Many parents wonder about the legal age for leaving a child home alone. With all of the news about child protective services it can get scary to contemplate doing the wrong thing.
When can you leave a child home alone?
Oddly enough, not many states even have a law that covers it. It is one of those areas that the government (gasp!) leaves to parental discretion. The states that do have laws on the books are:
- Maryland, age 8
- Georgia, age 9
- Oregon, age 10
- Illinios, age 14
It is illegal in these states to leave your child if he is under the age specified. Of the other 46 states some have official guidelines. This means that the state is basically covering its butt when it comes to your kids. If you leave a child that is younger than the official guideline… AND if something happens then they can harass you for not following guidelines… if they want to. The states that have official guidelines are:
Age 8
- South Carolina
Age 9
- North Dakota
Age 10:
- Tennessee
- Washington
Age 11
- Nebraska
Age 12
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Kansas
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
The rest of the states have nothing on the books one way or another. It is up to the total discretion of the parent. Of course, you need to know if your child is ready to be left unsupervised, and that is something only you can decide.
image: SXC
Post from: Blisstree