The Virginian-Pilot
                             THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Saturday, January 27, 1996             TAG: 9601270237
SECTION: LOCAL                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA 
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: CURRITUCK                          LENGTH: Medium:   87 lines

PRINCIPAL'S LETTER CAUSES STIR IN CURRITUCK CHARACTER REFERENCE WAS FOR A MAN INVOLVED IN ILLEGAL DRUG ACTIVITY.

A controversy is sweeping across Currituck County over a letter written by a high school principal as a character reference for a man involved in illegal drug activity.

The letter, by Currituck County High School Principal Richard Wardle, was apparently introduced during a Jan. 16 hearing for Jesse Gene Jones, 37, of Powells Point.

Copies of the three-paragraph missive, written on school stationery, have been circulated and widely discussed throughout the sprawling, rural county.

A number of residents say they are outraged by the letter, which carried the date of Jones's appearance in Currituck County Superior Court.

Wardle said Thursday that he wrote the letter at the request of Jones's daughter, an Elizabeth City State University student who graduated last year from Currituck.

The young woman currently works at the high school as part of the university's incentive scholarship program, the principal said.

``I really felt like I was writing the letter in support of her - the kid. I never said I would write a letter supporting anything he did or asking for leniency.''

The letter said Jones was once Wardle's student and had impressed

Wardle ``as being an energetic, enthusiastic, and competent young man. He was respected in the school by faculty and students alike. He was viewed as a student with a bright future.''

The letter further stated that Jones, confined to a wheelchair since an automobile accident years ago, supported his children's athletics activities. Jones has two sons currently attending the high school.

Parents and grandparents interviewed expressed concern that the letter implied that the principal supported Jones, who pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine and received a suspended jail sentence of six to eight months, and 18 months of unsupervised probation.

Jones, who had no prior criminal record, also was given 40 hours of community service and ordered to pay at least $400 in fines, restitution and court fees, said a spokeswoman for the Currituck County Superior Court Clerk's office.

He was sentenced by Judge Preston Cornelius of Statesville.

Jones had been charged with possession with intent to sell and deliver a controlled substance, and with sale and delivery of cocaine, a police spokeswoman said.

The charges stemmed from an extensive investigation by the Currituck County Sheriff's Department and the state's Alcohol Law Enforcement division from January to May 1995.

Jones allegedly sold ``a significant amount'' of crack cocaine to an undercover agent, said Bill Williams, supervisor of the ALE's Division 1 in Edenton.

The sale allegedly took place at Jones' home.

Williams did not comment further on the case.

Currituck County Sheriff Glenn Brinkley said he was upset with both the sentence and Wardle's letter.

``You try to do your best and you get people writing good letters about something they know nothing about,'' Brinkley said.

Wardle said, ``I never for one second thought that writing something that just stated some facts would have any effect on the case.''

``If the letter had an impact, it was on the sentencing, not the plea agreement,'' said Mark Warren, an assistant district attorney. A plea agreement was made, he said, because of ``evidentiary reasons.''

Schools Superintendent W.R. ``Ronnie'' Capps said he has read the letter. ``It's very generic,'' he said.

School officials, including Wardle, get numerous requests for written references on a regular basis, Capps said. Some requests are for students who have been arrested.

``You try to do what you can without being unfair to anybody involved,'' Capps said.

School Board Chairwoman Mary Ellen Maxwell said Thursday that she has received about a half-dozen complaints from parents about the letter.

``I think it's a shame that it happened, but I think he thought he was doing an innocent thing at the time,'' Maxwell said.

The school administration and Board of Education do not plan any action against Wardle.

Wardle said he regrets writing the letter and any bad reflection it may have cast on the high school.

``Before I write anybody a letter ever again, I'm certainly going to think twice,'' he said. by CNB