Can I Just Leave?

[Shelbylb]

Jurisdiction

California

Hello,

So both of my parents have died. It was written in the will of my mother that I would live with my aunt. Now, I am almost 18 but I can not stand to live here any longer. We never went to court to prove her legal guardianship either which brings me to the question. Do I need to get emancipated in order to leave the house? Or can i just leave and choose where I want to live. I understand I will have to change the information on a lot of official documents.

Also, is she legally allowed to report me to the police if I do leave? Are they required to bring me back?

Thank you,
Shelby

 

[mightymoose]

You won't get emancipated before turning 18, even if it was a possibility.
Most likely your aunt does have legal guardianship or else she would not have been able to do numerous things such as enroll you in school or take you to a doctor. If she did not have guardianship you would be a ward of the state, and you would be very aware if that was the case.
You best option here is to mend bridges rather than burn them. No matter how bad you think things are it is not wise for you to leave home. You will make things much harder on yourself in the long run.
If you are having difficulty then find a counselor or someone you trust to talk with and shir things out. Find a solution that keeps you in the home and on good terms with your family.
Don't nimo out the moment you are 18. You will end up dependent upon someone who does not have to sosuppo you and likely won't.
My best suggestion for you is to go talk to a military recruiter and see about career options that will get you out of the house and on the road to a decent career with a good education and money for college. There is no better opportunity for someone your age who doesn't otherwise have a free ride through college.
Leaving home before you are 18 will start you down a path that will take years to recover from.

 

[cbg]

The very minute you turn 18 you can leave. Until then, you live where your legal guardian says you live. The fact that there was never a court hearing does not mean she is not your legal guardian.

Until then, the answers to your questions are, Yes, she is legally allowed to report you to the police if you leave without permission. While they are not required to bring you back, they are also not prohibited from bringing you back either. If they do, it is quite legal.

 

[shrinkmaster]

Even if Emancipation was a realistic option (its not) it would not be complete before you turn 18 if your "almost there"." You are best served making the best of things and spend your time preparing for your 18th birthday and your departure.

 

[zddoodah]

The very minute you turn 18 you can leave. Until then, you live where your legal guardian says you live. The fact that there was never a court hearing does not mean she is not your legal guardian.

While it is correct that the lack of a court hearing is not determinative, the lack of a court order is. A legal guardianship can be created only a by a court order and cannot be created by a will. Nothing in the original post suggests that the OP has a legal guardian.

To the OP: Your aunt can report anything she wants to anyone. We have no way of predicting what she might do if you leave her home. Nor can we intelligently predict what the cops might do. For all we know, she'll claim she's your legal guardian and they'll believe her without requiring her to produce a proper court order.

 

[army judge]

Hello,

. Do I need to get emancipated in order to leave the house? Or can i just leave and choose where I want to live.
Shelby

In these here United States of America you can come and go as you please.

The only restriction is money.

If you've got loot, or somehow get loot, you can scoot.

 

[cbg]

While it is correct that the lack of a court hearing is not determinative, the lack of a court order is. A legal guardianship can be created only a by a court order and cannot be created by a will. Nothing in the original post suggests that the OP has a legal guardian.
.

Asking, not arguing. Would the minor OP necessarily have been present?

 

[army judge]

Asking, not arguing. Would the minor OP necessarily have been present?

In CA a child 12 years or older must be noticed/served regarding the guardianship proceedings before the court, and is permitted to attend.

That's tricky, because minors are deemed to not be persons, otherwise considered as legal incompetents.


How to Obtain Legal Guardianship of Children in California After the Parents Die

 

[zddoodah]

While it is correct that the lack of a court hearing is not determinative, the lack of a court order is. A legal guardianship can be created only a by a court order and cannot be created by a will. Nothing in the original post suggests that the OP has a legal guardian.

Asking, not arguing. Would the minor OP necessarily have been present?

Present at a guardianship hearing? California law requires that a petition for a guardianship should be served on the prospective ward. Same with notice of a hearing on a petition for guardianship. Does that mean the ward will actually receive such documents? No. It's certainly possible that the aunt filed a guardianship petition, that a hearing was held and/or that a guardianship order was entered without the OP knowing about it? That said, the older the ward, the less likely it would be that the court would order a guardianship without the ward present.

 

[ElleMD]

It would be highly unusual for there not to be a legal guardian for a minor who lost their parent. There is no mention of the other parent, which could complicate things, but it would be difficult for this to just fall through the cracks when the mother died and it was noted there was a minor child. I imagine there would only have been a hearing if the matter were contested or there was some reason the aunt needed to plead her case as fit to be guardian. Otherwise, it would be an awfully boring hearing and I'm not sure what would be heard. It was likely handled administratively.

 

[KatDini]

....Both of my parents have died.....

It would be highly unusual for there not to be a legal guardian for a minor who lost their parent. There is no mention of the other parent, which could complicate things, but it would be difficult for this to just fall through the cracks when the mother died and it was noted there was a minor child. I imagine there would only have been a hearing if the matter were contested or there was some reason the aunt needed to plead her case as fit to be guardian. Otherwise, it would be an awfully boring hearing and I'm not sure what would be heard. It was likely handled administratively.

There was.

 

[ElleMD]

Apparently my brain took a vacation. In that case it is even less likely CPS or whatever the agency is where this took place, wouldn't have been involved had there not been someone named by the court as the guardian. As there was no biological or legal parent to object, it seems even less likely there would be any need for a hearing on the matter.

 

[zddoodah]

it would be difficult for this to just fall through the cracks when the mother died and it was noted there was a minor child.

it is even less likely CPS or whatever the agency is where this took place, wouldn't have been involved had there not been someone named by the court as the guardian.

I'm not sure why you're assuming CPS was ever involved or why you think it "would be highly unusual for there not to be a legal guardian."

The original post seems to imply that the father died first. If that's the case, then the child would have continued (or started) living with the mother. CPS doesn't get involved just because a parent dies. CPS wouldn't get involved when the mother died either, unless someone contacted CPS and reported something (which the original post gives no reason to believe ever happened). Sounds like the child simply started living with his/her aunt after the mother died. Beyond that, we have no information about any CPS involvement or court action. We don't even know how long ago each parent died.

The typical reasons for a legal guardian to be needed are school enrollment and medical care. Otherwise healthy high school students don't regularly visit the doctor (I can't remember the last time my own kids went to the doctor other than a couple urgent care trips). As far as school enrollment, since we don't know when the OP's mother died, we have no reason to believe any school "enrollment" has been needed since the mother died. "Almost 18" implies junior or senior in high school, which means it's probably been three or more years since any "enrollment" was necessary.