__________________________________________Ask the DA
Not too long ago, my teenage son and some of his friends were stopped by the police for being in a public park a few minutes after closing time.  The police wrote out summonses for some of the boys, but threatened to bring my son and one other child down to the precinct because they could not produce identification.  Are teens required by law to carry ID?

There is no requirement in the law that persons carry identification when they are walking about the streets of our borough.  However, I believe that everyone, young and old alike, should carry some form of identification with them at all times.

Tragically, there are instances in which elderly persons are admitted to our city’s hospitals as John or Jane Does after they suffered a sudden attack in the street rendering them unable to communicate, and the hospital had no way of identifying them.  Certainly, your question provides an excellent reason why teens, too, should be instructed to carry proper identification with them whenever they leave home.

In order for a police officer to write out a summons, which often occurs in the case of a minor violation of law, it is necessary for him to first establish the identification of the person for whom he is writing the summons.  It is not uncommon for individuals to provide false names to police officers upon being stopped and questioned following some type of infraction.   If your child is in violation of law, is stopped by the police and is unable to produce identification, the police officer is within his authority to further investigate his identity, and that could certainly include a trip to the precinct.  Once there, the process of fingerprint identification could very well be set in motion, and it could take several hours for the results to come back.  You can see how what began as an innocent gathering of teens in a local park could turn into a parent’s nightmare.

My advice to your son and his friends is this: carry an ID with you at all times – and stay out of the park after closing!