0 Flares Twitter 0 Facebook 0 Google+ 0 Buffer 0 0 Flares ×

The issue of failing to identify yourself properly to police officers has recently blown up in the news after a YouTube video was posted showing a young woman in Austin, Texas being detained by two officers who had been handing out jaywalking tickets in the area.

There was such a commotion during the incident, with the girl screaming and crying to passersby, that it has gained national attention.

Witnesses, including the man who shot the video of the incident, said that the girl, 24-year-old Amanda Jo Stephen, had been jogging across the street while wearing headphones.

The police began to run after her when she did not respond to them. When she did not stop, one of the officers grabbed her by the arm and handcuffed her. It appeared, to the witness, that the young woman was unaware that the officer had been behind her and struggled when her arm was grabbed.

A spokeswoman from the Austin Police Department stated that the girl was detained by the officers for “Failure to Identify.”

Each state has its own laws regarding identification requirements. Many require people to “stop and identify” themselves to officers when they are detained. This can simply be stating their legal name or requiring written identification such as a state-issued ID card.

While there is not a penalty attached to failing to identify in most states, it can be construed as “resisting, obstructing or delaying a peace officer,” which does carry a penalty. There are seven states where citizens can be penalized for failing to identify themselves: Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, New Mexico, Ohio and Vermont.

The US Supreme Court has not addressed the issue of failure to identify, leaving it up to state lawmakers to determine what their own laws are.

In Texas, people are only required to provide their name, address and date of birth to police after they have been lawfully arrested by the police. It is, however, a crime to give officers a false name.