West Virginia's governor has fired 34 correction officer trainees who were photographed giving a Nazi salute, and he fired their instructor.
He also says four instructors are being suspended without pay.
Republican Gov. Jim Justice announced his decision Monday after receiving a report from state investigators that the trainees regularly gave the Nazi salute "as a sign of respect" for their instructor in the weeks prior to the release of the photo.
Its release earlier this month triggered widespread outrage.
"As I said from the beginning, I condemn the photo ... in the strongest possible terms," Justice said in a statement Monday.
"I also said that this act needed to result in real consequences terminations and dismissals. This kind of behaviour will not be tolerated on my watch in any agency of state government."
The executive summary does not mention the word "Nazi" but only refers to the cadets' action as the "hand gesture."
"Others who knew the implications of the gesture felt pressure to fit in and joined in. Some of these class members voiced their concerns to classmates."
But the report summary found one cadet responded, "Look at me, I am black, and I am doing it."
"The investigation disclosed that she encouraged it, reveled in it, and at times reciprocated the gesture. Additionally, Byrd appeared to overrule the corrective actions taken by others and assured the cadets the behavior was acceptable."
State investigators say Byrd responded with "because I'm a hardass like Hitler."
"I saw the picture and did nothing."
The report concluded: "There is no dispute that the 'Hail Byrd' gesture and photograph were highly offensive and egregious in appearance, but the investigation did not reveal any overt motivation or intent that this was a discriminatory act towards any racial, religious, or ethnic group."
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