I need some identification. >> Okay, we I asked you for what reason? >> And I've already told you that. >> You're trying to cuff this guy for what? >> Because failure to identify. >> Okay, that's only if you're under arrest for a crime. >> You are detained right now. >> For what? >> trying to do that without you >> Detained for what, sir? >> For what crime? >> Suspicious activity. I'm trying to get your >> That's not a crime. It's not a misdemeanor. It's not a felony. Those are crimes. Suspicious activity is not a crime and it's subjective. What you think is suspicious may be perfectly normal to me. >> Police approached a man and his friend over nothing more than an anonymous report of suspicious activity. Then quickly escalated the encounter by demanding identification without being able to point to any actual crime. When the men calmly cited the law and explained that being detained does not automatically require them to identify themselves, officers intensified the situation by searching them, taking a wallet, and even handcuffing one man for allegedly failing to identify. But instead of backing down, the men continued recording, demanded a supervisor, and exposed major flaws in the officers' understanding of the law. In the end, when police could not establish any lawful basis for the arrest or search, they were forced to remove the handcuffs, return the identification, and release everyone without filing a single charge. >> Hello. Hi. >> Hi. >> Somebody said they thought you all were looking in some vehicles. >> Which one? >> I don't Which vehicles were you looking at? >> Well, which one did they say? >> They didn't specify. They said you all were looking in some some vehicles and they didn't know what you all were up to. >> Here's my ID. >> I don't think we're up to anything. >> ID? >> Yeah, we're just walking. >> Yeah, that's that's just a call that I got. >> Do you want my driver's license? >> Please. >> But you're not driving. >> Well, can I ask for >> It doesn't because somebody said that you all were looking in some vehicles. >> Can I ask for their name? >> Somebody said they thought that you all were looking in vehicles. That makes you a suspicious person and I'm trying to get some identification. >> Suspicious person, is that a misdemeanor or a felony? >> I'll tell you what. You want to take your hands out of your back, face away from me. Put your hands behind your back. Where do you all want to start from? I'm asking for your identification. You're required to give it under these circumstances. >> Are you going to handcuff me or do you know, are you just going to treat me like crap for no reason? >> You're not going to be handcuffed unless you're going to give me your identification for failure to identify. >> Okay, state of Texas, I only have to identify if I've been lawfully arrested. >> You're you're detained right now. >> Okay, state of Texas, I only have to identify myself if I've been lawfully arrested. >> Corporal, you don't want to make a mistake. >> I'm a supervisor. I'm asking for for ID cuz y'all been called suspicious person. I have suspicious grounds to detain y'all. I need some identification. >> Okay, we I asked you for what reason? >> And I've already told you that. >> You're trying to cuff this guy for what? >> Because failure to identify. >> Okay, that's only if you're under arrest for a crime. >> You are detained right now. >> For what? >> to do that without cuffing. >> Detained for what, sir? >> For what crime? >> Suspicious activity. I'm trying to get >> That's not a crime. It's not a misdemeanor. It's not a felony. Those are crimes. Suspicious activity is not a crime and it's subjective. What you think is suspicious may be perfectly normal to me. I haven't broken the law. You don't get to go into my pocket. Okay, you do not get to go into my wallet and take that out. You don't get to go into my pockets unless you find a weapon. >> Come on over here then. >> You really need to get you really need to get the chief out here. >> Up on him. >> Be glad to. >> Come with me. >> I'm walking down the sidewalk. It's not a crime. Looking at a car is not a crime. >> If I have suspicious circumstances, I have a right to identify somebody. It's illegal not to. >> No. No. No. You do not. 3802, pull it out. Look it up. 3802, you only have to identify if you've been lawfully arrested. You're going to go digging in my pockets, take my wallet out and get Oh, that's [ __ ] You don't get to go into my pocket and take my ID out of my wallet. Get the chief out here. >> Chief's already been notified. >> It's not a crime to look at a vehicle. >> I don't know who said what. >> And I don't even know what you what they said we've done, but it's not a crime to look at a vehicle. >> What's the suspicious activity of burglary of a vehicle? >> I cannot believe you guys don't know this. >> that's arrestable. >> It's not arrestable. >> to make this real simple for you. >> I'm I'm trying to help you. I'm trying to help you. I can quote you 3802 word for word. Person commits an offense if he has been lawfully arrested and fails to provide his his name and uh >> What's >> on Unless I ask questions, what if someone's trying to break into your car? Would you want me to find out >> I didn't stop you from asking questions, but you look at look what you've done. Look at what you've done. >> This is where you brought us cuz I didn't try to do this. >> I didn't bring you here. All I did was walk down a public street. All right. All right. I'm I'm done talking to you. I'm done talking to you cuz you don't know what you're doing. I don't know how you got those stripes, but you are clueless about what you're doing. >> So, you want to take your stuff off? >> Call the DA for failure to identify both of us. >> That's only if you're under arrest. >> Oh, come on. Who is that sergeant? Who is that sergeant's name? Limerick? I wouldn't I wouldn't give up my ID. >> He's on the phone with the DA. >> He's calling the DA now trying to get charges on Patrick for failure to ID. Unbelievable. >> I didn't do anything besides look. >> No. >> Can you get your stuff off? >> It's not against the law to look at a car. >> Get your stuff off. >> And that officer that officer went into my pocket, took my wallet out, took my ID out of the wallet. You don't get to do that unless I've been arrested. >> I don't know. I got to figure out what's going on exactly. >> So, you're going to back the liar? >> I don't know. >> That's what you're doing. You're backing the liar. That's why we have a supervisor here to straighten this stuff out. >> It is a C if a failure to identify. >> If you've been lawfully arrested. >> Yes. >> Guys, before this gets out of hand >> It's already out of hand. You've deprived me of my freedom. We're walking down the street. >> But do y'all live here? What do Y'ALL DO? >> WE'RE WALKING DOWN a public street. It doesn't matter what we're doing as long as we're not breaking the law. >> And then y'all can be arrested for the class C but you have to do something. >> Charge me. Charge me. Charge me. >> The reasonable suspicion is a lawful reason to detain and identify. >> I take Did he detain? Did he detain? Detain. Detain. Look up the statute. 3802. Lawfully arrested is the only time you are required to identify yourself in Texas. >> It's a penal code. That's the law. What do you have to say about that? >> I've already explained reasonable that this is a reasonable detention and they have a right to identify. >> Okay. So, you have a right to ask not identify. >> No, I have a right to identify, which means I can we do that. I can take you all to the jail on AFIX you to get you identified. >> Okay, you can AFIX us then you're going to have to let us go because you don't have a charge. >> Class C for you to identify. >> You've already robbed me of my identification. You get into my wallet. You stole my my driver's license out of my wallet. You stole it. You stole it. You stole it. A terry frisk doesn't let you go into somebody's pocket. Unless there's a weapon. >> What's your name? >> Hold on. Hold on. Go ahead. >> We don't do anonymous reportees. So I'll walk out. You get nothing. You get nothing. >> Oh, so now I'm unarrested? >> You're under arrest. >> He just told me I was arrested. >> No, told you you were detained. >> You told us we're in the car and you're taking us to jail for a class C. >> No, we don't have a uh It was an anonymous an anonymous >> Unbelievable. >> So we don't do that. Yes, sir. I understand. >> You don't you don't understand yet. You don't No. No. I gave no identification. Can I have my driver's license back, please? The one you stole out of my pocket. Now you don't even know what you did with it. I'm sorry about that. All right, I'm headed to the station. >> Sorry for the delayed to your interruption to your day. >> I'm not sorry but you will be. >> Yes, sir.