Juvenile Justice Information Exchange (https://jjie.org/tag/opinions/)
It wasn’t until I had gotten locked up at the age of 18 that I began to willingly learn and deeply care about governmental law and politics. If you’d asked me anything about politics back in my high school days, I would’ve rudely responded with an answer expressing love only for my gang.
Allison Ashe, Executive Director of Covenant House Georgia, and state Sen. Renee Unterman tell us what’s wrong with the current law on runaways and why the House needs to pass an updated version, H.B. 185, the Runaway Youth Safety Act, now. Four months after her 15th birthday Natalie ran away from home, fleeing the sexual advances of her mother’s new boyfriend. A few days later, local law enforcement picked her up and returned her to her mother. The Division of Family and Children’s Services came to investigate. Upon finding no actual physical abuse, the mother and daughter were left to sort out a very complicated situation alone. Natalie ran again, and this time, fearing another visit from the state, her mother did not call for help.