U.S. SECURIIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Litigation Release No. 17456 / April 3, 2002

   Accounting And Auditing Enforcement Release No. 1541 / April 3, 2002

   Securities and Exchange Commission v. J. Donald Nichols, Jeb L.
   Hughes, and C. Sheldon Whittelsey, IV, Civil Action No. 1 02-CV-478
   (NDGA March 19, 2002)

   The Securities and Exchange Commission ("Commission") announced today
   that the Honorable Jack T. Camp, United States District Judge for the
   Northern District of Georgia, entered Final Judgments of Permanent
   Injunction and Other Relief Against Defendants J. Donald Nichols
   ("Nichols"), Jeb L. Hughes ("Hughes") and C. Sheldon Whittelsey, IV
   ("Whittelsey"), restraining and enjoining them from further violations
   of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Sections 10(b), 13(a),
   13(b)(2)(A), 13(b)(2)(B), 13(b)(5) and 14(a) of the Securities
   Exchange Act of 1934, and Rules 10b-5, 12b-20, 13a-1, 13a-13, 13b2-1,
   13b2-2 and 14a-9 thereunder.

   Nichols, Hughes, and Whittelsey consented to the entries of the
   judgments without admitting or denying any of the allegations of the
   Commission's complaint. Further, the Court ordered civil penalties
   against Nichols, Hughes, and Whittelsey in the amounts of $110,000,
   $60,000, and $60,000, respectively. The Court further ordered that
   Hughes and Whittelsey be barred from acting as an officer or director
   of any issuer having a class of securities registered with the
   Commission.

   On February 20, 2002, the Commission alleged in its complaint that the
   three defendants, all former officers of JDN Realty Corporation, a
   public company, arranged for cash and property to be transferred to
   Hughes and Whittelsey from third parties who sold real estate to JDN
   Realty. Nichols, Hughes, and Whittelsey failed to inform JDN Realty's
   accounting department of this compensation arrangement, and they also
   failed to disclose certain other related-party transactions. As a
   result, JDN Realty's public filings failed to disclose the executive
   officer compensation and related-party transactions, and by not
   properly accounting for the compensation, JDN Realty materially
   misstated its 1994 through 1997 annual financial statements and two
   quarterly financial statements in 1998.

   See also L. R. (February 20, 2002).
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Modified 04/08/2002