How to get a Wake Forest crash report

Get a Wake Forest police crash report through the town's Police to Citizen website, which the town names as the place to obtain an incident, accident or arrest report. A report written by a state trooper or a sheriff's deputy comes from NCDMV instead.

Which of those applies depends on where the crash happened. Both paths are set out below, with the timing the statute puts on the officer and the details the request asks for.

How does the Wake Forest Police Department release crash reports?

Through P2C, short for Police to Citizen. The department's public information page says to use the P2C website to obtain an incident, accident or arrest report. The town's P2C page says the site lets people view accident and crash reports and search police records by address.

The town lists Captain Brandon High as the contact for questions about P2C, at 919-435-9611. The department's main station is at 745 Merritt Capital Dr., Suite 113, Wake Forest, NC 27587, and the non-emergency number is 919-554-6150. Call that number before going in person to ask when records staff are available.

The town's police fee schedule lists charges for false alarms, parking tickets, fingerprinting and taxicab permits, and it lists no charge for a crash report. The town says its fees are subject to change without notice. Ask about any charge for a copy when you call.

What if a trooper or a deputy worked the crash?

Then the report comes from NCDMV. The State Highway Patrol states that crash reports investigated by all of North Carolina's law enforcement agencies are forwarded to NCDMV, and G.S. 20-166.1 has Highway Patrol officers send their reports straight to the Division.

The officer fills out NCDMV's crash report form, numbered DMV-349. A member of the public asks for a copy on a different form, the Crash Report Request, Form TR-67A. NCDMV's crash reports page says individuals involved in a crash receive a redacted copy by mail or in person, and individuals cannot order a crash report online.

A mailed request goes to the address printed on the TR-67A, which is the Traffic Records Branch, Crash Reports Unit, 3106 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27697-3106. The form says cash is not accepted for mailed requests, and NCDMV takes a signed check or money order made out to NCDMV. NCDMV says to allow 10 business days from receipt.

In person, NCDMV takes requests at the Raleigh Central Services License Plate Agency at 4121 New Bern Ave. NCDMV tells visitors to use the door marked Vehicle Registration, not Driver License, and says requests for five records or fewer can be received immediately.

The fee for an NCDMV copy of an accident report is set by statute, in G.S. 20-42(b), and the current TR-67A form states the amount.

How soon is the report written, and is it public?

G.S. 20-166.1 requires the investigating officer to make a written report within 24 hours of the crash. A local department such as the Wake Forest Police Department then forwards it to NCDMV within 10 days after receiving it.

For a Wake Forest police report, NCDMV's copy depends on that forwarding step. The same statute makes reports by law enforcement officers public records. A report made by someone other than an officer is generally not usable as evidence at a trial, which is why the officer's report carries the weight.

What do you need before you ask for it?

Have the crash details in hand. The TR-67A asks for the name of a driver, the date of the crash, the county of the crash and a driver license number. It also asks for the requester's full name, street address and contact phone, the identification provided with its type, number and issuing state, and a signature.

The county box takes some care in this town. Franklin County lists Wake Forest among its municipalities, so a crash on the Franklin County side of town is a Franklin County crash on the form.

The form says an unredacted report requires what it calls a DPPA permissible use. A requester without one, including a person involved in the crash, checks the box for a redacted copy. NCDMV lets North Carolina businesses such as insurers and attorneys request an unredacted report online when the request meets a permissible use under federal law.

Read the report as soon as it arrives. In North Carolina, they look for any opportunity to raise the doctrine of contributory negligence. The guide to the first days after a crash lists what to check, and the Wake Forest crash injury page explains which agency covers which part of town.