In North Carolina, here's when you must ID yourself to police

"They have to have some sort of ... what they call ... reasonable articulable suspicion in order to stop you,” said attorney Meredith Cairo. “That some sort of crime [is] occurring.

“If they are not able to articulate that in any way, then they can't proceed further with asking for your identification."

A Fayetteville woman is threatening a lawsuit after, she says, two police officers forced her out of her car on Sept. 6 and handcuffed her. She said it was because she wouldn’t provide the officers her identification.

Ja’Lana Dunlap says she committed no crime. She was eventually released without being charged. Dunlap gave the officers her name, even spelling it for them, but they demanded her ID.

Dunlap recorded the incident on her phone. She said she was taking pictures of a dump site at the time, which is something her boss asked her to do.

"She started wrestling me for my phone because I was still recording on my phone,” Dunlap said. “They pinned me up against the trunk car.”

Dunlap’s attorney, Harry Daniel, said he’s ready to file a lawsuit against the Fayetteville Police Department.

"I'm probably one of the most innocent people that you will ever meet in your life,” Dunlap said. “So, for something like this to happen to me, just because of where I was parked at or the color of my skin, is just not right."

Cairo provided advice for anyone experiencing a situation like Dunlap’s.

“It's all about just going ahead and preparing yourself for the future and preparing your defense,” Cairo said. “And, the best way you can do that is to remain as calm and exercising your right of remaining silent.

“And again, ask for your attorney."

Fayetteville Police Chief Gina Hawkins has asked a judge to allow her to release the officer's bodycam video. WRAL News reached out to Hawkins on Thursday to ask when that could happen, but didn't get a response.