Baltimore city, Maryland local guide: This county or county-equivalent page applies the state and national guidance and official resources below to people looking for accident information in Baltimore city, Maryland. The agency responsible for a police report or records request can depend on where the incident occurred and which agency investigated it. Confirm the agency shown on the report or incident information before requesting a record.
Short answer
If the Maryland Department of State Police (MDSP) investigated the motorcycle accident, start with MDSP’s motorcycle accident-report request service. MDSP says it provides motorcycle accident reports maintained in the State’s central repository to legally entitled parties. Its page offers an online form, barrack, mail, Central Records, and email routes.
This is not one pickup point for every Maryland motorcycle accident. The regulation addresses State Police-investigated reports, while other agencies keep their own records. If another agency investigated, use its records unit. MDSP directs Baltimore City requests to Baltimore Police, and MDTA Police says it does not hold other agencies’ reports. See the official routes below.
Immediate checklist
- Identify the investigating agency before you request. Look at any exchange sheet, incident number, officer information, or the location of the motorcycle accident. “Statewide” does not necessarily mean the State Police holds the particular report.
- Gather the exact motorcycle accident details. The Maryland regulation calls for the exact motorcycle accident date, exact spelling of the driver’s name, county, route number, and the MAARS report number if known. It also identifies additional party details for fatal motorcycle accidents and pedestrians or bicyclists. COMAR 29.02.02.01
- Use the route for the agency that investigated. For an MDSP report, use the official MDSP request page. For Baltimore City or MDTA Police reports, use their separate official pages.
- Plan for the stated search fee and processing interval. MDSP’s current request page states a $4 non-refundable document-search fee, payable by check or money order to Maryland State Police; it does not accept cash. The official materials describe different wait periods, explained below.
- Save the confirmation and keep your request details. If the report cannot be located, those details help the records unit search or help you redirect the request.
Who reports what after a Maryland motorcycle accident
The report you request is not always the same as an obligation to notify police or file a separate written report. Maryland’s official materials support the following distinctions.
| Category | What the official source says | What it means for this guide |
|---|---|---|
| Calling or notifying police | For injury or death motorcycle accidents, drivers have duties to stop, remain, provide information, and give reasonable assistance under § 20-102 and § 20-104. Section 20-104 requires an immediate report to the nearest authorized police office only in its stated no-officer/no-recipient circumstance. | These provisions do not establish one call-to-police rule for every motorcycle accident. |
| Police-investigated report | A police investigation and report filed with the Department of State Police is the statutory exception to the separate written driver report described below. Transportation Article § 20-107 | Requesting a copy does not create the officer report. First determine whether an officer investigated and which agency made the record. |
| Separate driver written report | A driver in an injury-or-death motorcycle accident must report in writing to the “Administration” within 15 days and file insurance/security evidence, subject to statutory exceptions. No written report is required if an officer investigated and filed a report with the Department of State Police; physical incapacity is also an exception. § 20-107 | This is separate from getting a copy. The 15-day provision is not a deadline for every motorcycle accident. |
| DMV/MVA record, insurer notice, public-entity notice, and court deadlines | The official sources used for this report-access page do not establish a separate MVA motorcycle accident-copy process, an insurer-notice rule, a public-entity notice rule, or a lawsuit deadline. | A police-report wait period or records-request timeline does not set any of those other deadlines. This article does not infer one. |
How to request an MDSP motorcycle accident report
MDSP describes the service as being for legally entitled parties. Its Public Information Act page says MDSP may release records to the person named in the record, that person’s attorney, or others allowed by law, and that protected information may not be available. Do not assume that every portion of a record will be released or that a request alone establishes entitlement.
For an MDSP-investigated motorcycle accident, the official request page lists these ways to seek a motor vehicle accident report:
- complete the official online motor vehicle accident-report request form;
- visit the MSP barrack where the report was filed, after calling ahead to confirm availability;
- complete the request form and mail it with the check or money order to Central Records;
- visit the MDSP Central Records Division in person; or
- email the completed request form to MDSP, then mail the $4 check or money order to complete the submission.
The online form asks for contact and delivery information plus such motorcycle accident details as the local case number, motorcycle accident date, county, and party information. The regulation lists the exact date, driver name, applicable deceased/pedestrian/bicyclist name, county, route number, and MAARS report number if known. A report number helps, but is not the only listed identifier. COMAR 29.02.02.01
Timing and fee: an official-source difference to know
MDSP’s current request page tells users to wait at least 10 days after the motorcycle accident for processing. The published State Police regulation says requests for copies will not be considered until at least 20 days after the motorcycle accident, and says a request to review a State Police report at the installation in the area of occurrence will not be considered until at least 5 days after the motorcycle accident. Both the current agency page and regulation state the $4 non-refundable search fee for a copy request; the regulation also says mailed copy requests include a self-addressed stamped envelope.
Because the official sources state different intervals, do not treat 10 days as a guaranteed delivery date. Follow current form instructions; for a mailed copy, the regulation’s 20-day interval is especially important. Call before traveling to confirm availability. MDSP lists Central Records contacts and hours on its official contact page.
When another agency investigated
Baltimore City
MDSP expressly directs requests for motorcycle accidents in Baltimore City to the Baltimore Police Department’s report page. BPD says accident reports from January 1, 2011 forward are available only through the online LexisNexis BuyCrash portal, which BPD directly designates. To retrieve a report, BPD says to use a report number, the full name and incident date, or the location. For reports before 2011, BPD directs requests by email to its Community Correspondence Unit.
Maryland Transportation Authority Police
For a motorcycle accident at BWI/Marshall Airport, the Port of Baltimore, or an MDTA facility, use the MDTA Police Central Records Unit. MDTA offers mail, in-person, and email routes; wait at least seven days. Provide the date and time, location, vehicle types, involved parties, and report number if known. It holds MDTA Police-produced reports only.
Local police, sheriff, campus, or another agency
If the investigator was not MDSP, BPD, or MDTA Police, use that agency’s official records or public-records page. Ask for its procedure, fee, waiting period, and eligibility rules; MDSP timing and fees do not automatically apply. If unsure, provide the known date, location, names, vehicle details, and case number to the likely records unit and ask whether it holds the record.
If the report is unavailable or you need other records
A missing report may still be processing, held by a different custodian, or hard to locate from the identifiers provided. Ask the investigating agency whether it holds a motorcycle accident report and needs a different identifier. The MDSP motorcycle accident form is for initial motorcycle accident-report/call-for-service requests, not photographs, reconstruction materials, thefts, assaults, or other incident records.
For records outside the standard motorcycle accident-report process, MDSP has a Public Information Act request route. Protected information, including some private motor-vehicle-file information, may be withheld. A PIA request differs from the $4 motorcycle accident-report search and may involve reasonable search or copying fees. Under General Provisions § 4-203, an agency generally must grant or deny a request within 30 days. If production will take more than 10 working days, it must give written or email notice within 10 working days with the anticipated time, fee range, and reason for delay.
Keep the confirmation, photos, contact details, and identifiers used in your request. The car-accident evidence checklist can help organize those materials.
Official resources
- Maryland State Police: Request Police Reports
- Maryland State Police: Central Records Division
- Maryland State Police: Public Information Act Requests
- Baltimore Police Department: Obtain a Police Report
- MDTA Police: Central Records Unit
What changes when a motorcycle is involved
Use this version when a motorcycle is involved. The police or state report procedure below remains controlled by jurisdiction and crash facts, but the evidence and insurance file should identify the motorcycle, riding equipment, rider and passenger roles, and motorcycle-specific damage.
Motorcycle insurance is written for motorcycle risks. Required and optional coverage, claim handling, and proof-of-insurance rules vary by state and policy.
- Preserve motorcycle VIN, plate, tow or storage location, and photographs from multiple angles.
- Keep damaged helmet and protective-gear information with the event records when relevant.
- Use the state insurance department for current coverage questions or complaints.
Browse the Motorcycle Accident Guides collection for related pages.
Accident-type official sources
- Motorcycles — National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- State Insurance Departments — National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Sources
- Maryland Department of State Police, “Request Police Reports”
- Code of Maryland Regulations, COMAR 29.02.02.01, “Copies of Police Investigated Accident Reports”
- Maryland Transportation Article § 20-107
- Maryland Department of State Police, “Public Information Act Requests”
- Baltimore Police Department, “Obtain a Police Report”
- Maryland Transportation Authority Police, “Central Records Unit”
- Maryland General Provisions § 4-203