How can I get a copy of a police report?
The Vestal Police Department is governed by the Freedom of Information Law (New York State Public Officers Law, sections 84-90) as far as releasing records that are requested. In most cases a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request must be submitted to the Vestal Town Clerk and it is then forwarded to the appropriate Town department for review. You will be notified within five business days regarding your request. There is a $.25 per page charge to offset copying costs.
He may very well be telling the truth. Most departments have guidelines on who they release reports to. The purpose of the guildelines are to protect ongoing investigations and the parties involved (victims, witnesses, those wrongly accused, juveniles, etc). As policies vary by department, Freedom of Information laws seem to vary by state (I’m a cop, not a lawyer). If you really want a copy of the report and the department says you’re not entitled to one, you could file a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). FOIA requests are not ‘magic bullets’, and chances are the police department’s policy is based on the laws in their state. In other words, your FOIA request may be denied for the same reasons your informal request was denied. Generally speaking, it is much easier to obtain court records than police reports. If someone was charged as a result of the police investigation, you should be able to obtain a copy of the affidavit submitted to obtain the arrest warrant. Also
Depending on the nature of the report and any confidentiality issues involved, report copies are generally available through the station that took the report. There is a fee of $12.00 each report. Reports take approximately one week to become available – traffic accident reports may take longer. If you do not have the report’s file number, please be prepared to supply the date, time, location and name of the parties involved to assist us in locating the proper report.
Procedures vary, depending upon whether or not the person requesting the report is the alleged violator, and whether or not there are charges from the report being prosecuted. If charges are being prosecuted, procedures vary depending upon whether or not the party being prosecuted has an attorney. Procedures also vary depending upon whether or not there was a court case in which the report was filed as evidence; and if so, whether or not a disposition (finding and judgment) has been entered on the case. The procedures below describe how to get a copy of the police report, depending upon the circumstance. Note: The first procedure below for “IF NO CHARGES WERE FILED FROM THE POLICE REPORT” should be followed for a third party requesting the report, regardless of the circumstance. However, for the alleged violator, the procedures for ALL of the circumstances below apply.IF NO CHARGES WERE FILED FROM THE POLICE REPORTContact the police department who wrote the report and ask for their pro
