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 Iowa, there is no specific 'stop and identify' statute that requires individuals to provide their identification to police officers under all circumstances. However, Iowa law does require individuals to provide their name, address, and date of birth to a peace officer who reasonably suspects that the person has committed a criminal offense, is committing a criminal offense, or is a witness to a public offense. This is outlined in Iowa Code section 804.15. Failure to provide such information can lead to charges of interference with official acts, as per Iowa Code section 719.1. Additionally, providing false identification information to a peace officer is a crime under Iowa Code section 718.6. It is important to note that the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized that the Fifth Amendment may protect individuals from having to provide their name in certain situations where doing so could be self-incriminating. Therefore, the application of these laws may vary depending on the circumstances of the encounter with law enforcement.