ENLISTED KILLERS

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Fort Bragg's racial problems--and those of the armed forces in general--go beyond this recent incident. Though the Army today is nearly 30% black, overt racism still takes place at some bases, according to a report issued by the House Armed Services Committee last December. Fort Bragg itself has been linked to other violent outbursts. In October an Army sergeant opened fire on colleagues, killing one and injuring 18. In August 1993 a soldier from the post killed four people in a local restaurant. And in 1991 Timothy McVeigh, the chief suspect in last April's bombing of a federal office building in Oklahoma, arrived for a 21-day Green Beret selection course. His failure to qualify for the elite group apparently helped turn him against the government.

Military and civilian authorities caution that Fort Bragg, with a population of 75,000, is virtually a small city. Says Major Rivers Johnson Jr., a spokesman for the 82nd Airborne Division: "You've got to understand that the 82nd Airborne is a reflection of society." Referring to the suspects, a local police officer says, "These guys are just idiots."

--Reported by Lisa Towle/Raleigh and Mark Thompson/Washington