Stop & identify

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Is NC a stop-and-identify state?

A black friend of mine was walking down the sidewalk about 2AM. Coming home from shooting a game of pool. Cop cruizes along side, rolls down the passenger window. Hey, hows it going?....OK
Where you coming from?....Why you need to know that?
Just asking. Where you going....Why you want to know that?
What's your name.......Why do you want to know that? What did I do wrong?
Nothing. Just making sure everything is OK.

Eventually the cop drove on off after he decided my friend just wasn't going to play ball.

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Nevermind. Found it on the Town of Garner website:

Officers in North Carolina can arrest persons for failing to provide their names under certain circumstances. For example, any person operating a motor vehicle must surrender his/her license or identify him/herself to an officer requesting identification during a traffic stop (NCGS 20-29). If the hypothetical larceny at K-Mart described above (Hibel) happened in the Tarheel State, Officer Adams could have charged the suspect with a misdemeanor - "[font=Arial,Arial][font=Arial,Arial]Resisting and Delaying[/font][/font]." A "[font=Arial,Arial][font=Arial,Arial]Resist and Delay[/font][/font]" charge does not need to possess actual physical resistance by suspects. Persons who obstruct, delay or otherwise hinder an officer’s lawful ability to conduct an investigation – based on reasonable suspicion - can be charged with resisting and delaying. This includes lying, providing misleading information or an unwillingness to divulge non-incriminating details needed to establish guilt or innocence. Besides, what’s in a name if you are truly innocent of any wrong doing?



That last line ( bold emphasis added by me) just burns my ass. I guess the CYA method would be to ask "Am I being investigated for suspicion of a crime?" If the amswer is "No" the you can't be accused of delaying or obstructing an investiation that doesn't exist.

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Yep, you got it. If you are approached by a LE and ask for ID or as you stated above, ask the officer if you are under arrest or being detained or under investigation. Then politely excuse yourself from his unnecessary interrogation.

And as the father of a friend of mine told an officer when pulled over for some silly reason and the officer asked the following questions, "where are you coming from? Back there! Where are you going? That way!

Then if you’re feeling frisky say something like, I don’t remember seeing a sign but when did I cross into Nazi Germany? Because I’m pretty sure I have a right to go about my business w/o having to answerfor myactions in NC.

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Anthony_I_Am wrote:

Nevermind. Found it on the Town of Garner website:

Officers in North Carolina can arrest persons for failing to provide their names under certain circumstances. For example, any person operating a motor vehicle must surrender his/her license or identify him/herself to an officer requesting identification during a traffic stop (NCGS 20-29). If the hypothetical larceny at K-Mart described above (Hibel) happened in the Tarheel State, Officer Adams could have charged the suspect with a misdemeanor - "[font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"]Resisting and Delaying[/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font]." A "[font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"]Resist and Delay[/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font]" charge does not need to possess actual physical resistance by suspects. Persons who obstruct, delay or otherwise hinder an officer’s lawful ability to conduct an investigation – based on reasonable suspicion - can be charged with resisting and delaying. This includes lying, providing misleading information or an unwillingness to divulge non-incriminating details needed to establish guilt or innocence. Besides, what’s in a name if you are truly innocent of any wrong doing?



That last line ( bold emphasis added by me) just burns my ass. I guess the CYA method would be to ask "Am I being investigated for suspicion of a crime?" If the amswer is "No" the you can't be accused of delaying or obstructing an investiation that doesn't exist.

Click to expand...

Walking on the streets is far different from a motor vehicle traffic stop.

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North Carolina does not have a Stop and Identify Statute.

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Custodian wrote:

Anthony_I_Am wrote:

Nevermind. Found it on the Town of Garner website:

Officers in North Carolina can arrest persons for failing to provide their names under certain circumstances. For example, any person operating a motor vehicle must surrender his/her license or identify him/herself to an officer requesting identification during a traffic stop (NCGS 20-29). If the hypothetical larceny at K-Mart described above (Hibel) happened in the Tarheel State, Officer Adams could have charged the suspect with a misdemeanor - "[font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"]Resisting and Delaying[/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font]." A "[font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"]Resist and Delay[/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font][font="Arial,Arial"][font="Arial,Arial"][/font][/font]" charge does not need to possess actual physical resistance by suspects. Persons who obstruct, delay or otherwise hinder an officer’s lawful ability to conduct an investigation – based on reasonable suspicion - can be charged with resisting and delaying. This includes lying, providing misleading information or an unwillingness to divulge non-incriminating details needed to establish guilt or innocence. Besides, what’s in a name if you are truly innocent of any wrong doing?



That last line ( bold emphasis added by me) just burns my ass. I guess the CYA method would be to ask "Am I being investigated for suspicion of a crime?" If the amswer is "No" the you can't be accused of delaying or obstructing an investiation that doesn't exist.

Click to expand...

Walking on the streets is far different from a motor vehicle traffic stop.

Click to expand...

+1

Failing to identify yourself and not providing a drivers license when not driving are two different things.

If one refuses to offer ID, that does not necessarily mean they are refusing to identify themselves.

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Thanks for all the replies. I know if you are driving you need a DL. But, as someone famous once said, you don't need a license (yet) to walk down the sidewalk. Just being a black guy peacefully walking at 2 AM shouldn't be RAS to stop and start a investigation, (although in some southern states it still is).

According to my friend, this young cop did everything but call him "boy".

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I love hawking these videos but it should be added with any talk of when you should or should not identify yourself:

Let me preface these links by saying in no way am I advocating commission of any crime. If you commit a crime, you are a criminal, but people do get charged and convicted even when they're actually innocent just because they said the wrong thing and/or didn't know when to shut up. Case in point, DON'T BE A CRIMINAL, that only makes life harder.

Why you shouldn't talk to the police:
Part 1 & 2, this is just great.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wXkI4t7nuc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08fZQWjDVKE

And also this, regarding surviving police encounters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqMjMPlXzdA