Full disclosure: I'm fully in my niece's corner here. Our family has just recently become aware of the severity of her situation.
My 17yo niece lives in the USVI and is threatening to run away to the States. She does have the money saved up for a one way ticket. She ran away a few months ago (didn't get far on an island) and her mom beat her when she found her and her father grabbed her by the hair and threw her onto her bed; the school reported it because of bruising (or at any rate, called the parents to talk to them, I'm not sure if they reported it to whatever their version of DCF is). The other day she and parents (intoxicated - both are alcoholics and her father uses pot in front of her but not her little sibling) had a huge blowup that culminated with her mom hitting her (but not bruising) and her father telling her that if it wasn't against the law he'd beat her. She stayed outside in the yard until 3am. She doesn't really want to go the DCF (or whatever) route because of her sibling and doesn't want to see h/im in the local foster care system. She swears that there is absolutely no abuse of the younger sibling. There are also other circumstances that I am not going into here. All the Stateside relatives will happily take them if they do wind up in the system and they can be sent out of the jurisdiction for placement.
She wants to live with either set of grandparents or one of her aunts or uncles but her parents won't let her go. I'm concerned about what could happen to her or whatever relative takes her in. I'm not sure how repatriation works between the States and the USVI.
She's also thought about emancipation, but she's not financially independent. Can she be declared emancipated if she moves in with relatives?
I'd dearly love for this to be worked out before she finds herself in a position of changing schools during the school year, be it either by having to change schools due to being a ward of the court (she's in a private school now) or by flying back to the States and having to make a double adjustment.
My 17yo niece lives in the USVI and is threatening to run away to the States. She does have the money saved up for a one way ticket. She ran away a few months ago (didn't get far on an island) and her mom beat her when she found her and her father grabbed her by the hair and threw her onto her bed; the school reported it because of bruising (or at any rate, called the parents to talk to them, I'm not sure if they reported it to whatever their version of DCF is). The other day she and parents (intoxicated - both are alcoholics and her father uses pot in front of her but not her little sibling) had a huge blowup that culminated with her mom hitting her (but not bruising) and her father telling her that if it wasn't against the law he'd beat her. She stayed outside in the yard until 3am. She doesn't really want to go the DCF (or whatever) route because of her sibling and doesn't want to see h/im in the local foster care system. She swears that there is absolutely no abuse of the younger sibling. There are also other circumstances that I am not going into here. All the Stateside relatives will happily take them if they do wind up in the system and they can be sent out of the jurisdiction for placement.
She wants to live with either set of grandparents or one of her aunts or uncles but her parents won't let her go. I'm concerned about what could happen to her or whatever relative takes her in. I'm not sure how repatriation works between the States and the USVI.
She's also thought about emancipation, but she's not financially independent. Can she be declared emancipated if she moves in with relatives?
I'd dearly love for this to be worked out before she finds herself in a position of changing schools during the school year, be it either by having to change schools due to being a ward of the court (she's in a private school now) or by flying back to the States and having to make a double adjustment.
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