Friday, February 27, 1998 CADET'S DAD SAYS BEATINGS ALL IN THE SPIRIT OF CAMARADERIE EX-CADET SEEKING ASSAULT CHARGES AGAINST SENIORS By MATT CHITTUM ROANOKE TIMES   One freshman's father says his son took the punishment along with Keith Wade, but that it was all in good fun. The story being told by a former Virginia Military Institute freshman seeking assault charges against four seniors who allegedly struck him with belts and coat hangers is different than the story he told in October, said the father of another freshman involved in the incident. George Wade Jr., of Henrico, and his parents have said in news reports that Wade was beaten with a belt and a coat hanger on the buttocks several times a week over a period of almost two months. VMI has since suspended three seniors for a semester and punished a fourth less severely. Wade left the school at Thanksgiving, and two weeks ago began pursuing assault charges against three of the seniors, after the college declined to pursue hazing charges. The five other freshman "rats" who were allegedly struck during the fall semester remain at VMI. One of those rats is Keith Just, Wade's best friend from high school. Donald Just said in a letter to the VMI student newspaper that he discussed the incidents at his Richmond home with his son and Wade last fall. Just said both students portrayed the incidents to him as "whacks" given in an atmosphere of "fun." "We laughed about this stuff," Donald Just said Thursday. "I mean they were laughing about it." George Wade Jr., however, denies discussing the alleged beatings with Donald Just until after Christmas. And he said his story hasn't changed. Just, however, said he recalled telling his son and Wade in October how he was whacked with a paddle by his fraternity big brother in college. Just said the two seemed to feel somewhat "honored" by the attention from the VMI seniors, "that these guys would make them part of the group." "There was nothing malicious, injurious. I mean, it was fun. They would gather in the rooms and sort of dare [the seniors], with sort of a 'bring it on' attitude." "If I'd have sensed anything that was wrong," Just said, "you can bet I would have been on the phone to the university." When he saw news reports in which Wade talked of mean-spirited beatings that left welts on his legs, he was "astounded at the reversal" in Wade's impression of the events. Wade Jr. said he doesn't recall talking with Donald Just during the semester, much less about the beatings, which even his family didn't know about until November. He said he discussed the meeting with Just after Christmas, and he recalls the mention of Just's fraternity days. But Wade Jr. said there wasn't any levity in his remarks. George Wade Sr. said neither Just nor his son can know what happened to Wade, because the two rats were struck on the buttocks together on just one occasion. "And does he [Just] think that because it's fun that this behavior is justified?" Wade Sr. asked. "I'm not apologizing for this conduct at all," Donald Just said. "If they broke the rules, the offenders should have been punished." The thrust of Just's letter to "The Cadet" was a defense of his son's "dyke," or mentor, who is an honor court prosecutor and one of the three suspended seniors. Just would not name the senior, but other sources at VMI have identified him as Brett McGinley of Carlisle, Pa. Just called McGinley "a young man without malice of any kind," and he said he is "grateful" for McGinley's good influence on his son. Just wrote that he is convinced McGinley's actions "were in no way criminal. Unless, of course, noogies, Indian burns, slap tag, wrestling, charley horses, shaving cream in the eyes, 10-minute leg lifts, towel pops, mud puddle pushups and a hundred other 'atrocities' young men inflict upon one another in the ordinary course of college life also qualify." VMI Superintendent Josiah Bunting III has called the actions of McGinley and the others "reprehensible." George Wade Jr. said he is not pursuing charges against McGinley, because he is the only one of the four seniors involved who did not strike him. The other suspended cadets have been identified by sources at VMI as John Gonzalez of Mechanicsville and Charles Travers "Buck" Clemons of Richmond. Wade Jr. said he can't understand Just's attack on his credibility because he never testified about anything regarding McGinley. The state police are investigating the case at the request of Rockbridge County/Lexington Commonwealth's Attorney Gordon Saunders. Just said no one investigating the case has contacted him about his letter, which was published a week ago. "Someone at least has to look at the story for consistency," Just said. "And it's not the least bit consistent. I know my son does not corroborate his [Wade's] story." "If they don't contact me at some point, I'm going to at least make sure they have this point of view."