The Justice Department has launched a civil rights investigation into the sheriff’s department in Mississippi’s Rankin County after several of its deputies – including some who were in a self-styled “Goon Squad” – abused and tortured two Black men in a racially charged home raid last year.

The Justice Department will investigate whether the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department engaged in a pattern or practice of excessive force.

The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday launched a civil rights probe into the Rankin County Sheriff's Department in Mississippi after several of its former officers known as the "Goon Squad" were prosecuted for torturing and sexually abusing two Black men.

Six former officers, who were members of a self-proclaimed "Goon Squad," were sentenced to decades in prison for torturing two Black men.

Feds will seek to determine if the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department engaged in a pattern of violence, illegal searches and arrests or other discriminatory practices.

This investigation is separate and independent from the federal criminal civil rights prosecutions of Rankin County deputies related to the assaults of Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a civil rights investigation into the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department following a racist attack on two Black men by white officers. The investigation will determine whether the department engages in patterns or practices that violate the Constitution and federal law by evaluating all types of force used by officers,