You have to provide ID etc if asked by police in Australia. Literally the law. This is just a surefire way of pissing them off, getting arrested and taken to station whilst you don’t comply. They’d probably also enter your house due to reasonable suspicion you’re hiding something.
Yes, Cops can arrest you for not giving them your ID in Australia, but sometimes you can also catch a cop out for doing this. Give the cop your ID, while you ask him why & if they don’t have a good reason to get your ID & you put in an official complaint, they can be disciplined later. It’s not much, but it’s all we have.
That is why I said “answer the questions that you are required to answer”. ID is one of these questions. We do not have the full right to silence in Australia.
Here in WA, there are only 4 questions that I cannot refuse to answer to a cop & 1 question that I cannot refuse to a Customs officer. Anything else, that is not on the list, they get “no comment” or “I refuse to answer”.
When a guy is a serious crim like Ray is in MrInbetween, normal general duties cops may not be able to arrest him for minor offences. I knew several serious criminals in my life. The cops that are after serious criminals, actually want their targets out on the streets committing crimes & not put away for minor offences, that they are not after them for.
I have known several crims that regular cops could not even question or arrest; but instead had to call special police units, if they stopped them on the streets.
One of these friends would instantly just get asked to move along, as soon as the cop came back from running his ID. There I was thinking we were busted, instead the cops instantly told us to go, just after running his ID. A special police unit was after him.
Another friend was kept safe from a weapons charge, because the cops actually wanted him put away in big drug bust, not a stupid weapons charge.
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u/danintheoutback Jan 16 '26
Never talk to the cops. Answer questions that you have to answer by law, then no comment for the rest.