DES MOINES, IA - The Iowa Chapter of The National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives wants a thorough investigation into a former Des Moines officer.
The group is calling comments by former Sgt. Greg Wessels extremely inflammatory.
It also says the comments insinuated extreme racial violence against a command staff member of color.
Wessels resigned last week after the department launched an investigation into his comments and placed him on admirative leave.
Wessels was part of a $75,000 lawsuit settlement last year after being accused of using pepper spray on a 17-year-old girl and throwing her to the ground.
The city of Des Moines paid $800,000 to settle it's portion of the lawsuit when a court found in 2018 that Wessels and another officer used excessive force on a man who was pepper sprayed and ended up with nine cracked or broken teeth after being dropped to the ground.
The Black officers group, known for short as NOBLE, said it wants to make sure that a thorough investigation Wessels is completed to ensure transparency and accountability to the community.
"In today's time of unrest and efforts to bridge relationships at stake, NOBLE strives to ensure that officers and the public can trust their commanders to make ethical decisions," the group said.