The Kenosha, Wisconsin, Police Department asked the FBI to look into a March incident in which an off-duty officer held his knee on a 12-year-old girl's neck to restrain her during a fight.
Interim Chief Eric Larsen made the request because he wanted an outside agency to look at it "given the high-profile attention the incident garnered," a police spokesperson said Thursday.
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The March 4 fight, which was captured on video, showed Kenosha Officer Shawn Guetschow intervening in the brawl and then getting into a scuffle with the girl before falling to the ground and hitting his head on a table.
Guetschow, who was working at the school as a security guard, then pushed the girl's head to the ground before he placed his knee on her neck for about half a minute. The video showed that Guetschow then handcuffed the girl and walked her out of the cafeteria.
The Kenosha Unified School District placed Guetschow on paid leave; he later resigned from the position, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. In his resignation letter, he complained that the school district has not supported him and that the incident has placed a heavy burden on his family.
The girl's father, Jerrel Perez, has said he wants Guetschow to face criminal charges because he used a type of restraint that is banned for Wisconsin law enforcement. No criminal charges have been filed against Guetschow.