OPRA Request — BWC Only — Lakewood PD Response & Custody (Naomi Elkins) — June 25, 2024
Dear Lakewood Township,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-6(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
Dear Records Custodian,
Under the New Jersey Open Public Records Act (OPRA, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.), I request body-worn camera (BWC) recordings only related to the Lakewood Township Police Department’s on-scene response and taking Naomi Elkins into custody at the residence on Shenandoah Drive, Lakewood Township, NJ, on June 25, 2024 (reported response around 4:50 p.m.).
Please produce up to five clear, non-duplicative BWC recordings (or the relevant clips/segments from those recordings) showing:
Officers’ initial arrival and approach at/near the Shenandoah Drive location (exterior/perimeter);
First contact with Naomi Elkins, including identification and verbal commands (as captured on BWC);
Detention and arrest/custody of Elkins (handcuffing and any on-scene statements captured on BWC);
On-scene officer-to-officer communications necessary to understand the custody event (limited to what is captured on BWC and needed for context);
Escort and removal of Elkins from the scene to a law-enforcement vehicle and departure (if captured).
Strict limits / exclusions (to keep this narrow)
This request is strictly limited to the single on-scene response and custody event involving Naomi Elkins at/near the Shenandoah Drive location on June 25, 2024. I am not seeking:
Any interior footage depicting the children, bathtubs/bathrooms, medical treatment, or deceased/injured persons;
Any graphic imagery or close-up crime-scene documentation;
Any later interviews/interrogations at police headquarters, prosecutor facilities, jail, or court;
Any searches of phones/devices, forensic work, or investigative review beyond the on-scene custody event;
Any unrelated calls for service.
If any BWC contains both responsive and non-responsive material, please produce only the responsive segments (especially exterior/custody/transport segments) and redact only what is required by law, releasing all reasonably segregable portions.
Format / delivery
Format: Original/native electronic video files (or native exported clips) via download link/portal with any available metadata/timecodes.
Redactions: Only those required by law; please release all reasonably segregable portions.
Fees / special service charge
This is a narrow, non-commercial, public-interest request for a small number of specific BWC clips via electronic delivery. It should not require an “extraordinary expenditure of time and effort” under N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5(c), so no special service charge should apply. If you believe any fee or special service charge is necessary, please provide a written estimate and do not proceed without my written approval.
If any portion is denied or withheld, please provide the specific legal basis for each withholding/redaction and identify the withheld record(s) by date/time range and officer/camera identifier where available.
Please confirm receipt and advise if any additional detail is needed to locate these records.
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
William Bughundy
Dear Requestor,
Thank you for submitting a Open Public Records Act Request Form on
12/31/2025. As such, the Township will respond as soon as possible but no
later than seven (7) business days.
Your request reference number is [1]Request Number: OPRA-JF2025-2121 and
your security key is 00FC0082.
Use this information to track the status of your request at any time and
to receive responsive documents through the Township of Lakewood JustFOIA
Public Portal here:
[2]https://lakewoodnj.justfoia.com/publicpo...
Please have both reference numbers available when communicating with our
staff regarding your request.
Thank you,
[3]Label1
Township of Lakewood, NJ
231 Third Street
Lakewood, NJ 08701
(732) 364 - 2500
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1. https://url4102.request.justfoia.com/ls/...
2. https://url4102.request.justfoia.com/ls/...
Dear Requestor,
The Township of Lakewood received your Open Public Records Act (OPRA)
request on 12/23/2025. As such, the seven (7) business day deadline to
respond to your request is 01/05/2026. This response to your request is
being provided to you on the 6th business day after the custodian's
receipt of said request.
Please be advised that due to the file size of the requested audio/video
records it may exceed email capacity. Therefore, the records will be
transmitted by CD or Flash Drive which a cost will be associated with your
request. The cost may range from $0.37 (regular DVD/CD) to $16.99 (64GB
thumb drive) and an additional $5.00 for postage.
At this time, please clarify your request and respond in writing
confirming you will pay the fee associated with the request.
If you reject the fee or no response is received, it will be determined
that you are not interested in the requested records.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Township of Lakewood to deny
access. At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the
Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government
Records Council (GRC) by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form.
You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at
P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at
their website at www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other
questions about the law. All questions regarding complaints filed in
Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
Please note, if a response is not received within 7 business days, your
request will be closed.
Thank you,
[1]Label1
Township of Lakewood, NJ
231 Third Street
Lakewood, New Jersey 08701
(732) 364 - 2500
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The Township of Lakewood received your Open Public Records Act (OPRA)
request on 12/23/2025. The Township had requested clarification of your
request on 1/2/2026. As such, the seven (7) business day deadline to
respond to your request is 1/13/2026. This response to your request is
being provided to you on the 7th business day after the custodian's
receipt of said request.
The Township had requested clarification of your request on 1/13/2026 with
no response. At this time, your OPRA request is deemed concluded since we
did not receive the requested clarification.
If you are still seeking additional records, please re-submit with the
requested information.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Township of Lakewood to deny
access. At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the
Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government
Records Council (GRC) by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form.
You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at
P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at
their web site at www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other
questions about the law. All questions regarding complaints filed in
Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
Correction: The Township had requested clarification of your request on
1/2/2026 with no response. At this time, your OPRA request is deemed
concluded since we did not receive the requested clarification.
If you are still seeking additional records, please re-submit with the
requested information.
[1]A picture containing text Description automatically generated
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══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
From: Kim Potter (Lakewood Township, NJ) <[email address]>
Sent: Tuesday, January 13, 2026 10:28 AM
To: [OPRA #84559 email]
<[OPRA #84559 email]>
Cc: Township Clerk <[Lakewood Township request email]>
Subject: [External] Township of Lakewood, NJ - Records Request
OPRA-JF2025-2121
The Township of Lakewood received your Open Public Records Act (OPRA)
request on 12/23/2025. The Township had requested clarification of your
request on 1/2/2026. As such, the seven (7) business day deadline to
respond to your request is 1/13/2026. This response to your request is
being provided to you on the 7th business day after the custodian's
receipt of said request.
The Township had requested clarification of your request on 1/13/2026 with
no response. At this time, your OPRA request is deemed concluded since we
did not receive the requested clarification.
If you are still seeking additional records, please re-submit with the
requested information.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Township of Lakewood to deny
access. At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the
Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government
Records Council (GRC) by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form.
You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at
P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at
their web site at www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other
questions about the law. All questions regarding complaints filed in
Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
References
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