Citadel Women Allegedly Put in Company That Glorified Nazis

CHARLESTON, S.C. (May 19, 1997 7:07 p.m. EDT) -- Three female Citadel cadets were assigned to a company that called itself "Der Stalag" and where other cadets glorified Nazi symbols, two former male cadets alleged in federal court papers Monday.

"There appears to be a tradition of Nazi symbols among some Citadel cadets, concentrated among cadets who The Citadel has chosen as officers and leaders," Craig Belsole and Dan Eggars allege.

"The Nazi symbols are treated as badges of honor and passed on from year to year," they said in their court papers.

Belsole and Eggars allege college officials were told about the hazing last year of Jeanie Mentavlos and Kim Messer and did nothing about it. The college denies that and disciplined Belsole and Eggars for failing to report the hazing until after the allegations surfaced.

Mentavlos and Messer left school last winter, saying they were hazed and harassed. They alleged their clothes were set afire with nail polish remover, cleanser was put on their heads and they were forced to stand in a closet while being shoved and kicked.

Two other women, Nancy Mace and Petra Lovetinska, completed their freshman year last week without hazing complaints.

Mace was assigned to the school's band company. Messer, Mentavlos and Lovetinska were assigned to Echo Company, which has a metal file locker with the title "Der Stalag Clerks," and inside is a picture of a young man giving the "Heil Hitler" salute, Belsole and Eggars allege.

Some cadets wore T-shirts with red swastikas during the 1993-94 school year, the pair said.

The Citadel had no comment, spokesman Terry Leedom said. "I haven't seen a swastika. I believe I have been in every company in the place and I have never seen a swastika," he said.

Neither Messer nor Mentavlos mentioned Nazi symbols in their depositions that have been made public.

Interim college President Clifton Poole said after the hazing allegations surfaced in December that Echo Company was known for its discipline and college officials felt confident male cadets there would follow the rules.

In the 1995 and 1996 school yearbooks, the company calls itself the "Stalag" and in 1995 used the phrase "Echo Uber Alles."

Belsole and Eggars are fighting a subpoena from The Citadel that seeks documents the two provided the FBI, which is investigating the hazing allegations.

In their court filings, the pair say they gave the FBI photos and video tapes of Nazi symbols at the school and tape recordings illustrating how Citadel officials tried to retaliate against them for going public with their charges.

The pair, who graduated Saturday, originally made their allegations that Citadel officials knew of the hazings on the CBS program "60 Minutes."

There was no answer Monday at Belsole's home in Ohio or Eggers' in Florida. Eggars' attorney Ray McClain would not comment beyond what was contained in the documents.

Also Monday, U.S. District Judge C. Weston Houck began reviewing the Citadel's updated plan for admitting more women, but then recessed the hearing until Tuesday to give U.S. Justice Department government attorneys more time to study the plan.

The Citadel, after a protracted court fight, dropped its all-male admissions policy last year and admitted the four women. It has accepted 27 more for this fall.

Val Vojdik, an attorney who fought to get women into The Citadel, said the allegations by Belsole and Eggars are another reason Houck should closely monitor plans to bring in more women.

"Showing a glorification of the Nazi regime is unspeakable," she said. "You can't run a military college if cadets are free to do as they choose."

At Houck's direction, members of the college's governing board attended Monday's hearing.

"I'm not suggesting this doesn't have your attention. But I do feel when you are present in the courtroom and you hear presentations ... you get a better idea of that is going on," the judge told the board members.

By BRUCE SMITH, The Associated Press