By Jan Wolfe
(Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department has opened an investigation into policing practices in Phoenix, Arizona, Attorney General Merrick Garland told a news conference on Thursday.
The probe will focus on whether the city’s police department violates the civil rights of protesters, among other issues, Garland said.
This is the third civil-rights investigation the agency has launched into U.S. police departments this year, with other probes ongoing in Louisville, Kentucky, and Minneapolis.
The inquiries mark a sharp shift in the department’s focus under Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden, who has made racial justice a priority.
(Reporting by Jan WolfeEditing by Chris Reese and Richard Chang)
