There is a lot of info about this online. Yes you can control/prohibit its use, but no you can't take his property (which it IS by all legal definitions you will find) and sell or dispose of it. You can prohibit its use in your house but not sell it.

[A father] has no title to the property of the child, nor is the capacity or right of the latter to take property or receive money by grant, gift or otherwise, except as a compensation for services, in any degree qualified or limited during minority. Whatever therefore an infant acquires which does not come to him as a compensation for services rendered, belongs absolutely to him, and his father cannot interpose any claim to it, either as against the child, or as against third persons who claim title or possession from or under the infant. Hoblyn v. Johnson, 55 P.3d 1219, 1228 (Wyo. 2002) (quoting Banks v. Conant, 96 Mass. 497 (1867)).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From a legal perspective, here is a thought experiment: if your neighbor did it, could your child sue or press charges on their own? Yes. Your parental relationship doesn’t change that.

From a parenting perspective, I second changing the WiFi password.

NP here but a parent also has the right to take it away/limit its use which a neighbor does not. Although kids like to play online I assume the console games can be played on their own as well so changing the wifi password wouldn't solve everything.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From a legal perspective, here is a thought experiment: if your neighbor did it, could your child sue or press charges on their own? Yes. Your parental relationship doesn’t change that.

From a parenting perspective, I second changing the WiFi password.

NP. Change it from gaming device to BB gun, and run your legal test again.

The problem, dear readers, is "dispose of." Not "hold in trust until child turns 18."

Anonymous wrote:Wow. How old is your minor son? This is a very different problem if he is 7 or 17, in either case you can address the conduct without choosing to completely disrespect his autonomy. Don’t take actions in anger, take a deep breath and figure out what you want to change and a non authoritarian way to get there.

Since he has no "autonomy", there is nothing to disrespect.

People who "whine" about "authoritarian" parents are invariably shitty, weak parents who are unable to control their awful children.

Wow. How old is your minor son? This is a very different problem if he is 7 or 17, in either case you can address the conduct without choosing to completely disrespect his autonomy. Don’t take actions in anger, take a deep breath and figure out what you want to change and a non authoritarian way to get there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm curious - are we talking about an 11 year old or a 17 year old? I think it makes a difference.

True.

Does not matter under the law. An unemancipated minor child does not have property rights apart from his/her parent.

Anonymous wrote:From a legal perspective, here is a thought experiment: if your neighbor did it, could your child sue or press charges on their own? Yes. Your parental relationship doesn’t change that.

From a parenting perspective, I second changing the WiFi password.

People should do even the most basic amount of critical thinking before they form an opinion about it. Under the law, a neighbor's relationship to the child is not the same as a parent's relationship. A parent is the legal guardian of a minor child and has broad domain over the child. A neighbor does not have the same rights and powers over a child.

Changing the password is such a weak thing to do. As a parent, your job is to do the up-bringing, to teach your child right from wrong. Changing the wifi password is at best playing games with the child. He/she will learn that he/she don't have to confront issues directly but work around it, because that's exactly what you did by changing the Wifi password. So what he/she will do is find an open Wifi, go to a friend's house, or some other way to get online. Two can play this game, and parenting is not a game.

Anonymous wrote:I'm curious - are we talking about an 11 year old or a 17 year old? I think it makes a difference.

True.

I'm curious - are we talking about an 11 year old or a 17 year old? I think it makes a difference.

In general, parents have broad rights over the property of their minor children, including earnings of a child. So it matters little whether the gaming device was purchased with the child's own earnings.

Anonymous wrote:You just block the wifi or lock up the device- there's no need to dispose of it.

Yes, I think you can dispose of property if he was told that the house rules are "don't buy a gaming device" and he bought one anyway,. The way to do that was to make him return it to the store before he opened the package. Just throwing it out or donating it to charity is going to cause a rift whether it's technically within your rights or not.

it's okay to ask these questions. Electronics and screen are huge parenting issues right now- many of us struggle with it.

Anonymous wrote:From a legal perspective, here is a thought experiment: if your neighbor did it, could your child sue or press charges on their own? Yes. Your parental relationship doesn’t change that.

From a parenting perspective, I second changing the WiFi password.

NP. Change it from gaming device to BB gun, and run your legal test again.

OP, my preferred technique is to take away one of these 3 things:

1) the controllers (easiest to do)
2) the wifi (takes a little more effort because of passwords)
3) the power cord (the most work of the 3)

Restarting the wifi kicks them off their game and can sometimes get them temporarily banned from whatever server they are playing on.

Anonymous wrote:File under "too dumb to be a parent".

Yes, but unfortunately, there appear to be multiple people on this thread who agree. It's a little horrifying.

You just block the wifi or lock up the device- there's no need to dispose of it.

Yes, I think you can dispose of property if he was told that the house rules are "don't buy a gaming device" and he bought one anyway,. The way to do that was to make him return it to the store before he opened the package. Just throwing it out or donating it to charity is going to cause a rift whether it's technically within your rights or not.