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GREENSBORO — City officials and a federal spokeswoman are offering few details about a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the Greensboro Police Department.

The investigation was revealed in a discussion between City Attorney Terry Wood and City Council members during a closed session last week. A recording of the session was released publicly Wednesday.

Police Chief Tim Bellamy and Wood said they could not comment about it. The extent and context of the investigation are unclear.

Councilman Robbie Perkins said the investigation is related to the 39 U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaints brought by police officers.

“It is my understanding the Justice Department has to review it because of the EEOC complaints,” Perkins said. “My understanding is they take it very seriously.”

Interim City Manager Bob Morgan, who was appointed last Friday, said he had no knowledge of the investigation.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Justice declined to comment, citing the department’s policy to neither confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation.

Attorney Jason Knight, who represents the police officers, said he had no comment.

The police officers filed suit against the city in January, claiming they faced racial discrimination in the police department.

The lawsuit came three years after the complaints were first filed and came on the heels of a failed attempt last year to negotiate a settlement agreement between the officers and the City Council.

In a closed session of the City Council on March 3, Wood indicated that the city was cooperating with Justice Department officials and providing them information for their inquiry.

Wood briefed the City Council members about the Justice Department inquiry last Friday. Council members said the city handed over 20 boxes of documents to the agency.

Wood declined to offer other details publicly. “That’s totally personnel stuff and I really can’t say anything about it,” Wood said.

If EEOC complaints are not successfully reconciled at the local level, the commission can decide whether a lawsuit should be brought in federal court, according to the agency’s Web site. The Justice Department would decide whether to take on that suit.

The Justice Department also has a history of investigating possible civil rights violations in other cities.

Just this week, the Justice Department began a probe of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department in Phoenix, according to news reports. Investigators will check whether there have been civil rights violations in the way the department enforced immigration laws.

Similar investigations have been conducted in Cincinnati and Los Angeles after those cities’ police departments were accused of unfairly targeting minorities.

Contact Amanda Lehmert at 373-7075 or amanda.lehmert@news-record.com

Contact Sonja Elmquist at 373-7090 or sonja.elmquist@news-record.com