Runaways

Trouble at home, fights with friends, emotional toil, and stress of everyday life are enough to make someone want to simply run away and forget it all. Unfortunately, some people do.

According to the National Conference of State Legislators, one in seven young people between the ages of 10 and 18 will run away from their homes. With the recent event of a student running away, questions have been raised as to the precautions and steps that both administration and police take in efforts to bring runaways home.

When a call comes in to the police station reporting an adolescent that has allegedly run away, the first step is a visit by the police to the runaway’s home. A form is then filled out, describing the runaway and including a variety of other questions about their home and their lifestyle.

“We’re going to have you fill out a form with all their information on there: what they’re wearing, height, weight, vehicle, known associates, places they might visit. It’s a two page questionnaire,” said student resource officer Chris Moist.

Once the form is filled out and the case is entered into the databases, the police simply wait for the runaway to turn up. Police departments utilise social media to spread awareness and add to those searching for the runaway, but that is about the extent that police have.

“If it’s just a runaway, and there is no suspected foul play or endangerment, that is all that happens. If the parents think that their child might be somewhere in particular and give us a good reason why they would not feel comfortable going to the house by themselves, we will assist them,” said Moist.

If the case involves a student, the first step is to inform administration and the student resource officers. After that, the student’s teachers are told of the case, and then the central office is notified.

“We try to gather pertinent information so that we can disseminate it properly and not let rumors or innuendos fly,” said principal Danny Brackett.

The school is also required to follow district policy. Teachers and administration are trained to listen to student comments and make sure that signs are recognized before the student runs away or causes harm to themselves or to others.

“We take every comment seriously. All staff is trained by the state of Arkansas to recognize harmful comments and are also mandatory reporters. Therefore, if we hear that a student may be harmed by themselves or someone else, we are required by law to report that,” said Dr. Brackett.

According to the National Conference of State Legislators, forty-six percent of runaway and homeless youth reported being physically abused. Thirty-eight percent reported being emotionally abused. The majority of runaways will show signs before actually running away, and those closest to that person must recognize those signs and report them before the situation gets out of hand.

“We expect the best,” said Dr. Brackett. “But we plan and prepare for the worst.”