Comment by wvenable
In the US, whether you're legally required to identify yourself depends on the situation and the state:
"Stop and identify" states: If police have reasonable suspicion that you're involved in a crime, you can be required to state your name. Refusal can result in arrest.
Non–stop-and-identify states: You generally don't have to provide your name unless you're lawfully detained or arrested.
It's not illegal everywhere to refuse, but, as you said it can escalate the situation.
However, from a civil liberties perspective, people do explicitly choose to refuse in order to assert their rights and/or protest unlawful stops. You can certainly choose to be a high-IQ person, always give your name, and contribute to the eroding of your own rights over time. Face scanning tech just removes that option and automatically eliminates those civil liberties.
I was curious about this so I looked it up. Here are the states that do not require one to identify.
Alaska, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, plus Washington D.C.
and then
- You must be detained on reasonable suspicion; a casual chat (“consensual encounter”) never triggers the duty.
- Verbal name only—no law forces you to carry or hand over a card.
- Driving is separate—every state requires a license on traffic stops.
- Lying is illegal everywhere (false ID to police is usually a misdemeanor).
- Filming police is protected nationwide; identifying yourself is unrelated.