No emancipation rush
9 Utah teens' reasons to split
from their parents run gamut
July 30, 2006
By Linda Thomson
Nine teenagers have petitioned
Utah's juvenile courts to become emancipated from their parents
since a new law went into effect in May, but there seems to be "no
rush" of the so-called Lost Boys who have escaped or been cast out
of polygamous communities.
Instead, state Guardian ad Litem
Kristin Brewer says there seems to be quite a mixture of youngsters
with varying motivations asking the court to be free of their
parents.
There appears to be no particular
pattern. "It's a whole gamut a kid living at home who doesn't want
to do what mom says to a kid living in foster care who is tired of
dealing with the system and wants to be independent," Brewer said.
"Our experience shows it doesn't seem like a rush from the 'Lost
Boys.' "
The state Legislature approved a
law permitting 16- and 17-year-old youths to ask juvenile courts to
emancipate them. Part of the motivation for passage of the law was
to assist the Lost Boys in gaining independence or to help homeless
teens who have been on their own for years.
First, the young people must fill
out court-supplied forms. Typically, a juvenile court judge will
appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the teen. Court hearings
are held and the final decision rests with the judge. Among those
who have petitioned or are in the process:
A teenage girl who wants to be
emancipated but says she still wants to live with her parents.
A 16-year-old boy who has been in
foster care and cannot go home because of his parents' substance
abuse and mental health problems. He said he is weary of the state
foster-care system and juvenile courts and wants to support himself
and be independent.
A 17-year-old girl who lives with
her mother says her mother makes her do all the housework and takes
her paycheck.
A 17-year-old girl who alleged
her mother was physically abusive and moved out to live with another
adult woman but did not meet with her guardian ad litem, failed to
show up for court and had her case dismissed.
Brewer said a key issue that must
be explored is the reason why the youth wants to get out of the
house. "Our concern is whether it's a kid just trying to exercise
independence basic teenage behavior and doesn't know what
emancipation means, or is there something more going on in the
household making the child want to leave," Brewer said.
Underlying surface concerns may be
the possibility that mom or dad have substance-abuse problems or
serious emotional problems. Perhaps the child is doing all the
parenting and housework, while dad or mom sleeps all day and grabs
the teen's earnings from an after-school job to buy drugs.
Or maybe the youngster lives in a
regular and healthy household but doesn't want to live by the rules.
Among other things, emancipation
means being able to support yourself financially and be responsible
for yourself in an adult fashion. "It's very important the teenager
feel like they were listened to and can tell the court what they
want and why they want it," Brewer said. "But that doesn't abdicate
our interest to look out for their best interests."
In other words, the system doesn't
always guarantee freedom and sometimes freedom from parents is not
the best choice.
Certainly getting free of
physically or sexually abusive, drug-using, chronically alcoholic or
severely mentally ill parents might be not only healthier, but even
life-saving for a youngster. In such cases, however, the youth might
be better served by foster care or being taken in by another
responsible adult, such as a relative, rather than becoming
emancipated.
In these cases, a type of legal
guardianship can be arranged. Brewer says one thing the guardian ad
litem tries to do is explain the wide array of options available
outside of just emancipation itself. "It may or may not always be in
their best interest to be emancipated, but it is some kind of cry
for help from the kid," she said.
"If it looks more like parent
conflict, as opposed to abuse or neglect, we can look at is there
room for family or crisis counseling."
Occasionally, situations are more
benign and alternatives can be arranged through the courts, again
short of emancipation. One example: dad has custody, gets a great
job in another state, but the teen wants to finish high school here.
In that case, another responsible adult could get power of attorney
and have the child live in that home.
Brewer also said it's crucial to
find out where the teenager learned about the idea of becoming
emancipated. For example, if a divorced dad planted the idea and the
teenager becomes emancipated, then he doesn't have to pay child
support to the mother anymore. But does that really help the child?
For some teenagers, being
emancipated offers real benefits. Runaways, for example, cannot
register to attend school because there is no adult to sign for
them. In certain rare cases, teens have been supporting themselves
and taking care of themselves in a highly responsible way for a long
time, but without any of the benefits and rights of being
emancipated.
Still, there are drawbacks and
most of them have to do with the fact that the system is dealing
with people who are simply very young and may not be so world-wise
as they first appear.
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E-mail: lindat@desnews.com
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