Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

Re: Child home alone

It is a criminal offense to leave a child under the age of 8 unattended.

However, if your matter relates to child custody, there may be other matters that

are relevant than merely the age of the child. With a custody or visitation matter, some

factors that come into play, in addition to the age of 8 or older, are past problems known to exist with the child, the maturity of the child, and environmental matters

such as location of the home.

Re: Child home alone

There is a lot of difference between public opinion and the law concerning the age at which a child can (or should) be left at home alone. The law is that it is a misdemeanor criminal offense to leave a child under eight years old confined at home, or anywhere else (a car, building, or enclosure, for instance) unless a reliable person who is at least thirteen years old is with the child. Common sense tells us that some children are more competent than others to take care of themselves, and that many children considerably older than eight should not be left alone and unattended for more than very brief periods.