They stand near a pharmacy. Suddenly, alarms are heard and a man wearing a ski mask is seen fleeing the store. The police arrive a few minutes later and one of them comes by and asks for your ID. The CORRECT answer: Give them your driver`s license or other ID. What should you do if you identify yourself to the police? This is the third part of a series of articles about the legal obligation you have when interacting with the police. The second contribution dealt with the question of when one can legitimately refuse to answer police questions. This third post examines a hypothetical situation where a police officer asks for identification. To request training on knowledge of your rights for your group or to request physical copies of the Ohio NLG KYR card, contact ohio@nlg.org. We all recognize the need for effective law enforcement, but we also need to understand our own rights and obligations in our dealings with the police. Everyone, including minors, has the right to polite and respectful police treatment. If your rights are violated, do not try to deal with the situation at the crime scene.

You can then talk to an attorney, file a complaint with the Department of Internal Affairs or the Civil Complaints Commission, or with the Ohio ACLU in www.acluohio.org/NeedLegalHelp. Many states have now passed laws commonly referred to as “Stop and Identify” laws. In Ohio, the law states that a person who has committed, is committing, or will commit a crime, or even someone who has just witnessed certain crimes, must provide identification upon request. This identification includes your name, date of birth and address. You can provide this information by handing over your ID, but when you take it out of your pocket or purse, other things may fall where the officer can see them. The officer asked for his identity card. He refused to provide it and again invoked the constitution. The officer then asked for her name and social security number, saying he wouldn`t give her that information and if she wanted to, she would have to arrest him. At that point, he was arrested.

It is also a violation of COI 2921.29 if an officer has reason to believe that you have witnessed a person who has committed a crime and asks you to provide your name, address or date of birth for the purpose of investigating the officer. He began to resist arrest and tried to flee, but was handcuffed. The officer then found bath salts in his bag. She let her identity card run and found an open arrest warrant. The official said there had been a number of burglaries at this Kroger property recently and asked what he was doing. He said his friend went to the supermarket to shop and that the constitution allowed him to refuse to talk to the official. In State v. Mitchem, 2014 Ohio 2366, the Ohio Court of Appeals found that the defendant violated Section 2921.29 of the Revised Ohio Code because officials had reasonable grounds to suspect that the defendant had committed an trespassing violation. Therefore, he was forced to disclose his personal data or be arrested.

Other reference documents Know Your Rights – not exhaustive and not a substitute for training! You have the right to remain silent and not to make statements. Make use of this right! As the officer drove through the property, she walked past the accused and another man who was sitting in an SUV. The driver didn`t look at her – he just looked straight ahead. The officer found this suspicious. She parked her car and drove to the SUV. The Ohio chapter of the National Lawyers Guild has created a local Know Your Rights map, available here. This raises another important point in order to treat police officers appropriately while protecting against potential problems. Many people assume that officers asking questions or conducting a search are looking for a specific thing and are unwilling or not allowed to pay attention to anything else they discover. In Ohio, if a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that you have committed a crime and asks for your name, address or date of birth, you must provide the information.

Click here to view slides from Ohio NLG`s “What to Expect at the 2016 RNC” presentation at the NLG Mideast regional conference in March. The WRONG reaction: No. This is America, I don`t need “papers” to walk the streets in broad daylight. That`s not true. If an object for which criminal responsibility is obvious is clear to a public servant, he may seize it and bring the appropriate charges. So if you`re interacting with the police, it`s a good idea to never give them more information or opportunities to see your stuff than you need. When the police talk to you on the street, keep your bags and clothes closed/zipped. Don`t take anything out of your pockets. You only need to identify yourself if the officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that you are committing, have committed or will commit a crime. R.C.

2921.29(A)(1). For example, if you open your purse to get your ID and the officer sees a bag of marijuana, he can arrest you, seize the marijuana, and it can be used as evidence against you in court. He doesn`t need an arrest warrant or anything like that because you showed him the evidence in front of everybody. While it is legally acceptable and CORRECT to show them your driver`s license, the BEST solution is to simply tell them the information. If you are convicted of failing to disclose your personal information, the police may charge you with a fourth-degree offence. The charge includes a maximum penalty of 30 days` imprisonment and/or a fine of $250. In this case, the officer was unable to identify any crime that she believed the accused had committed or was committing. As the officer had no probable reason to arrest him, the arrest itself was unconstitutional and was dismissed. For example, in State v. Dickman, 34 NE 3d 488, 10th Appellate Dist. In 2015, a Gahanna police officer used an automated scanner to locate license plates in the Kroger parking lot in front of the police station.