West Virginia correctional cadets who gave Nazi salute in photo will all be fired

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said Monday he has approved the recommendations from a report calling for the firing of all correctional officer cadets who participated in a Nazi salute during a class photo.

The photo of Basic Training Class 18, released by the state's Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety on Dec. 5 with the employees’ faces blurred, shows about 30 uniformed trainees posing with their right arms raised, most of them with their hands also extended. The words “Hail Byrd!” also appear at the top of the image.

Three people — two academy trainers and a cadet — were fired days after the photo was released and 34 others suspended without pay amid the investigation by the department and its Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

According to the investigation summary, the use of the gesture began two to three weeks into training as one that the cadets have described as a "sign of respect" for an individual identified as "Instructor Byrd."