How to get police and traffic camera video of a crash in North Dakota

The public records law that gets you the video

North Dakota open records law, NDCC 44-04-18, and Constitution Article XI, Section 6

Reasonable time; no set number of days

The right: “Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, all records of a public entity are public records, open and accessible for inspection during reasonable office hours” (NDCC 44-04-18(1); N.D. Const. art. XI, §6). A “record” is recorded information of any kind, “regardless of the physical form or characteristic,” which covers video (44-04-17.1(16)). Asking: an initial request “need not be made in person or in writing,” the entity may require written clarification of what you want but may not ask your motive or your identity, and it must give you one copy and mail it on request (44-04-18(2)). Deadline: the statute sets no number of days; it is violated when access to a record that is not exempt or confidential “is denied or unreasonably delayed” (44-04-18(8)). The Attorney General says an entity must respond “within a reasonable time, either by providing the records or by citing the legal authority for denying the request,” that what is reasonable depends on factors including the amount and type of records, and its 2026 Open Records Manual says the response time “will usually be measured in hours or a few days rather than several days or weeks,” with longer delays possible for reasons such as reviewing for exemptions, the volume requested and staff availability, and that an entity facing a delay should keep the requester informed. Exempt versus confidential: an exempt record may be released in the entity’s discretion; a confidential record may not be (44-04-17.1(3), (5)). An entity may not deny an open record because it also contains confidential or closed information; it must release the rest and withhold only that information (44-04-18.10). Fees (44-04-18(2), (3)): up to $0.25 per impression of a paper copy; for any copy that is not a paper copy, such as a video file, “a reasonable fee,” meaning the actual cost of making the copy, including labor, materials and equipment; actual postage; up to $25 per hour, excluding the first hour, for locating records; and a separate charge of up to $25 per hour, excluding the first hour, for excising confidential or closed material. An electronic copy must be provided at no cost other than those charges, except that the entity may charge the actual cost of information technology resources when producing it takes more than one hour. The entity may require payment before locating, redacting, making or mailing the copy, and may treat five or more requests from you within seven days as one request for computing time. If you are in a lawsuit, adjudicative proceeding or arbitration against the agency, your request must follow the discovery rules and go to the agency’s attorney (44-04-18(6)).

Police body camera and dashcam video

Body cam in private place: exempt

North Dakota has one statute on body camera video: “An image taken with a body camera or similar device and which is taken in a private place is an exempt record” (NDCC 44-04-18.7(9)). The chapter does not define “private place.” The Attorney General’s 2026 Open Records Manual says the earlier requirement that the images be taken “by a law enforcement officer or a firefighter” was removed in 2023, although its March 2026 Open Records Guide still uses the older wording. We found no statute on dashcam video and no statute setting how long police video must be kept, so the general open records law and its exemptions govern. The exemptions most likely to reach crash video: active criminal investigative information, which includes information from “any type of surveillance” (44-04-18.7(1), (4); see the next section); “Unless otherwise provided by law, a sensitive image as defined by section 44-04-17.1 is an exempt record” (44-04-18.7(12)), a sensitive image being “an image depicting an exposed intimate part, gruesome injury, deceased individual, or a minor” (44-04-17.1(17)), added by 2025 Senate Bill 2083 (Session Laws chapter 410), in effect since August 1, 2025; any image of a minor victim of any crime (44-04-18.7(8)); and personal information such as driver’s license numbers, home addresses and phone numbers, which stays exempt even in inactive files (44-04-18.7(1), (6)). A crime victim may also invoke the constitutional right “to prevent the disclosure of information or records that could be used to locate or harass the victim or the victim’s family” (N.D. Const. art. I, §25(1)(e)); the Attorney General notes such information may be in video. A 911 call recording is an exempt record, but on request you may listen to it (not copy or record it) and may ask for a written transcript, which must be provided within a reasonable time (57-40.6-07(4)); the Attorney General has found that an agency had discretion to withhold 911 transcripts that also contained active criminal investigative information (N.D.A.G. 2014-O-15, cited in its 2026 Open Records Manual). Where to ask: the Highway Patrol says to send open records requests to NDHPRecordRequest@nd.gov with as much information as possible, such as the date and location; for a city police department or sheriff, ask that agency. Retention: the state records retention database lists, for the Highway Patrol, “video recordings of traffic stops and other offenses” that are non-evidentiary kept “45 days from the downloaded date” (series 190135), and evidentiary video of criminal offenses destroyed within six months of the final disposition date (series 190104). The same database lists, under County Government, Sheriff, dash camera and body camera videos kept “60 days from downloaded date” if non-evidentiary and 6 months after final disposition if evidentiary (series 190138, 190139); the Attorney General says political subdivisions set their own schedules. We found no city police series for this video.

When police can hold video back

Active investigation: may be withheld

Active criminal intelligence information and active criminal investigative information “are not subject to section 44-04-18 and section 6 of article XI of the Constitution of North Dakota” (NDCC 44-04-18.7(1)). Criminal investigative information is information about an identifiable person compiled by a criminal justice agency in a criminal investigation of a specific act or omission, including information derived from laboratory tests, reports of investigators or informants, “or any type of surveillance,” and it “must be considered ‘active’ as long as it is related to an ongoing investigation that is continuing with a reasonable good-faith anticipation of securing an arrest or prosecution in the foreseeable future” (44-04-18.7(4)). The Attorney General’s 2026 Open Records Manual says the section was amended in 1997 to make these records exempt rather than confidential, giving agencies discretion to disclose them, and that criminal investigative information “is not exempt under this statute once it becomes inactive,” although personal information in the file stays exempt. It also says the names of people involved in a traffic accident are not criminal investigative information. Some basic information is never covered by the exemption, including facts of an arrest, a chronological list of incidents with the initial offense report information (offense, date, time, general location, officer and a brief summary), and the radio log (44-04-18.7(2)). An agency must keep a public list of active files more than one year old, with each file’s number and the date it was opened (44-04-18.7(1)). The statute sets no date when a crash investigation stops being active, and we found no official guidance on that point. Example from its own page: the Fargo Police Department says that if a case has not cleared the court process, it will not provide the report. Closed records must be disclosed under a subpoena or court order, and confidential records under a court order, unless another law prohibits it (44-04-18.11). The crash report itself is governed separately by 39-08-13 and is available from NDDOT.

Do traffic cameras in North Dakota record?

No NDDOT recording statement found

The North Dakota Department of Transportation runs the ND Roads travel information map, which the Highway Patrol says shows road conditions, work zones and camera feeds. We found no official NDDOT statement, on its website, the travel map or elsewhere, on whether those cameras record or how long any images are kept, and NDDOT’s records retention schedule in the state database lists no series for traffic camera images. Because any stored images may be overwritten quickly, ask NDDOT right away: open records requests do not have to be in writing or on a form (NDCC 44-04-18(2)), and NDDOT’s Contact Us page and its main number, 701-328-2500, are the official routes we found. Give the highway, nearest mile marker or city, direction and exact time. Cameras run by a city or county are separate systems; ask that government directly.

Red-light and speed cameras

No camera enforcement statute found

We found no North Dakota statute that authorizes or bans red-light cameras or speed cameras. We searched the full text of every chapter of the Century Code listed in the Legislative Branch’s index for camera, automated traffic enforcement, photo enforcement, speed camera, red-light camera and photo radar provisions and found none, and the 2025 Session Laws and the 2026 special session laws enacted none. If a city tells you a camera captured your crash, ask that city for the images under the open records law (NDCC 44-04-18) and for the legal authority if it refuses.

If your request is denied

AG opinion request within 30 days

A denial must describe the legal authority for it, or state that the record does not exist, and must be in writing if you ask (NDCC 44-04-18(7)). The Attorney General notes that declining to release an exempt record is not a violation. Attorney General review: any interested person may ask the Attorney General for an opinion on a written denial or other alleged violation of 44-04-18 by any public entity other than the legislative assembly, and the request “must be made within thirty days of the alleged violation” (44-04-21.1(1)); the Attorney General says it must receive the request within those 30 days. The Attorney General says to send a letter or an email with the facts, the name of the public entity, the date of the alleged violation, your name and contact information (no anonymous requests), a copy of your written request if you made one and the entity’s response if you received one; the letter goes to Office of Attorney General, 600 E. Boulevard Ave, Dept. 125, Bismarck ND 58505. The Attorney General bases the opinion on the facts the public entity gives, may review records claimed to be exempt without releasing them, and says the process generally takes around 120 to 180 days. If the opinion finds a violation, the entity has seven days to disclose the record; if it does not and you then win a civil action, you must be awarded costs, disbursements and reasonable attorney’s fees (44-04-21.1(2)). Court: an interested person may sue over a violation of 44-04-18; the complaint must include a dated, written request for the record, and the court may award declaratory relief, an injunction, a writ of mandamus, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees, plus, for an intentional or knowing violation, damages of $1,000 or actual damages, whichever is greater (44-04-21.2(1)). The action must be started within 60 days of the date you knew or should have known of the violation, or within 30 days after an Attorney General opinion on it, whichever is later, in the county where the entity has its principal office. You may not sue for attorney’s fees or damages until at least three working days after giving notice of the violation to the entity’s chief administrative officer (unless the Attorney General has found that entity in violation before), and the remedies are not available if the violation was corrected before suit and no one was prejudiced (44-04-21.2(3)). You may want to ask a lawyer about a subpoena or court order, which can reach closed and confidential records (44-04-18.11).

What to do now

1. 1

   Request police video right away

   Ask the responding agency for body camera and dashcam video with the date, time, location and case number. For the Highway Patrol, email NDHPRecordRequest@nd.gov.

2. 2

   Ask the agency to keep the video

   The state retention database lists 45 days from download for Highway Patrol non-evidentiary video and 60 days on its county sheriff schedule. Say in your request that the video relates to a crash and ask that it be preserved.

3. 3

   Ask NDDOT about camera images now

   We found no NDDOT statement on whether its traffic cameras record. Contact NDDOT at once with the highway, location, direction and time.

4. 4

   Ask the Attorney General if denied

   If an agency denies or unreasonably delays your request, ask the Attorney General for an opinion within 30 days of the denial or delay.

5. 5

   Post the crash on the bounty board

   Dashcam and business camera footage is not in any public agency’s files and is often overwritten within days.

Frequently asked questions