months) and the questioner is 18, or "barely" 19 wanting to know if its okay to keep her or him "safe" at my apartment.
 
In those states where the age of consent and the age of majority are 18, it makes things a lot easier. And with the female being under 15, there is no exception in AZ for any "Romeo & Juliet" law there.
 
Honestly, I'd be much more focused on my own kid who ran away at 13 and getting her and myself help than what the "law" plans to do about someone else's screwed up kid. Unless yours was abducted without her consent, she has some major issues and you need to put considerable energy into helping her work through those. If she was abducted without her consent, then she is going to need major therapy too.

Parenting classes and family therapy would be an excellent idea. You need to learn to help this kid so she doesn't run away again and something about the family dynamic needs work as well.
 
Just to add I belong to a "parenting forum" (see below) where you might find other parents who have had similar situations. From them you can find out what they did and what worked and what did not
 

Share this page

Get a free case review from a lawyer
Back
Top