How to Get a Police Report in DC (2026): PD-10 & PD-251 Reports

The District of Columbia's Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) uses two report forms with two very different access rules, which makes DC's structure unlike most states in this cluster. The PD-10 accident report is available only to a first party (an involved person or their attorney); the PD-251 incident or offense report is open to the general public. Confusing the two, or assuming the same eligibility rule applies to both, is the single most common mistake a DC requester makes.

DC's body-worn camera framework runs on two tracks as well: a proactive public-release rule for the most serious incidents, and a separate, in-person-only viewing process for the person shown in ordinary footage. Neither track guarantees a copy without a formal FOIA request.

Information last verified on 2026-08-11. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

How to Get a DC Crash Report (PD-10)

Eligibility, the key restriction: A PD-10/Traffic Crash Report may be requested by a First Party ONLY, meaning an involved party, or that party's attorney, attorney staff, or investigator, confirmed directly on MPD's own service page. A third party who was not involved must instead submit a FOIA request through MPD's FOIA Office.

Fee: No fee for first-party requestors. MPD's own page separately states that copies are 'usually available to first party requestors at no charge and insurance companies for claim purposes at a fee $3 for each PD requested,' resolving what otherwise reads as a contradiction between a free-copy figure and a $3 figure: both are correct, for different categories of requester.

How to request: By email to mpd.public-docs@dc.gov, or by mail with a self-addressed stamped envelope to MPD Public Documents Section, ATTN: Accident/Incident Reports, 441 4th Street NW, Room 550 South, Washington, DC 20001. Include your full name, the date, location, and time of the crash, and the six-digit report number (CCN) if you have it, plus a copy of valid government-issued photo ID and a completed 'PD Form 10B, Application for PD Form 10 Accident Report.' In-person requests require an appointment, scheduled by calling (202) 671-6705.

Timeline: Allow six weeks for processing from the date a mail-in request is made, confirmed directly on MPD's own page.

Confidentiality layer: D.C. Code § 50-1401.01b, confirmed directly against the statute's text, bars MPD and the DC Department of Motor Vehicles from 'knowingly disclosing or otherwise making available personal information' from an accident report except to a defined permitted-use list mirroring the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act, involved parties and their representatives, insurers investigating a claim, attorneys investigating potential litigation, and government agencies among them.

How to Get a DC Incident Report (PD-251)

This is the structural opposite of the PD-10 rule above. A PD-251 Incident/Offense Report, DC's analogue to a general police incident report, is available to the general public, not first-party-only, confirmed directly on MPD's own page. Fees associated with producing a PD-251 are currently temporarily waived.

That public access is not only agency practice; a police-specific statute sits underneath it. D.C. Code § 5-113.06(a) provides that the records MPD is required to keep under § 5-113.01(a)(1), (2), and (4), meaning the general complaint files (every complaint made upon personal knowledge, with the complainant's name and residence), the records of lost, missing, or stolen property, and the arrest books, are "open to public inspection when not in actual use." The same subsection makes that requirement "enforceable by mandatory injunction issued by the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on the application of any person." A requester refused inspection of those records has a direct court remedy under the police statute, separate from the DC FOIA appeal route described below.

Submission uses the same channels as a PD-10: email to mpd.public-docs@dc.gov, mail with a self-addressed stamped envelope to the same Public Documents Section address, or an in-person appointment. To make an in-person request, provide either your name plus the date, location, and time of the incident, or the six-digit report number. The same six-week mail-processing estimate applies.

If a request is denied or you need records beyond what a PD-251 covers, DC's Freedom of Information Act applies instead. D.C. Code § 2-534(a)(3), confirmed directly against the statute's text, exempts 'investigatory records compiled for law-enforcement purposes' from disclosure, but only to the extent releasing them would interfere with an enforcement proceeding, deprive someone of a fair trial, invade personal privacy, disclose a confidential source, reveal investigative techniques, or endanger law-enforcement personnel, a case-by-case standard rather than a blanket exemption.

DC Police Bodycam Footage

DC runs two separate tracks for body-worn camera access, and neither one is a simple public-request system.

Proactive release for the most serious incidents: D.C. Code § 5-116.33, confirmed directly against the statute's text, requires that within 5 business days after an officer-involved death or a serious use of force, the Mayor 'publicly release: the names and body-worn camera recordings of all Metropolitan Police Department officers... directly involved,' along with a description of the incident, unless the decedent's next of kin, or the person against whom serious force was used (or their next of kin, if a minor or unable to consent), objects to release. The Metropolitan Police Department must offer the decedent's next of kin a private opportunity to view the recording before any public release.

Currency flag on that 5-day rule: the official DC Code entry for § 5-116.33 carries the notice that the section "includes amendments by temporary legislation that will expire on January 22, 2027," and the section also sets a transitional deadline for incidents occurring between August 1, 2025, and March 23, 2026, which are released within 10 business days after March 23, 2026. Confirm the current text of § 5-116.33 before relying on the 5-business-day deadline after January 22, 2027.

Viewing process for other footage: For an incident that does not meet the death or serious-use-of-force threshold, MPD's administrative body-worn-camera viewing process lets the person shown in a recording, or their legal representative, or a parent if the person is a minor, view it in person at the district station where the incident occurred, no earlier than 48 hours after the incident. This is a viewing right only; MPD does not provide a copy through this process.

Getting an actual copy: A copy requires a standard DC FOIA request through MPD's FOIA Office, subject to D.C. Code § 2-534(a)(2A), a dedicated body-worn-camera FOIA exemption for recordings made inside a personal residence or related to a domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault incident. A FOIA request for body-worn-camera video runs on a longer statutory clock than an ordinary DC FOIA request, and the base deadline drives more of that difference than the extension does. Under D.C. Code § 2-532(c)(2)(A), MPD has 25 business days to respond to a body-worn camera request, against the 15 business days subsection (c)(1) allows for other public records. Under § 2-532(d)(1), the "unusual circumstances" extension for a body-worn camera request is capped at 15 business days in place of the 10 business days allowed for other records, not in addition to them. Subsection (c)(2)(B) also limits where the request may go: a request for a body-worn camera recording may only be submitted to the Metropolitan Police Department. See DC Police Bodycam Laws and our guide to requesting body camera footage for the fuller framework.

Corrections and Practical Notes

No DC-specific statutory process for correcting a factual error on a PD-10 or PD-251 was found; contact MPD's Public Documents Section directly at (202) 727-4357.

The PD-10/PD-251 access-tier split functions as DC's own version of a request trap: assuming a crash report is publicly available the way an incident report is, or that a third party can obtain a PD-10 directly rather than through FOIA, is the most common way a DC request gets rejected.

For the aftermath of a crash beyond the report itself, see District of Columbia Car Accident Laws. For the broader public-records framework, see District of Columbia Public Records Laws and District of Columbia Court Records. For the general process of filing or reading a report, see How to File a Police Report and How to Read a Police Report.

Disclaimer

This article provides general legal information about how to obtain a police crash report, incident report, or body camera footage in the District of Columbia as verified on 2026-08-11. It does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Readers with a specific records dispute, or who need advice about a specific incident, should consult a lawyer licensed in the District of Columbia.

Last updated: 2026-08-11. Fees and portals reflect their published status as of August 2026.