QUESTION
Can my 18 year old friend be charged for contributing to the delenquency of a minor?
Asked on Apr 14th, 2017 on Criminal Law - Tennessee
More details to this question:
I am 16 years old and my parents do not allow me to have a phone, or any type of contact with my friends outside of school, so my 18 year old friend has let me use her extra phone. My parents have found this phone two times and are now threatening to charge my 18 year old friend with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Can they actually do this if I'm not doing anything illegal with the phone? I have talked to a police officer that is very close with one of my sisters and he says no, but the school resource officer says yes. Are they just trying to scare us, or can my friend actually be charged if I have the phone again?
1 ANSWER
contributing to the delinquency of a minor is a"any action by an adult that allows or encourages illegal behavior by a person under the age of 18, or that places children in situations that expose them to illegal behavior." Assuming that you have not done anything illegal with the phone, then probably not. However, anything that he does that encourages you to break the rules of your parents, no matter how much you may not like them or how much you like him, is not the basis for a successful relationship.
Answered on Apr 14th, 2017 at 7:05 PM