How to Get a Baltimore City Police Report

Anytime the police respond to a car accident or another serious incident, one of the responding officers is supposed to document what happened. In an auto accident situation, that usually means a crash report. For non-accident situations, a different type of Baltimore police report may be filed.

A police report for an auto accident can be a key piece of evidence in a later insurance claim or car accident lawsuit. When Baltimore police respond to a crash, they usually identify the drivers, document the location, collect insurance and vehicle information, speak to witnesses when available, and record what each driver says happened.

Police may also examine physical evidence at the accident scene, including vehicle damage, debris, skid marks, the resting location of the vehicles, road conditions, traffic signals, and other details that help explain how the crash occurred. Based on that information, the officer may summarize what likely happened. The officer may also issue traffic citations if appropriate.

The report is not the whole case. Police officers can get things wrong. Sometimes they only hear one side of the story. Sometimes witnesses leave before the officer arrives. Sometimes the diagram is incomplete, or the narrative is thin. But if you were hurt in a Baltimore car accident, the police report is still one of the first documents your lawyer will want to see.

What Is in a Maryland Crash Report?

Maryland police accident reports use a standard crash report format. The report generally includes the crash location, date and time, driver names, vehicle and insurance information, weather and road conditions, contributing circumstances, citations, a crash diagram, and a written narrative.

In a serious crash, especially a fatal crash, the report may be much more detailed. A fatal Baltimore crash may involve trained crash investigators, scene measurements, photographs, witness interviews, vehicle inspections, and a deeper investigation.

In a minor crash, the report may be very short. This is particularly true in Baltimore City. For many lower-impact crashes, you may get a bare-bones report with only the basic facts, a short narrative, and a simple diagram. That does not mean the report is useless. It just means your lawyer may need to do more work to prove exactly what happened.

How Much Detail Will the Report Have?

Wrongful death car accident cases in Baltimore City often produce extremely detailed reports because trained crash investigators may be involved. Otherwise, the level of detail in the narrative and diagram sections of a police accident report can be hit or miss.

In some cases, the accident report may contain very limited detail about what happened or what evidence supported the officer’s conclusion. This is especially common in Baltimore City for comparatively minor accidents.

Even with limited details, the police report is still important. If the police came to the scene, there is usually some type of crash report or incident record. If you ever plan to pursue a claim or lawsuit, you or your lawyer will eventually need to obtain that report.

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• More information on obtaining police reports in Maryland

How to Obtain Accident Reports From the Baltimore City Police Department

Baltimore City directs members of the public to obtain Baltimore City accident reports online.

For Baltimore City accident reports from January 1, 2011 forward, BPD says the reports are available online through the LexisNexis system. That makes the Baltimore City police report lookup process much easier than it used to be, as long as you have enough information to find the report.

To search for a Baltimore City police report online, you usually need one of the following:

• the police report number
• the full name of a person involved and the date of the incident
• the accident location

Once the report is available, you can search for it online, add it to your cart, and purchase a copy. In many cases, the report can be downloaded as a PDF.

If you are making a Baltimore City police report request for an accident that happened before 2011, the online system may not work. BPD currently directs people to request older accident reports through the Community Correspondence Unit. Reports before 2001 may require a microfilm request.

Other Baltimore police records are handled differently. A Baltimore police report for a non-traffic incident may need to be requested through BPD’s Community Correspondence Unit, not the accident-report lookup system. BPD says members of the public can get accident reports online and may request other public police reports through that unit.

Using Baltimorepolice.org to Obtain a Police Report

There is a distinction between accident reports and other police reports. Baltimore City accident reports from 2011 forward are handled online. Other Baltimore police records may require a request through the Community Correspondence Unit or, in some situations, a Maryland Public Information Act request.

If your search does not find the report, it does not always mean no report exists. The report may not be ready yet. The report number may be wrong. The accident may have been investigated by another agency. Or the search fields may not match the report exactly.

Maryland State Police Crash Reports

If the crash was investigated by the Maryland State Police, the Baltimore City process does not apply. MSP has its own request procedure.

For Maryland State Police crash reports, MSP currently tells requesters to wait at least 10 days after the crash to allow time for processing. The request form requires a $4 non-refundable search fee, payable by check or money order to the Maryland State Police.

MSP says you can request the report by visiting the barrack where the report was filed, mailing the request form and fee to the Central Records Division, visiting the Central Records Division in person, or emailing the completed form and then mailing the $4 payment.

There is a timing wrinkle. COMAR says requests for copies of State Police-investigated accident reports generally require time to receive and process the report, and requests that come too early may be denied. The regulation also references the $4 non-refundable search fee for State Police accident reports.

Why the Police Report Is a Key Document in a Baltimore Car Accident Claim

The police report can matter for several reasons.

• It identifies the drivers, vehicles, insurance information, and crash location.
• It may include witness names and contact information.
• It may document what each driver said at the scene.
• It may identify citations issued after the crash.
• It may include a diagram showing how the officer believed the crash occurred.
• It may help your lawyer determine whether more investigation is needed.

But you should not assume the police report is perfect. A police report is often a starting point, not the final word. If the report is wrong, incomplete, or unfair, your lawyer may need to gather photographs, video, 911 records, body camera footage, EMS records, witness statements, vehicle data, and other evidence to correct the story.

What If the Police Report Says You Were at Fault?

This is one of the most common questions we get. The answer is simple: a bad police report hurts, but it does not always end the case.

Police officers are not judges. They are not juries. They are often making quick decisions at a crash scene with limited information. If the report says you contributed to the accident, your lawyer still needs to examine whether the officer had all the facts.

Sometimes the officer relied on the other driver’s version of events. Sometimes the other driver admitted something later that was not in the report. Sometimes video shows the crash happened differently. Sometimes the physical damage tells a different story from the narrative.

So if the report is bad, do not give up. Get the report, preserve the evidence, and let a Maryland car accident lawyer evaluate whether the report can be challenged.

How Long Does It Take to Get a Baltimore Police Report?

There is no perfect answer. Some reports are available quickly. Others take longer, especially if the crash was serious, involved a fatality, required reconstruction, or generated a broader investigation.

For a Baltimore City police report online, the best first step is usually to search through the report system using the report number, name and date, or location. If the report is not there, it may not be ready yet, or the information entered may not match the report exactly.

For other BPD incident reports, BPD says members of the public may request public police reports through its Community Correspondence Unit.

Other Baltimore City Resources

• Baltimore City Venue: Our jurisdictional analysis of Baltimore City as a venue for personal injury claims and lawsuits. The City continues to be one of the most favorable venues for plaintiffs in Maryland.
• Baltimore City Verdicts: A summary of recent verdicts and reported settlements from personal injury cases brought in Baltimore City.
• Baltimore City Judges: A list and short bio for Baltimore City Circuit Court and District Court judges.
• Baltimore City Injury Claim FAQs: Answers to frequently asked questions about personal injury lawsuits in Baltimore City.