How to Photograph Injuries and Preserve Evidence After Excessive Force

Steps to Protect Key Evidence in Bronx Excessive Force

After experiencing excessive force, your first instinct might be to retreat, breathe, and process what just happened. That’s a natural response. Before you even think about documenting your injuries or collecting physical evidence, make sure you're safe. If you're in immediate danger, leave the area. Your well-being comes first.

Once you're in a secure place, such as at home, in a hospital, or with trusted people, you can begin taking steps to preserve the evidence. The hours following a violent encounter matter. Your body, your clothing, and the place where the incident happened can all contain information that tells your story. You don’t need to rush, but you do need to act with purpose.

If you’re unsure about what to do next, a Bronx civil rights attorney at Horn Wright, LLP, can guide you. Our team understands how stressful these situations are. We’ll help you hold onto the truth and make sure it doesn’t get erased.

Use Your Phone to Photograph Injuries Clearly

Most people in New York carry smartphones. That’s good news, because your phone may be one of the most important tools for documenting what happened. Start by taking clear, focused pictures of every visible injury.

Use natural light when possible. Position yourself near a window or outside in the shade to reduce glare and harsh shadows. If you’re indoors, turn on overhead lights. Avoid using flash, as it can distort bruising or make injuries appear washed out.

Take two kinds of photos:

• Close-up shots that show the texture, size, and color of your injury
• Wide-angle shots that show the injury in context with the rest of your body

Hold your hand steady and make sure the image is in focus before you take the photo. If you can, ask someone you trust to help. That can make the process faster and ensure you get good angles.

Your phone should automatically date each photo. If it doesn’t, consider taking a picture next to a piece of paper that has the current date written clearly. This creates a time-stamped record you may need later.

Capture Multiple Angles and Track Changes Over Time

Injuries change over the hours and days that follow. A bruise might look faint at first but become darker and more defined the next day. Swelling can increase overnight. Skin tears or abrasions may look worse before they start to heal. That’s why you need to keep photographing your injuries over time.

Start by capturing different angles of each injury. Move the camera around so that depth, shadows, and placement are visible. Bruises on curved parts of the body, like your arms or ribs, often look different depending on the angle. This approach gives a fuller picture of the harm done.

Then continue to take new photos each day. You don’t have to overdo it. One or two photos of each injury every 24 hours can show how the damage progressed or changed.

• Set daily reminders to take new photos
• Wear the same clothing in the same lighting if possible
• Label or organize images by date so your records stay clear

These small steps create a timeline that can be valuable in court or in settlement negotiations.

Save Damaged Clothing and Personal Items After Bronx Excessive Force

What you were wearing during the incident matters. Clothing can capture rips, stains, and blood patterns that support your account. If your shirt was torn, if your jeans were bloodied, or if your shoes were damaged during the event, don’t throw anything away.

Handle these items carefully. Place them in a clean plastic bag and seal it. Use a permanent marker to write the date and a brief note on the outside, such as “jeans worn during arrest – March 4.” Store the bag in a dry, safe place, like a drawer or closet shelf.

You should also preserve other damaged personal belongings:

• Glasses that were broken
• Phones that were cracked or confiscated
• Jewelry that was pulled or bent
• Bags, wallets, or personal items that were torn or bloodied

These items may support the physical evidence already on your body. In some cases, they can show that force was used with more intensity than necessary.

Record the Scene If It’s Safe to Return

If the use-of-force incident happened in a public or semi-public area, you may be able to return to the scene and document what the space looked like. Only do this if you feel safe and emotionally ready. Never risk another confrontation to take a picture.

Look for physical evidence that may still be present. Skid marks, blood stains, broken objects, or damaged property can all support your account. Also look for things that affected visibility or access, such as dim lighting, blocked exits, or blind corners.

If the incident took place near known landmarks or intersections in New York, such as near Union Square or outside a subway entrance, include those in your photographs to establish location. A wide shot of the area can place the event in its proper context.

When photographing the scene:

• Stand in the location where you were injured
• Take pictures in multiple directions
• Capture building names, street signs, or storefronts

This evidence helps establish where things happened and what the environment was like at the time.

Ask Witnesses to Share Their Photos or Videos

In many excessive force incidents, bystanders record the event, especially in high-traffic areas like Times Square, Grand Central, or major subway platforms. If you remember someone holding up a phone, try to find out who they were. Witness videos can make a significant impact.

Approach potential witnesses with care. If you know them, reach out by phone or message. If you don’t, consider returning to the area and asking nearby residents or businesses if they saw anything. You can also post on local community boards or ask if nearby storefronts have footage from external cameras.

If someone shares photos or videos:

• Ask for the original file, not a screenshot
• Save it in more than one place
• Write down the name and contact info of the person who shared it

You can also ask them to write a short description of what they saw. A simple paragraph in their own words, with a date, can add valuable context.

Back Up Your Evidence and Organize Everything

Once you’ve collected images, videos, and physical items, the next step is to keep them safe. Digital files should be stored in more than one place. If you lose your phone, you don’t want to lose everything with it.

Use a cloud service like Google Drive or Dropbox to store injury photos, scene pictures, and witness files. You can also email them to yourself as a second backup. Make folders and label them clearly by date and content type. This helps if you need to share the evidence with an attorney later.

For physical evidence, store everything in a designated container or bag. Keep it in a cool, dry area away from direct sunlight or damage. Don’t alter anything. Leave clothing unwashed and personal items untouched.

Organize your evidence by category:

• Photos of injuries
• Videos or scene recordings
• Witness files and contact details
• Damaged personal items

Keeping everything in order protects your ability to tell the full story later.

Avoid Posting or Editing Anything Online

One of the most important things you can do after an excessive force incident is resist the urge to post images online. That includes injury selfies, videos of the encounter, or even general comments about what happened. Social media can create problems.

Anything you post may be used against you. Captions might be misunderstood. Filters may alter colors or visibility. Even cropping an image could raise questions about what’s been removed. This doesn’t mean you should hide your story. It means you should protect it.

Avoid making changes to photos or videos. Leave them in their original form. Don’t adjust brightness, contrast, or add text. Let your lawyer decide when and how to use what you’ve collected.

Also, do not delete anything unless advised by an attorney. Even blurry photos or short clips might help clarify what happened.

You Can Preserve the Truth One Step at a Time

Every photo you take, every shirt you save, and every video you back up brings strength to your story. These steps don’t just document your experience, they help build the truth. 

If you feel overwhelmed, that’s okay. Take it one step at a time. Ask a friend to help. Speak to someone you trust. And when you’re ready, we’ll be here.

The civil rights attorneys at Horn Wright, LLP, represent people across New York who have lived through excessive force and police abuse. 

We know how hard it is to hold onto the truth in the aftermath. That’s why we help you preserve it, protect it, and use it to fight for justice.