© Provided by Charleston WCSC-TV The state is doling out more than $1 million after two sexual abuse victims took the military college to court.
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – More than a decade after a sexual predator from the Lowcountry pleaded guilty to abusing young boys at the Citadel, the state is doling out more than $1 million in attorneys’ and court fees after two victims sued the military college.
Louis “Skip” ReVille, 43, was sentenced to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to 22 child-sex charges in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties in June of 2012.
In two nearly identical lawsuits filed separately in March 2012, prior to ReVille’s guilty plea, John Doe 2 alleges ReVille sexually abused him when he was a minor during a summer camp at the Citadel in 2002. Mother Doe, who filed on behalf of her son John Doe 3 in the other filing, makes similar claims. The military college was aware of these allegations and ReVille’s behavior but did nothing, according to the suits.
A court ruled in favor of the Citadel in John Doe 2′s case while squashing Mother Doe’s filing.
Both lawsuits state the school was “grossly negligent” in not reporting ReVille’s 2002 abuse allegations.
ReVille said during his 2012 guilty plea the accounts provided by the alleged victims were true. He has a history of coaching and teaching youth in the Charleston area, dating back to his time as a Citadel cadet, when he allegedly watched pornography with a camper inside his dorm room in 2002, according to the lawsuits.
The case brought to court by Mother Doe was dismissed in 2015. The state is paying out $441,231.62 to the Citadel attorneys in that case, according to South Carolina’s Insurance Reserve Fund. That payment is dated Oct. 4, 2022. The Citadel attorneys in the case brought to court by John Doe 2 are set to receive $645,838.86, with that payment dated Oct. 5, 2022, in state filings.
One of ReVille’s victims said in court at the time he had been tormented and has a lot of anxiety, calling ReVille a cancer and saying he “had no soul.” The victim explained how he originally had dreams of going to The Citadel, but now can’t trust any man.
He also explained how the personal strife caused him to turn to drugs and reiterated that ReVille was “a true demon who rapes angels.” He even said he tried to kill himself by hanging, but authorities kicked in door.
The victim also apologized for not reporting ReVille’s abuse at the time, saying he “could have stopped it.” The judge then advised the victim to get some help “because [he] was worth it” before the victim left the podium.
ReVille is still in prison, according to jail records, after the court moved to deny his motion to reduce his sentence back in 2019. He’ll be 75 at the earliest when he gets out of jail.
The Citadel has not yet responded to a request comment on the payouts.