Indiana Emancipation Law

[Terry W]

Hi. I'm 16 years old and I live in Bloomington, Indiana. To put it in nice words, I need to get out of this household that I am in. The amount of stress I have to deal with here at home has made me resort to cutting myself. I have even attempted suicide a few times. My dad is always putting me down. I go through alot of mental abuse as in my dad tells me that im useless and is always comparing me to my older brother and expects me to be like him. With this unneeded stress, its hard for me to pay attention in school which makes me fall behind and fail. If I was emancipated then I would excel in life. But, I dont know what to do or how to go about becoming emancipated. I can easily get a job, and I might have a place to live. Please I really need your help. Thank you,
~Terry W~

[aaron]

You can review the Indiana Emancipation statutes which are probably most relevant here:

IC 31-34-20-1
Entry of dispositional decrees
Sec. 1. Subject to section 1.5 of this chapter, if a child is a child in need of services, the juvenile court may enter one (1) or more of the following dispositional decrees:

• (1) Order supervision of the child by the probation department or the county office of family and children.
  
  (2) Order the child to receive outpatient treatment:
  
  [list:6d09476352](A) at a social service agency or a psychological, a psychiatric, a medical, or an educational facility; or
  
  (B) from an individual practitioner.

(3) Remove the child from the child's home and place the child in another home or shelter care facility. Placement under this subdivision includes authorization to control and discipline the child.

(4) Award wardship to a person or shelter care facility. Wardship under this subdivision does not include the right to consent to the child's adoption.

(5) Partially or completely emancipate the child under section 6 of this chapter.

(6) Order:

• (A) the child; or
  
  (B) the child's parent, guardian, or custodian; to receive family services.

(7) Order a person who is a party to refrain from direct or indirect contact with the child.[/list:u:6d09476352]

IC 31-34-20-6
Emancipation of child; findings; terms
Sec. 6.
(a) The juvenile court may emancipate a child under section 1(5) of this chapter if the court finds that the child:

• (1) wishes to be free from parental control and protection and no longer needs that control and protection;
  
  (2) has sufficient money for the child's own support;
  
  (3) understands the consequences of being free from parental control and protection; and
  
  (4) has an acceptable plan for independent living.

(b) If the juvenile court partially or completely emancipates the child, the court shall specify the terms of the emancipation, which may include the following:

• (1) Suspension of the parent's or guardian's duty to support the child. In this case the judgment of emancipation supersedes the support order of a court.
  
  (2) Suspension of the following:
  
  (A) The parent's or guardian's right to the control or custody of the child.