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

The public records law that gets you the video

Texas Public Information Act, Government Code Chapter 552

Promptly; 10 business days to set a date

The Public Information Act covers state agencies, counties, cities and their police departments. Your request must be in writing, delivered by U.S. mail, email or hand delivery, or by another method the agency approves on its website or public sign, such as an online portal (§552.234(a), (b)); an agency that posts one designated mailing address and one email address need only respond to requests sent there, by hand delivery or by an approved method (§552.234(c), (d)). The Attorney General keeps a public database of those addresses. The agency may not ask why you want the records, only clarify or narrow the request (§552.222). The officer for public information must promptly produce public information, meaning as soon as possible under the circumstances, within a reasonable time, without delay (§552.221(a)); if it cannot produce the information within 10 business days after the request, it must certify that in writing and set a date and hour within a reasonable time when it will be available (§552.221(d)). If it wants to withhold anything under an exception, it must ask the Attorney General for a decision and state the exceptions within 10 business days (§552.301(b)), tell you so in writing within the same 10 business days (§552.301(d)), and send you a copy of its arguments by the 15th business day (§552.301(e-1)); the Attorney General must rule within 45 business days, extendable by 10 (§552.306(a)). An agency that misses these steps faces a presumption that the information is public (§552.302). Fees follow the Attorney General’s cost rules (1 Tex. Admin. Code ch. 70): $.10 per standard paper page, $3.00 per DVD, $1.00 per CD, actual cost for other electronic media, and for larger requests labor and 20 percent overhead (§70.3). If charges will exceed $40, the agency must first send a written itemized estimate, and the request is treated as withdrawn unless you answer in writing within 10 business days (§552.2615). Example, Department of Public Safety only: it says it will send an itemized estimate when charges are expected to exceed $40.00 and generally requires a deposit or bond when they exceed $100.00.

Police body camera and dashcam video

Body cam: special rules; 90-day minimum

Body camera recordings have their own statute, Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 2B, Subchapter C (moved there from Occupations Code Chapter 1701 by H.B. 4504, effective January 1, 2025). A written request for body camera information must include (1) the date and approximate time of the recording, (2) the specific location, and (3) the name of one or more individuals known to be a subject of the recording; leaving something out does not stop you from asking again (art. 2B.0112(a), (b)). The Act’s general right of access (Gov’t Code §552.021) does not apply to body camera information, except information that is or could be used as evidence in a criminal prosecution (art. 2B.0112(c), (d)); for footage that is or could be evidence the agency may seek to withhold it through an Attorney General ruling or raise any exception, and for any footage it may release a copy after redacting information made confidential by law (art. 2B.0112(e)). In other words, release of body camera video that is not evidence is not something the Act compels. Two limits matter for crashes. The agency may not release any portion of a recording made in a private space, or of a recording involving the investigation of a misdemeanor punishable by fine only that does not result in arrest (for example, a traffic ticket that carries only a fine), without written authorization from the person who is the subject of that portion, or the person’s authorized representative if deceased (art. 2B.0112(f)); if you are that person, sign that authorization with your request. And a recording made without any legal or policy requirement and unrelated to a law enforcement purpose is confidential (art. 2B.0112(h)). For timing, the agency has until the 20th business day to ask the Attorney General for a ruling and to notify you, and until the 25th for its other submissions (art. 2B.0113); a voluminous request (more than five incidents, more than five requests in 24 hours, or more than five hours of video) may take until the 20th business day to produce (art. 2B.0114). The Attorney General’s fee, in 1 Tex. Admin. Code §70.13, is $10.00 per recording plus $1.00 per full minute of footage if identical information has not already been obtained by a member of the public, and the agency may waive or reduce it in the public interest. Every agency with body cameras must have a policy requiring the retention of video for at least 90 days (art. 2B.0106(b)(2)(A)); many keep it longer, but do not count on it. Dashboard camera video has no comparable release statute that we found, so the general Act and its exceptions govern, with one exception: a person stopped or arrested on suspicion of an intoxication offense such as DWI is entitled to a copy of video of the stop, the arrest, sobriety tests and any breath or blood specimen procedure (art. 2B.0154). In a lawsuit, TxDOT says subpoenas for dash cam video, field notes and on-scene photographs go to the investigating agency.

When police can hold video back

Pending case: presumed to interfere

Government Code §552.108(a)(1) lets a law enforcement agency or prosecutor withhold information dealing with the detection, investigation or prosecution of crime if release would interfere with it. The Attorney General’s Public Information Act Handbook (2026) says the agency should explain how and why release would interfere and must state the status of the case, and that release of information relating to a pending criminal investigation or prosecution would presumptively interfere. So video of a crash under criminal investigation, such as a suspected intoxication or hit-and-run case, can be withheld while that case is pending. The end of the case does not guarantee release: §552.108(a)(2) also lets an agency withhold information about an investigation that did not result in conviction or deferred adjudication. That ground does not apply, however, if a person described or depicted in the record (other than a peace officer) is deceased or incapacitated, or if every person depicted who is not deceased or incapacitated consents to release (§552.108(c-1)). Basic information about an arrest or a crime must be released promptly regardless (§552.108(c)). For body camera recordings, art. 2B.0111 adds that a recording documenting an officer’s use of deadly force or otherwise related to an administrative or criminal investigation of an officer may not be released until all criminal matters are finally adjudicated and related administrative investigations end, unless the agency decides release furthers a law enforcement purpose. The crash report itself is different: the handbook says an agency must release it to a person with a statutory right of access under Transportation Code §550.065(c) even if it relates to a pending criminal investigation.

Do traffic cameras in Texas record?

TxDOT: footage is not recorded

TxDOT says so plainly on its live traffic cameras page: “Notice: TxDOT camera footage is not recorded. Traffic cameras are for real-time monitoring only.” Houston TranStar, the regional traffic center whose page carries TxDOT’s Houston cameras, likewise says video from the traffic cameras is not archived. A 2025 bill that would have required TxDOT to record and keep its camera feeds for 30 days (H.B. 2621, 89th Legislature) passed the House but was left in the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, and its House committee bill analysis reports the author’s statement that TxDOT maintains live video footage across 25 cities but does not maintain an archive of it. Because the Act reaches only information that exists, a request for TxDOT camera video will almost certainly find nothing; an agency that has no responsive information must tell you so in writing within 10 business days (§552.221(f)). City-run traffic or intersection cameras are a different matter, and each city sets its own practice, so if a city camera covered the crash, send that city a written request at once naming the camera location, date and time window, and ask whether any recording or still image exists. TxDOT takes open records requests through its Open Records Management and Tracking System or by email to TxDOT_ORR@txdot.gov.

Red-light and speed cameras

Red-light cameras banned since 2019

Texas bars red-light camera enforcement by local authorities and speed camera enforcement by cities. Transportation Code §707.020, added by H.B. 1631 (effective June 2, 2019), says that notwithstanding any other law a local authority may not implement or operate a photographic traffic signal enforcement system on a highway or street under its jurisdiction, §707.021 bars a local authority from issuing a civil or criminal charge or citation based on a recorded image from such a system, and the Attorney General enforces the ban (§707.020(b)). H.B. 1631 let a local authority that had an ordinance and a contract in place before May 7, 2019 keep running its system until the contract’s expiration date as it stood on that date, unless the contract allowed termination for adverse state legislation (section 7 of the bill); we did not confirm whether any such contract remains in force. Speed cameras are barred separately: under §542.2035, a municipality may not implement or operate an automated traffic control system to enforce posted speed limits. We found no Texas statute authorizing either kind of camera, so in most crashes there is no red-light or speed camera image to request. If you believe a camera that was operating captured the crash, ask the city that runs it in writing right away.

If your request is denied

AG ruling, complaint, or court

We found no administrative appeal to the agency in the Act. Instead, an agency that wants to withhold must ask the Attorney General’s Open Records Division for a ruling (§552.301), and you may send the Attorney General your own written comments on why the information should be released, copying the agency (§552.304); the ruling is issued in writing and copied to you (§552.306(b)). If an agency that wants to withhold fails to request a ruling or to send you the required notices on time, the information is presumed public and must be released unless there is a compelling reason to withhold it (§552.302). If an agency fails to respond to you as §552.221 requires, you may send the Attorney General a written complaint with your original request and any reply you received; for requests received on or after September 1, 2025, if the Attorney General finds the agency improperly failed to comply, the agency may not charge you for the information and, to withhold anything, must request a ruling within five business days of being notified and release the information unless there is a compelling reason to withhold it (§552.328). You can also contact the Attorney General’s Open Government Hotline at (877) 673-6839 for its informal complaint process. If you think you were overcharged, complain in writing to the Attorney General, who decides the proper charge (§552.269(a)); the handbook lists a toll-free Cost Hotline at (888) 672-6787. For a violation of the Act, you may file a signed written complaint with the district or county attorney of the county where the agency is located (or the Travis County district attorney for a state agency, or the Attorney General if the agency is the district or county attorney), who must decide before the 31st day whether to sue and tell you in writing (§552.3215(e), (g)). You may also sue for a writ of mandamus in the district court of the county where the agency’s main offices are located (§552.321); the Attorney General’s handbook says this is available even after the Attorney General has ruled the information may be withheld, and you need not wait for a ruling. You may want to ask a lawyer before filing suit.

What to do now

1. 1

   Send written requests today

   Email the investigating agency’s designated public information address. For body camera video include the date and approximate time, exact location, and the name of at least one person recorded, and ask for dashcam video too.

2. 2

   Authorize release of your own footage

   If the crash led only to a fine-only ticket and no arrest, the agency needs written authorization from the person recorded. If that is you, sign and attach it.

3. 3

   Ask for preservation in writing

   Agency policies need only keep body camera video at least 90 days, and dashcam retention varies by agency. Ask each agency in your request to preserve all video of the crash.

4. 4

   Look beyond public cameras

   TxDOT traffic cameras do not record and red-light cameras are banned, so private video matters most: nearby businesses, buses, and other drivers’ dashcams. Post the crash on the bounty board.

Frequently asked questions