Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am having trouble following you. What does prove citizenship then or legal status then. I can hardly wait.
Really?
A drivers license does not prove citizenship. Only a US passport does.
If there is some suspicion that you may not be a legal resident (but you are), you must show your green card. Fine.
If there is some suspicion that you may not be a citizen (but you are), you must show the only document that can prove your citizenship: Your passport.
Again, do you carry yours? What happens if you, a US citizen, can not show proof that you are, indeed, what you claim to be?
I would guess in many cases, they're not going to actually prove or disprove -- because the law says something about a reasonable suspicion.
Well, reasonable suspicion refers to the possibility that you might be an illegal. If the suspicion exists, legal status must obviously be determined. Otherwise, what is the point of the law?
Quote:
Originally Posted by malamute
I think this means that if you are pulled over to be given a ticket because you were speeding or failed to make a stop or drunk driving, if you produce a drivers license, proof of liability insurance and it all checks out, you'll be given a ticket or a court date.
Of course, there are quite a few people who do have a drivers license, have liability insurance, etc. and who are NOT legally in the US...
But frankly, I am not too worried about these situations. I simply wonder how a US citizen proves citizenship and what happens if he or she can't... Do you get arrested? Will your car be towed and leave you with a bill? How long will you stay under arrest before your citizenship can be determined? Is it constitutional to arrest a citizen for not carrying his or her passport?
A drivers license does not prove citizenship. Only a US passport does.
If there is some suspicion that you may not be a legal resident (but you are), you must show your green card. Fine.
If there is some suspicion that you may not be a citizen (but you are), you must show the only document that can prove your citizenship: Your passport.
Again, do you carry yours? What happens if you, a US citizen, can not show proof that you are, indeed, what you claim to be?
I doubt that's how it's going to be done at all.
If the police are checking you for some other reason they might have, if you can't speak English and can't answer any question, or you take off running, then they're going to have some reasonable suscipion your legal status might be a problem.
If you can't speak a word of English, but you have a green card and it isn't reported stolen then that would likely be the end of it. If you take off running but can produce a valid passport, you still might not be released until they figure out what other reason you had for running when you saw the police.
Well, reasonable suspicion refers to the possibility that you might be an illegal. If the suspicion exists, legal status must obviously be determined. Otherwise, what the point of the law?
Of course, there are quite a few people who do have a drivers license, have liability insurance, etc. and who are NOT legally in the US... So, what then, is the benchmark by which you are subjected to further investigation?
Does this mean that you only need to appear like a legal resident by having all your ducks in a row?
Very likely they won't be. There are people who just got out of the bar and could be over the legal limit but they get by with it because they don't give enough suspicion that they've been drinking.
Same thing when you cross the border through the official ports of entry. How do they ascertain that you are a citizen, or how do they ascertain you are an imposter with fraudulent papers?
How do police ever do anything? How do they ever catch a burglar? How do they ever find a drunk driver? Or truant child? Or a wife beater?
I read one time how they got a guy smuggling aliens at one of the inner checkpoints. He pulled in, seemed okay and they were just about to wave him through and he started shaking uncontrollably. He was doing just fine until that but when he began to shake so hard, it made the agents suspicious that he might have a reason, and sure enough he was a human trafficker trying to sneak a load of cheap labor humans in.
A drivers license does not prove citizenship. Only a US passport does.
If there is some suspicion that you may not be a legal resident (but you are), you must show your green card. Fine.
If there is some suspicion that you may not be a citizen (but you are), you must show the only document that can prove your citizenship: Your passport.
Again, do you carry yours? What happens if you, a US citizen, can not show proof that you are, indeed, what you claim to be?
But to get a drivers license you need to show your SS and birth certificate.
That is sufficient. I do not own a passport and I am a citizen.
Nowhere in that AZ bill does it say passport.
If you have NO ID then that may be cause to question but that would happen to anyone..even a citizen if you are stopped for legal reasons.
But to get a drivers license you need to show your SS and birth certificate.
That is sufficient. I do not own a passport and I am a citizen.
Nowhere in that AZ bill does it say passport.
If you have NO ID then that may be cause to question but that would happen to anyone..even a citizen if you are stopped for legal reasons.
However NOT in New Mexico. Bill Richardson mandated that illegals be given a NM drivers license. Part of how he was encouraging them to come to NM.
Obviously a New Mexico drivers license is not proof you're in this country legally.
But to get a drivers license you need to show your SS and birth certificate.
That is sufficient. I do not own a passport and I am a citizen.
Nowhere in that AZ bill does it say passport.
If you have NO ID then that may be cause to question but that would happen to anyone..even a citizen if you are stopped for legal reasons.
Well, I hate to tell you this but this is incorrect. A foreign student or someone on a work visa can obtain a SS# and a drivers license. Neither needs a birth certificate, either - their foreign passport suffices. Both forms of ID will still be valid even after the visa expires. If such a person overstays his or her visa, they are in the US illegally and still have a DL and a SS card...
No, it does NOT say passport. Still, a passport is the only proof that you, a US citizen, has in order to show your citizenship. And that is my concern! How do YOU prove that you are a citizen if you do not have a passport?
Well, I hate to tell you this but this is incorrect. A foreign student or someone on a work visa can obtain a SS# and a drivers license. Neither needs a birth certificate, either - their foreign passport suffices. Both forms of ID will still be valid even after the visa expires.
Drivers licenses do expire too. Sure, they might even get away with it for a few years, but people get away with breaking laws all the time.
Not all rapists are caught, not all murderers are caught, nor are all embezzlers caught immediately. Still they try to catch them.
Drivers licenses do expire too. Sure, they might even get away with it for a few years, but people get away with breaking laws all the time.
Not all rapists are caught, not all murderers are caught, nor are all embezzlers caught immediately. Still they try to catch them.
Indeed they do expire - however, to renew them in some states, all you need to show is proof of your address, such as a bank statement or a phone bill.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
