Years ago, a friend and I were stopped over a minor offense and when asked to prove ID we did out Laurel and Hardy act, with him confirming who I was, and me identifying him. The officer wasn't buying that at all, but it all ended OK with a radio call to the precinct and the use of a telephone book to check address.

Once that was done, he decided to forget the whole thing.

IMO the incident this thread is about was either reported wrong, or it was a rookie or simply lousy cop. Here it would take a certain amount of back and forth, with an explanation of the reason, and a final "easy or hard way" warning before anyone would be arrested over ID. Supervisors hate these arrests as a costly waste of time, which also takes an officer off the street needlessly.