What is the legal age to leave a minor home alone in South Carolina for a weekend?
lilly asked:
Is there a legal age or is it up to the parents based on maturity and proven responsibility?
Actually, the child i am speaking of happens to be 17. Not five, not 3, not 10, but 17. The reason i am even asking is because legally, i want to be sure, considering that she has school, and i don’t want her to miss out while i go to my sister’s wedding. Legally, she is a minor because she is not 18, and i don’t want to be arrested if something were to happen while i was away. The attitude was not necessary.
Is there a legal age or is it up to the parents based on maturity and proven responsibility?
Actually, the child i am speaking of happens to be 17. Not five, not 3, not 10, but 17. The reason i am even asking is because legally, i want to be sure, considering that she has school, and i don’t want her to miss out while i go to my sister’s wedding. Legally, she is a minor because she is not 18, and i don’t want to be arrested if something were to happen while i was away. The attitude was not necessary.
June 4th, 2009 at 9:06 pm
Im pretty sure it is no younger than 13 but I will check and get back to you
June 5th, 2009 at 3:22 am
If you have to ask, they’re too young
June 8th, 2009 at 2:22 am
I live in Columbia,12 is the age
June 10th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
I think 13, but you might want to also assess the maturity of the child in question (parties, etc.)
June 11th, 2009 at 11:28 pm
HOW OLD ARE YOU HONEY?
CALL THE POLICE AN THEY WILL TELL YOU.
NEGLECT IS NOT COOL.
June 12th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
This day and time I don’t think there is an appropriate age to leave a “minor” alone for a whole weekend.
What happened to parents that cared? Seems like they could care less these days.
June 14th, 2009 at 5:16 pm
I don’t care what the min age is. I would not leave anyone home alone until they are at least 16, know the rules and has a record of following them. While 13 & 14 may be legal most kids that age could not handle it for more than about 10 hours before they got scared. Even those that are mature, after all they are still just young kids. If you have to ask, get a sitter for them.
June 17th, 2009 at 3:18 am
You should NEVER leave a minor alone for a weekend.
Take the child with you, or, STAY HOME. Too much temptation for a minor. A minor is not emotionally equipped to make rational decisions. What if something happens? Change your plans! NOT a smart idea!
June 17th, 2009 at 3:24 am
yes there is a legal age you should check it to make sure but Im guessing for a whole weekend it would be 16 and up
June 20th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
Think about it, if your child is 17, she could be going away to college in another few weeks. She would be alone, so to speak, if she was at school. If she has no one to stay with, or stay with her while you’re away, ask a neighbor to look in on her or give her a call. I needed to do this when my son was 17, and I was greatly surprised and proud of the way he handled the situation. No parties, no problems!
June 21st, 2009 at 5:18 am
Your daughter is not a child, many young adults are on their own at this age college, military, etc. Most places 13+ is acceptable.
July 12th, 2009 at 8:20 am
My neighbor lets her 8 year old boy wonder the neighborhood at all hours. Many times they have called us after dark to see if we have seen him. He is a sweet boy and I just don’t understand why they let him do whatever he wants. He is allowed to go to the Community pool by himself, the home owners association claims they will call the police on minors under 16 alone at the pool, but so far nothing of the sort has happened. They also have a 13 year old daughter that is also can do whatever she wants at all hours. All of the neighbors remark about how we fear someone will abduct them. The boy even told us on several occasions he is left home alone. He has had to come to our house a few times when he forget his key and was locked out. It’s just ridiculous! The family seems completely normal aside from this.