DMV Access records?

Hey guys, I’m not sure what sub-forum this should go under, so I went with Cars.

They covered a story on the news a while back about police using DMV records…inappropriately. I had a rough encounter with the local police. I was driving at night, not drunk/high/committing any crimes, got stopped, didn’t end up getting physically harmed, but was quite shaken up by it. I wasn’t charged with anything, because I wasn’t doing anything illegal. I gave the cop the finger a bunch of times and told him to go F himself.

I filed a couple Right-to-Know/Sunshine Law requests to get copies of the Incident Reports. The local police officer’s report was almost completely ridiculous lies. He claimed the State Police were looking for a Corolla with two black males (I’m a singular white male driving a Camry) and that the State Police arrived at the scene of the traffic stop (I didn’t see any show up). The State Police replied to my request for Incident Reports about stopping the two black males and showing up at my traffic stop by saying no reports exist.

Among the other lies in the report he stated that he held me for 15 minutes for the State Police to show up and to run my plates. I heard him do that over the radio and and the guy on the other end report back the results in the first few minutes of the encounter. And like I said, I never saw the State Police show up at all. So I’m wondering if anyone knows if Pennsylvania logs running license plate checks and has requested the records? Or if anyone’s ever requested the records for other states? I’m not sure what the name/term of record I should request is. The open records law only requires that they comply with valid requests, not be helpful, so I don’t want to spend six months getting access.

If he didnt cite you for anything and didnt physically do anything to harm you, what is it you’re trying to achieve?


Get him fired, sent to federal prison, and sue under Section 1983 for violating my civil rights? Pie in the sky, I know.

But he did threaten to drag me from my car and I thought he was pulling out a gun to shoot me in the face at one point during our brief time together. Had he thought I was going to shoot him in the face, I probably wouldn’t be alive right now, so that seems like that’s taken seriously (when you have a badge, at least).

If you really want to pursue that then I would talk to an attorney, not a tech forum. You can put in a FOIA for the dash cam and audio, plus body cam if there is one… but if they are dirty then it would just mean that any evidence gets destroyed. The lawyer would be the one to determine the best course of action. The cop can likely come up with just about anything they want to stop you. Threats to drag you out of the car and putting their hand on their pistol are not legal grounds for going after a police officer, and the only thing that may be valid in court is if you could prove it wasnt a terry stop. Otherwise you’re probably getting worked up over something you cant do anything about.


What you are describing is tyranny. Always try to remember that militias and churches are much stronger than government or military intervention. But if I were stopped I would make the stop last as long as possible to waste the cop or troopers time and get my tax dollars out of it. :grin:

That was probably ill-advised. Lucky you’re white.

Anyway if you’re really concerned about this, get an attorney.


If you feel there is a case here then you need to seek an attorney as already stated. Babbeling on in a internet forum could adversely effect evidence so you should spare the details for your defence.

Acting like a shit ass won’t get you anywhere, keep your composure even in injustice. Otherwise you’re no better.

PennDot website has a ton of info.

1 Like

True that.
Reading all this, i’m feeling lucky to not live in the US. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a bunch of cool stuff there, but the fact any person could have a weapon legally, would make me concerned. Even if i’m not a police officer.
Also, all the things one hears when it comes to racial problems atm don’t help.

As for the case at hand: I can only repeat what has been said. If you want to take legal action, get a lawyer. No use trying to sue the state without any legal advisor.

What exactly happened that made you give the finger?

Did this precede the officer threatening to drag you out of the car?

Cops walking up to a car with their hand on their sidearm is a standard practice. Traffic stops are incredibly dangerous for police. I wouldn’t really read into that bit.

1 Like

Everything you heard is absolutely true. Stay out. Spread the word to all, do not come to the US.


The cop began the encounter by tearing ass down the road to catch up with me (I wasn’t speeding), tailgating me, and acting like a typical road rage asshole. Then he stopped me for no reason in a gas station parking lot while I was trying to get gas and demanding to know where I was coming from (none of his fucking business).

I didn’t come to a tech forum for legal advice. I came asking if anyone knew how a technology worked. If the answer to that is, “I don’t know,” I don’t need (bad) armchair legal advice instead. Thanks!

I highly doubt anyone here is going to know specifics for 1 states DMV system and how it handles this stuff, just call their customer support.


If anyone happens to have specifics please feel free to PM evilpaul with the details