DO YOU HAVE TO GIVE YOUR NAME TO THE COPS? IT DEPENDS……

Lying to law enforcement is not a good idea. More importantly, it can be a crime. And the line between whether or not it is a crime becomes less & less clear the more & more you are talk to the police. If you think the cops are investigating you for a crime, assert your right to remain silent, and contact an experienced criminal defense attorney IMMEDIATELY. But it’s not always that simple, is it? People encounter the police in all sort of situations everyday. It’s not always obvious when you are required to speak to the police, let alone what you have to say to them. And the police aren’t going to help you. Think about it. Why would they? Ignorance of not only your rights, but the law, is one of the sharpest tools in the cop shop. In Illinois, there are two offenses that you could be charged with if you lie to the police: obstruction or obstructing identification. Obstruction occurs when a person has the intent to prevent the apprehension or prosecution of any person by: 1. Destroying, altering, concealing, or disguising physical evidence 2. Furnishing false information 3. Inducing a witness to leave the state or hide from the government 4. Leaving the state or hiding when the person has material knowledge of the investigation 5. A parent reporting false information to law enforcement/State during child disappearance or death investigation. Obstructing Identification occurs when: 1. He or she intentionally or knowingly furnishes to a police officer a: a. False name b. False residence c. False date of birth 2. AND He or she is: a. Lawfully arrested b. Lawfully detained or c. A witness to a criminal offense. Obstruction is a class 4 felony, unless it involves gang activity, then it is upgraded to a class 3 felony. Obstructing Identification, on the other hand, is a class A misdemeanor. But how do these statutes play out in real life? To answer, you need to ask a question, followed by another question: ● WHY & WHERE ARE THEY TALKING TO YOU? Followed by: ● WHAT DID YOU SAY? Why & Where Are the Police Interacting With You? ● Walking on the street, or through a park: and a cop comes up and starts a casual conversation and requests your name, you don’t have to give it to them. More importantly, if you did give them a false name, that’s perfectly legal. You were not lawfully arrested, detained, or a witness to a crime. As the U.S. Supreme Court stated, “when an officer, without reasonable suspicion or probable cause, approaches an individual, the individual has a right to ignore the police and go about his business.” ○ But slightly alter the facts and add, say, you are openly drinking alcohol on the street, you’re now lawfully detained. Real name required. Fake name = a crime/obstructing identification. ● Traffic stop: Whenever you are pulled over by the police, you are legally detained. If you are the driver and provide a false name, you will be charged with Obstructing Identification for the simple fact you are interacting with the officer during a temporary, but legal, detention. What about if you are the passenger? Yes, the police can request your name & you are legally obligated to provide it if you are a passenger during a traffic stop. ● During the execution of a Search Warrant: As you are legally detained when found on the premises of a location during the execution of a search warrant, if you give a false name you will be charged with Obstructing Identification. ● At your door: Do they have a search warrant? Did a felon just run in your house or is someone screaming inside? Exigent circumstances? If not? Your name is: close the door. You could tell them your name is President Donald Trump, but you really just need to tell them to leave and close the door. What if you answer your friend’s door? Let’s say you open the door when the cops come to the party because of that noise complaint? Can you close the door on them? You can, but you’ll be charged with obstruction. YOUR 4th amendment rights were not violated, because it’s not your home. What Did You Say? But what about saying things beyond false names, falses addresses, or false dates of birth? What is required to charge someone with Obstruction in Illinois for “furnishing false information. In People v. Baskerville, the Lasalle County Sheriff knew Joseph Baskerville’s wife from previous contacts. They knew her license was suspended. They see her driving but lose her before they can pull the car over. Knowing where she lives, they went to her house and actually saw her pull into the driveway and go into her house. Joseph then came out of the house and approached the officers. He tells them that he was the one driving the car and he doesn’t know what’s going on. In finding both Joseph and his wife guilty of obstruction, the Court explained that, “providing false information may constitute obstruction under section 31-1(a) when the misinformation interposes an obstacle that impedes or hinders the officer and is relevant to the performance of his authorized duties.” The essential components of misinformation are: ● an Obstacle to or Hinders officers AND ● Relevant to Performance of Officer’s Authorized duties. Keep in mind that unlike Obstructing Identification, you don’t have to be detained or seized by the cops to trigger this offense. The focus is on what you said, not necessarily where you are & who you said you were. And while we traditionally think of obstruction as destroying or hiding evidence, the law is clear that words alone can constitute obstruction. Over the years, the Courts in Illinois found the following scenarios constitute obstruction: ● Refusing to move after an order for crowd to disperse; ● Repeated refusal to comply with order to get out of vehicle; ● Providing false whereabouts to avoid a subpoena. ● Telling people being arrested that the cops have no right to search them. ● Refusing to leave after being ordered to leave. ● Swallowing drugs in front of the cops. However, “verbal resistance or argument alone, even the use of abusive language, is not a violation of the statute.” As well, if the officer is not engaged in an “authorized act” you cannot be convicted of obstruction or obstructing identification. Disputing whether or not the officer was engaged in an authorized act is always something an experienced criminal defense attorney analyzes in these types of cases. As with all criminal offenses, obstruction and obstructing identification require a mental state to commit, specifically: knowingly. The legal definition of knowingly in Illinois is a conscious awareness that the result is practically certain to be caused by your conduct. Attacking the State’s ability to prove this in court is a common defense strategy in obstruction cases. While a mental state can be difficult to prove, consider Baskerville. In that case, Joseph told the police he was driving. The police had just seen his wife driving. It’s not hard to show his knowledge with those types of facts. The circumstances of the arrest can always be used to show your intent or knowledge. Experienced criminal defense attorneys always examine ways to challenge the defendant’s mental state. The police are the only people in society with the power to end a conversation with handcuffs and a trip jail. It’s important to understand when and why you have to comply with police requests in order to avoid that outcome. The general rule of thumb is: if you are not legally detained or a witness to a crime, you don’t have to give the police your name or information. But if you think that you provide a story to the police to prevent your arrest or the arrest of a loved one, think again. You’re going to need a top criminal defense lawyer. Here’s our number: 312 322 9000. arressted, detained