Justice to launch civil rights probe of Baltimore police

The Justice Department is preparing to announce it will open a civil rights investigation into the Baltimore police department.

The announcement could come as soon as Friday, an official who spoke on condition of anonymity told USA Today.

Associated Press, Washington Post and New York Times published similar reports.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake asked the Justice Department on Wednesday to investigate policing practices of the city police force following riots and protests that gripped parts of the city after a 25-year-old man suffered fatal injuries in police custody.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch, in her first appearance before Congress since being sworn in, said she was considering the request for a civil rights investigation into whether the police engaged in a "pattern or practice'' of excessive force.