Emancipation in Oregon

I am worried about a friend of mine... At the moment he has no way of getting information or help on his own so I took it upon myself to help him through this ordeal... I will call him JD for now...

JD is 17, and has had a steady job for over a year in the same location.
He has graduated high school.
He pays a portion of the bills at home(such as the phone bill).
He also has several places where he could easily move should he be able to escape his fathers house.

His father is emotionally and verbally abusive. The father also has a history of emotional and physical abuse.
His father is also getting into his bank accounts and taking money out for personal purposes... This has resulted in 3 closed bank accounts so far.
Now he has opened a new account in JD's name without any papers needing to be signed by JD(dunno if that is possible or not...)

The father has harassed co-workers at JD's work(including myself).
Going so far as to not allow JD to attend work notifying them less than an hour before his shift started. His father has now twice been asked to leave the premises due to his actions...

Just recently JD was so afraid of returning home that he stayed at another's house telling his dad he was safe but was not coming home THAT night. His father proceeded to report him as a runaway and JD was forced to either return home or be arrested along with whoever he was with(this is what he was told by the deputy over the phone).

Another worry of his is his horse who he has had since it was only a few months old and is now roughly 2 1/2. This is an animal that he has cared for and trained himself, perhaps being one of the few things he has for moral support. His father has nearly sold him out from under JD several times so far, and his fathers girlfriend is pushing for the same result... The father an girlfriend each have a horse of their own who are barely cared for, living in poor conditions, so we wonder whether or not to call that in as well... JD has a place he can afford(financially) to put the horse should it need to be moved out of the stable it is currently in.

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It seems his main problem is that most outside viewers see it as just another kid wanting to get out of doing chores... they do not see the real story behind it and he has no way of escaping so he wants to see if he can do anything legally and has the support of his friends and co-workers who have witnessed this abuse

Not sure what information you needed or what information is relevant...
but I hope I gave enough to receive some good advice!

Thanks for your time and for any help you may be able to give =)

Lane County Legal Services provides the following information about emancipation in Oregon:

Quote:

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Quoting Oregon Emancipation Law

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Emancipation gives you certain rights of an adult. You must be at least 16 years old, able to support yourself, live on your own, and manage your own affairs. You need to file a Petition for Emancipation with the Juvenile Court in the county where you live and give a copy of it to your parents. The court will set a hearing to make the decision. The judge will decide if it is in your best interest to be emancipated by considering whether you have been living away from your parents and can support and care for yourself without parental assistance and supervision. If the court allows you to be emancipated, your parents will have no duty to support you, you will be treated as an adult under criminal laws, and you will have the right to contract, sue, and be sued. Emancipation does not give you the right to drink alcohol, vote, or marry.

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That should be true statewide.

Not sure if you can give this type of advice... but do you think that he has a good chance of achieving emancipation???

" The judge will decide if it is in your best interest to be emancipated by considering whether you have been living away from your parents and can support and care for yourself without parental assistance and supervision."

What did you say that was relevant to the judge's determination?