Requests for Production
Demanding documents, videos, emails, and other evidence from the other side — the backbone of discovery in police misconduct cases.
What It Is
Requests for production (RFPs) under Federal Rule 34 demand that the opposing party produce documents, electronically stored information (ESI), or tangible things for inspection and copying.
What to Request in § 1983 Cases
The most critical documents in police misconduct cases:
- Body camera and dashcam footage — Of the incident, booking, transport, and any related interactions
- Use-of-force reports — For this incident and for the defendant officer’s history
- Internal affairs files — Complaints against the officer, investigation reports, outcomes
- Training records — What training the officer received on use of force, de-escalation, arrest procedures
- Policies and procedures — General orders, SOPs, use-of-force policies in effect at the time
- Communications — Emails, text messages, radio transmissions, CAD records related to the incident
- Prior complaints — Citizen complaints against the officer (for Monell pattern evidence)
- Personnel file — Disciplinary history, performance reviews, commendations
- Medical records — If you claim physical injury, the defendant may request yours (and you theirs if relevant)
Common Objections and Responses
“Overly broad” → Narrow by date range and topic. “All use-of-force reports involving Officer Smith from January 2020 to present” is specific.
“Unduly burdensome” → In a civil rights case, the burden of production doesn’t outweigh the plaintiff’s need for evidence of constitutional violations.
“Privileged” → They must produce a privilege log identifying each withheld document and the basis for the privilege claim. If they don’t, they waive the privilege.
“Not relevant” → Under Rule 26(b)(1), relevant evidence includes anything “proportional to the needs of the case” that’s relevant to a claim or defense.
Preservation
Send a litigation hold letter early — before you even file suit if possible. This puts the defendant on notice to preserve evidence, especially body camera footage and electronic communications that might be automatically deleted.
If evidence is destroyed after a litigation hold, you can seek spoliation sanctions.
Key Rules
- Rule 34 — Requests for production
- Rule 26(b) — Scope and proportionality
- Rule 37(e) — Sanctions for failure to preserve ESI