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 New Jersey, there is no specific statute that is commonly referred to as a 'stop-and-identify' law. However, under New Jersey law, if an individual is suspected of a crime, the police may ask for their name, address, and an explanation of their actions. While there is no statute that compels a person to provide their identification to police under all circumstances, failure to provide information during a lawful stop could lead to charges such as obstructing the administration of law or other governmental function under N.J.S.A. 2C:29-1. Additionally, providing false information to a law enforcement officer is a crime under N.J.S.A. 2C:28-3. It's important to note that the Fifth Amendment provides protections against self-incrimination, which means individuals may have the right to refuse to provide their name if doing so could be incriminating, as established by the U.S. Supreme Court in Kolender v. Lawson. However, the application of this right is nuanced and context-specific, and an attorney can provide guidance on how it may apply in a particular situation.