Houston Police Records
Houston police records are held by the Houston Police Department Records Division at 1200 Travis Street in downtown Houston. If you need a copy of an incident report, accident report, or other police record, HPD is the place to start. The city has more than 2.3 million residents and is the largest in Texas. HPD handles over 600,000 reports each year. You can search for records in person at the Records Division, file a request by mail, or use the City of Houston open records portal online. The process is set by Texas law, and most reports cost just a few dollars to get. This page walks you through how to find and get Houston police records.
Houston Overview
Houston Police Records Division
The HPD Records Division sits on the 6th floor of the main headquarters at 1200 Travis Street. It is the central place for all HPD incident and accident reports. The office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. It is closed on weekends and city holidays. You can call (713) 308-1100 to check on a report or ask about the process before you go in.
About 50 staff members work in the Records Division. They handle requests in the order they come in. Most take 5 to 10 business days to process. If you go in person, the lobby has public access computers where you can look up and request reports on the spot. Bring a valid photo ID. That is a must for all records requests. HPD also has Spanish language help at the office for those who need it.
| Office | Houston Police Department - Records Division |
|---|---|
| Address | 1200 Travis Street, 6th Floor Houston, TX 77002 |
| Phone | (713) 308-1100 |
| Fax | (713) 308-1101 |
| Hours | Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM |
| Website | houstonpolice.org |
Rush processing is an option if you need a report fast. There is an extra fee for that. For regular requests, plan on about a week. Reports that deal with ongoing cases may take longer, or the department may hold them back under Texas Government Code Section 552.108, which lets police withhold records tied to active investigations.
The Houston Police Department website is the main hub for department news, crime data, and public contact info.
From the HPD site you can find links to patrol stations, division contacts, and crime mapping tools for the Houston area.
How to Get Houston Police Reports
There are three ways to get police records in Houston. You can go in person to the Records Division, send a request by mail, or file a Public Information Act request online. Each method works. The one you pick depends on how fast you need the report and whether you can get to the office.
For in-person requests, head to 1200 Travis Street, 6th floor. Bring your photo ID. Tell the clerk what report you need. Give them the report number if you have it, or the date and location of the incident. You can also give names of the people in the report. Staff will look it up and make copies while you wait in many cases. Standard copies are $6.00 per report. Certified copies cost $8.00. Crime victims can get one free copy with a valid ID.
Mail requests go to HPD Records Division, 1200 Travis Street, 6th Floor, Houston, TX 77002. Put the report number, date, location, and names in your letter. Include a check or money order made out to the City of Houston for the fee. The office will mail the report back to you once it is ready.
Online requests go through the City of Houston Open Records portal. You can also email your request to HPDCorrespondence@houstontx.gov. Under the Texas Public Information Act, HPD has 10 business days to respond. You do not need to give a reason for your request.
Note: HPD incident reports usually take 5 to 7 business days to show up in the system after an incident happens, so wait at least a week before you request one.
Houston Police Records Fees
HPD charges set fees for copies of police records. These match what Texas law allows under the Public Information Act. The costs are the same whether you go in person or mail your request. Here is what you can expect to pay.
A standard incident or offense report costs $6.00 per copy. Certified copies run $8.00 each. Accident reports are the same: $6.00 for a regular copy, $8.00 for certified. If you need general paper copies of other records, those are $0.10 per page for letter size and $0.15 for legal size. A CD or DVD copy is $1.00 per disc.
For big requests that take a lot of staff time, HPD can charge $15.00 per hour for labor after the first two hours. There is also a 20% overhead charge on top of labor costs. If the total cost goes past $40.00, the department will send you an itemized estimate before they start work. The first 50 pages are free if the records sit in one location, per state law. You can pay with cash, check, money order, or credit card in person. Mail payments take check or money order only. Make checks out to the City of Houston.
Crime victims get one free copy of their report. Bring your ID and let the clerk know you are the victim listed in the report.
Houston Incident Report Details
HPD incident reports (also called offense reports) are the most common type of police record people ask for. These are the reports officers write when they respond to a call or take a report at the station. Each one tells the story of what happened from the officer's point of view.
A Houston police incident report contains the date, time, and exact location of the event, sometimes with GPS coordinates. It lists the victim or complainant's full name, date of birth, address, phone number, and statement. If there is a suspect, the report includes their name (if known), a physical description, what they were wearing, and which way they went. Witness names and contact info go in the report too, along with any statements they gave.
The officer narrative is the core of the report. It describes what the officer saw, heard, and did at the scene. Property sections list any items that were stolen, damaged, or recovered, with descriptions and dollar values. Vehicle info covers the year, make, model, color, license plate, and VIN. Offense codes classify the crime using the Texas Penal Code. Disposition codes show whether the case was cleared, unfounded, or still open. The officer's name, badge number, and supervisor sign-off are at the bottom.
Supplemental reports add new info as the case moves forward. You can request those using the same report number as the original.
Note: Juvenile records have restricted access and need extra steps to get, even for the people named in them.Houston Accident Report Access
Accident reports in Houston follow a different path than other police records. HPD officers file crash reports (called CR-3 forms) within 10 days of the wreck per Texas Transportation Code Section 550.065. Those reports go into the statewide CRIS system run by the Texas Department of Transportation. You can buy copies there online with a credit card.
There is a catch. Accident reports stay confidential for 60 days after the crash. After that, they become public records with some info redacted. If you need a report sooner, you may need to go through the insurance company or an attorney. You can also file a Public Information Act request with HPD directly, but the 60-day rule still applies.
When asking for an accident report, have the date, time, and location of the crash ready. Names of the people in the wreck help too. If you have the HPD report number (it starts with the letter A followed by 7 digits), that speeds things up. For crashes that happened on a state highway, contact the Texas DPS instead of HPD.
HPD Patrol Stations in Houston
Houston is a big city. It covers over 640 square miles. HPD runs 12 patrol stations spread across the city so officers can respond fast no matter where you are. You can also request police records at these stations, though the main Records Division at 1200 Travis handles most requests.
Here are the HPD district stations across Houston:
- Central Patrol: 61 Riesner St - (713) 247-4400
- Clear Lake Patrol: 2855 Bay Area Blvd - (713) 476-4444
- Eastside Patrol: 7525 Sherman St - (713) 925-7300
- Kingwood Patrol: 3915 Rustic Woods Dr - (713) 476-1123
- North Patrol: 9455 West Montgomery Rd - (713) 697-4400
- Northwest Patrol: 6000 Teague Rd - (713) 896-3400
- Southeast Patrol: 2200 Aldine Mail Route - (713) 419-3700
The rest of the stations include Midwest Patrol at 3801 Corder St, Northeast Patrol at 8301 Ley Rd, South Gessner Patrol at 8605 Westplace Dr, Southwest Patrol at 13097 Nitida St, and Westside Patrol at 3203 Silber Rd. Each station serves its part of the city with 24-hour patrol coverage. If you are not sure which station covers your area, call the HPD non-emergency line at (713) 884-3131.
Houston Police Records Online
HPD and the City of Houston run several online tools that can help you find police records and related info. These are free to use and available around the clock.
The HPD Crime Map shows reported crimes across Houston by type, date, and location. It is a good starting point if you want to see what happened in a certain area. The Houston Municipal Court portal has traffic citation info and some incident reports. For people worried about someone in jail, VINE Link is a free service that sends you alerts when an offender's custody status changes. You can sign up by phone at 1-877-894-8463 or on the VINE website.
The Texas DPS Sex Offender Registry lets you search by name or by a map radius around any Houston address. Houston Crime Stoppers takes anonymous tips at (713) 222-TIPS if you have info about a crime. The city's 311 line handles non-emergency service requests and can point you in the right direction for records that are not strictly police reports.
Note: Body-worn camera footage from HPD officers must be requested through the HPD Legal Services Division at (713) 308-8800, not the Records Division.Police Records and Texas Law
Your right to get Houston police records comes from the Texas Public Information Act, found in Government Code Chapter 552. This law says that government records, including police reports, are open to the public unless a specific exception applies. You do not need to explain why you want a record. The law puts the burden on the government to prove why something should stay private.
When HPD denies a request, they have 10 business days to ask the Texas Attorney General for a ruling on whether they can withhold the record. The AG then has 45 working days to decide. If you think HPD is wrong to hold back a record, you can appeal the AG's ruling in state district court within 30 days. The AG's open government hotline is 1-877-673-6839.
Common reasons HPD withholds records include active criminal investigations (Government Code Section 552.108), juvenile info, and personal data like Social Security numbers and medical details. Once a case is closed, many of those records become available. The standard copy fee is $0.10 per page, and the first 50 pages are free if they sit in one spot.
Harris County Police Records
Houston sits in Harris County, the most populous county in Texas. While HPD handles police records inside the city limits, the Harris County Sheriff's Office covers unincorporated areas and the dozens of smaller cities in the county. The sheriff's office is at 1200 Baker Street in Houston. For a full look at police records resources across the county, including the jail system and county-level searches, check the Harris County page.
Nearby Cities with Police Records
Several large cities near Houston have their own police departments and records divisions. If the incident you are looking for happened outside Houston city limits, you may need to contact one of these departments instead.
Pasadena is just southeast of Houston in Harris County. Baytown sits to the east. Sugar Land and Missouri City are southwest of Houston in Fort Bend County. Pearland is south of the city in Brazoria County. League City is farther south near Galveston Bay. Conroe sits to the north in Montgomery County. Each city runs its own police force and keeps its own records.