If you are say, walking down the street, in a house, or in a car (not driving) Could you be arrested for failing to identify yourself to a police man. Such as if you just did not answer any of his questions, Or just gave him a first name.
2006-10-26 18:51:29 · 26 answers · asked by a_ilovemyself69 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
It depends on the circumstances, at least here in California.
Let's assume the contact between you and the officer is what the police call a "consentual contact" (such as you are walking down the street, not violating the law, and an office approaches and asks to talk to you). During consentual contacts, you control the nature of the contact. The police can ask you questions, ask for your ID, ask what you are doing, etc. You do not have any legal obligations to answer questions or provide ID at this point and you can simply choose to walk away.
As soon as the contact is no longer consentual, then things change. As soon as you break a law, or are give the police probable cause to believe that you are, or have broken the law, then you must truthfully ID yourself. Failure to do so is a violation of California Penal Code 148.9 - a misdemeanor. For that you get arrested and get a free trip to jail. Of course you still have no legal obligation to answer questions since you do always have a right to remain silent.
Let's give a real life example. I often contact people who are walking in drug saturated areas based on nothing more than driving up alongside them and asking them if they will talk to me for a minute. Once they agree I use our conversation time to assess whether they are showing signs of being under the influence of drugs. Once i make the determination that they appear to be under the influence the stop changes from a consent contact to a detention contact. Once that happens they must correctly identify themselves.
That being said, if the stop is a detention stop from the beginning - such as the police stop you for violating some minor law such as jaywalking - then you must truthfully identify yourself or you could be arrested.
2006-10-28 19:10:34 · answer #1 · answered by James P 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
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2016-06-12 01:08:38 · answer #2 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most states have different laws pertaining to this. In some states an officer has to have reasonable suspicion to obtain, not ask, for a persons ID. There are different levels of stops, a level one is where the officer is just in conversation with some one, they may ask for ID but its not required that the person provides it. A level 2 is where you would be asked for your ID at a traffic stop or in a misdemeanor situation. A level 3, I believe, is usually a force type of situation. The best thing to do is usually comply with an officer if you have nothing to hide. If you do have something to hide, you better start looking at local laws and just stay out of the scope. If your not doing anything wrong you usually wont have a problem with an officer. If you ever get into a situation where you think you were wronged ask the city attorney or a local defense lawyer about civil rights and unreasonable search and seizure...its in the constitution.
2006-10-26 19:02:25 · answer #3 · answered by me_laub 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
That depends on the state. You have a constitutional right to remain silent, but some states have enacted statutes which require you to identify yourself to the police, regardless of the circumstances, when asked to do so. You don't have to do anything further, including showing identification or answering questions as to your identity, but you do need to tell them your name. It depends where you live.
2006-10-26 18:55:06 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
what if you are in a police station asking for a complaint form and the officer ask you for ID, but you state you are not comfortable giving that information at this time, but you would like to take a complaint form home with you to fill out and mail or bring back later. then the officer says its suspicious that you won't show your ID or give any other information about yourself and arrest you for not complying with his demands and for failure to ID yourself when asked even if you have it on you, but you just didn't want to show it.
2014-09-26 04:00:51 · answer #5 · answered by Charles 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First, a Police Officer will not ask for your I.D. unless he has "PROBABLE CAUSE" to ask for it. In other words, he must have a reason for detaining you.
Second, in this "Post-9/11" world that we now live in, it would not be unusual for a person to be asked to show I.D. under certain conditions.
To answer your question, when asked for I.D. it would be in your best interest to comply and be truthful.
Giving a Law enforcement Officer MISINFORMATION is a punishable offense. Being evasive or dishonest just makes you look like you have something to hide. Do you? If not, you have nothing to lose.
2006-10-26 18:58:16 · answer #6 · answered by Len_NJ 3 · 3⤊ 1⤋
The officer gave you the right answer.
I wonder why you would ask such a question.
2006-10-26 19:01:38 · answer #7 · answered by D 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Yes. Police have the authority to detain anyone who is acting suspiciously. Refusing to speak to an officer when spoken to, or refusing to answer even simple questions, would be considered suspicious behavior.
Imagine the news stories if this were not so: "An unidentified man was seen leaving the scene of the crime, but when confronted by police, he refused to give them his name so they had to let him go."
Now imagine that your Mom were the victim of that crime... Might you be upset?
2006-10-26 18:58:49 · answer #8 · answered by wuxxler 5 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Let me ask you this. If you have nothing to hide and have done nothing wrong, why would you refuse to tell an officer your name? Sounds like you have some issues that need to be resolved.
2006-10-28 11:57:36 · answer #9 · answered by wood_402 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
All citizens 18 and older are required to carry ID at all times.If you are asked for ID and don't have it or refuse you could be arrested.Sometomes this is at the officers' discretion.However,spare yourself a possible hassle and show your ID.
2006-10-26 19:00:47 · answer #10 · answered by marilynmarceehill 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋