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 York, there is no statute that specifically enacts a 'stop-and-identify' law requiring individuals to provide their identification to police upon request under all circumstances. However, under certain conditions, such as during a lawful arrest or when an officer has reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, individuals may be required to identify themselves. New York's Penal Law § 140.50 allows police to stop, question, and frisk individuals if they have reasonable suspicion that a crime has been, is being, or is about to be committed. While this law does not explicitly require individuals to provide ID, failure to identify oneself could lead to further investigation or detention. Additionally, providing false information to an officer is a crime under New York Penal Law § 190.23, which makes it a misdemeanor to intentionally mislead a public servant by providing false written statements. It's important to note that the Fifth Amendment provides protection 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 Supreme Court in Kolender v. Lawson.