Prosecution and defense entities wishing to request documents or records from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) in connection with a current court case must submit their request using the Attorney Portal on the BCA’s GovQA page. 

To ensure appropriate system access, individuals submitting a request on behalf of a prosecution or defense entity for the first time must request an account by clicking Request Attorney Portal Account and completing a brief list of questions. Requests submitted via other means will be returned to the requester with instructions to submit their request through the BCA’s GovQA portal.

If you are not a prosecution or defense entity but are seeking BCA data, go to the BCA’s GovQA page and select Submit a Data Request.

BCA laboratory document and record requests

Attorneys must use the Attorney Portal to request documents and records from the BCA Forensic Science Services (FSS) division. These requests fall into two categories:

• General lab requests: Prosecuting entities and the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office can request documentation related to specific cases and court proceedings.
• Calibration lab requests: Any attorney can submit requests for records from the BCA Calibration Laboratory.

Brady/Giglio requests

Prosecution entities can also submit standalone Brady/Giglio requests through the Attorney Portal. A Brady/Giglio request is a formal inquiry by a prosecution entity seeking potential exculpatory or impeachment evidence related to BCA employees identified as witnesses in active court proceedings. Prosecuting entities must follow the GovQA process when making Brady/Giglio requests to the BCA.

Requesting entities can monitor the progress of their request in GovQA's My Request Center and will be notified when the responsive information is available. Responsive information will be available via a secure link provided in My Request Center.

Calibration laboratory documents

In addition to reports available through the Attorney Portal, the BCA maintains information about DMT devices and testing processes on the BCA website, including the following:

• Dry gas cylinder certificates of analysis
• Simulator solution certificates of analysis
• Uncertainty of measurement (DMT calibration uncertainty and breath test uncertainty of measurement)