Some states have laws (statutes) that require a person to accurately provide their identification (ID) (name, residence address, date of birth) to the police if the police have reasonable suspicion to believe (1) a crime has been committed, is being committed, or is about to be committed and (2) the person asked to provide identification is involved as a participant or as a witness. If there is no reasonable suspicion, a person does not have to provide identification—but courts often find reasonable suspicion as a matter of course.
These statutes are sometimes called stop-and-identify laws or stop and ID laws, and the violation of the statute may be a criminal offense or crime known as “failure to ID.” Stop and ID laws vary from state to state in the states that have such laws. For example, in some states failure to ID cannot be the basis for an arrest (there must be an underlying criminal offense) and in some states the obligation to provide identification only applies to a person who has been arrested.
And in some states it is a criminal offense for a person to provide a false or fictitious name, residence address, or date of birth if the person has been detained by police on the basis of reasonable suspicion or is believed to be a witness to a criminal offense.
The United States Supreme Court has held that the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution may allow suspects to refuse to give their name if they have a reasonable belief their name could be incriminating. Kolender v. Lawson, 461 U.S. 352 (1983).
In Texas, the law regarding providing identification to police officers is outlined in the Texas Penal Code. According to Section 38.02, a person commits an offense if they intentionally refuse to give their name, residence address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has lawfully arrested the person and requested the information. Additionally, a person commits an offense if they give a false or fictitious name, residence address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has lawfully detained the person or requested the information believing the person to be a witness to a criminal offense. In Texas, 'failure to identify' is a criminal offense that can lead to arrest. However, if a person believes that providing their name could be self-incriminating, they may have the right to refuse to give their name under the Fifth Amendment, as recognized by the Supreme Court in Kolender v. Lawson. It's important to note that the obligation to provide identification in Texas applies when a person has been lawfully arrested or detained under reasonable suspicion of involvement in a crime, either as a participant or as a witness.
