Comments on: What is the legal age to leave a minor home alone in South Carolina for a weekend?

By: MarMar

MarMar — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 16:20:32 +0000

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.

By: badmikey4

badmikey4 — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 12:18:36 +0000

Your daughter is not a child, many young adults are on their own at this age college, military, etc. Most places 13+ is acceptable.

By: koffee

koffee — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 21:41:51 +0000

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!

By: Autumn

Autumn — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:24:54 +0000

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

By: J J

J J — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:18:35 +0000

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!

By: idaho gal

idaho gal — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:16:19 +0000

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.

By: HarleyMan

HarleyMan — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 01:01:09 +0000

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.

By: MISSY

MISSY — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 06:28:14 +0000

HOW OLD ARE YOU HONEY?
CALL THE POLICE AN THEY WILL TELL YOU.
NEGLECT IS NOT COOL.

By: Rockcat

Rockcat — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 02:44:14 +0000

I think 13, but you might want to also assess the maturity of the child in question (parties, etc.)

By: allansc2005

allansc2005 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:22:31 +0000

I live in Columbia,12 is the age