They weren’t exactly Bonnie and Clyde–more like Dick and Jane, really–but two 14-year-old runaways in a stolen sport-utility vehicle eluded the law for three days before running out of gas, money and nerve.
Matt Reynolds and Miranda Wilson ran away Wednesday morning from their homes in the Hinckley, Minn., area, heading for Texas under the mistaken belief they could marry there without their parents’ consent.
“I’m sorry, it just happened, we just started going south,” Miranda said after returning home Friday night. “We got scared; sometimes we didn’t even know where we were.”
Starting out with almost no money, no plans and no map, they drove about 500 miles in a green SUV that belonged to Matt’s parents.
The teens–he’s going into 8th grade, she into 9th–don’t even hold learner’s permits, let alone driver’s licenses.
“If I wasn’t so mad right now, this would almost be funny,” said Robyn Anderson, Matt’s mother. “I’m amazed no one picked them up. I just thank God this is over and they’re safe.”
Although Matt and Miranda met in kindergarten, they didn’t get serious until a friend set them up. Their first date was at the Hinckley fair earlier this month. Within a week, Miranda said, they were talking about marriage. She said a friend told them they could get married in Texas at 14.
So last week Matt lured his mother to a nearby coin laundry to get her out of the house, then rushed home to steal her SUV.
Almost immediately after setting out, however, reality set in: The two ran out of gas Wednesday afternoon and had to push the SUV up to a gas station pump. The station clerk told police they had to be shown how to use the pump and they paid for 2 gallons of gas with about $6 in quarters that they fished out of their pockets, police said.
After spending Wednesday night in the SUV, the teens bummed enough gas to reach New Hampton, Iowa, southwest of Decorah. But they ran out of gas a second time, and Miranda said they started realizing they might be in over their heads.
“They got scared and said enough is enough and got their butts home,” said Miranda’s stepfather, Tony Stapek, who along with Miranda’s mother, Erica Stapek, traveled to Iowa looking for the pair.
After standing by the SUV for hours waiting for help, the teens walked to a farmhouse and convinced the farmer to give them enough gas to head back. They spent Thursday night in the SUV south of Rochester but ran out of gas again Friday morning in Stewartville, Minn.
A couple stopped to help and drove them to a nearby church, Miranda said, where the pastor gave them food, gas and $30.
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Matt dropped off Miranda at her house in Brook Park, Minn., Friday afternoon before heading to Hinckley. But Miranda’s grandmother called police, and he was taken into custody about a block from his home for stealing the vehicle, said Pine County Sheriff Mark Mansavage.
Matt was being held until a hearing next week, his mother said. She said he seemed scared “but he was glad to be back. He was very … I would say ashamed.”
Miranda was reunited with her parents Friday evening. She said she was glad to be home, even though she knew they were in serious trouble.
“I was scared to go back,” she said quietly as her parents looked on Friday, “but I was more scared to keep going.”