$1 MILLION AWARD ACCEPTED

Man Sued TV Station Over Report Linking Him To U.S. Drug Case

CHARLOTTESVILLE - The man who successfully sued local NBC affiliate
WVIR-TV for defamation has decided to accept a reduced $1 million
award, his lawyer said.

Stanardsville resident Jesse Sheckler had been awarded $10 million in
May by a Charlottesville jury that also determined that the television
station, Channel 29, had incorrectly linked Sheckler to a drug case.

City Circuit Judge Edward L. Hogshire affirmed the jury's position on
the station's liability in a Nov. 7 letter, but ruled that the jury
"clearly misperceived its role and awarded a sum far in excess of an
amount reasonably calculated to compensate for any proven losses."

The judge set aside the verdict and gave Sheckler the option of
accepting a revised $1 million verdict or having a new trial ordered,
limited solely to the issue of damages.

Sheckler's lawyer, Matthew B. Murray, said last week that in the
judge's decision, Hogshire "made himself the eighth member of the jury."

But despite the judge's ruling on the damages, Murray said his client
still felt vindicated by the jury's $10 million verdict and that the
judge upheld its position on the station's liability.

"This case was never about the money," Murray said. "The object of the
case was to hold [Channel] 29 accountable for defaming him. No judge
can ever take away the fact that a neutral, objective jury found his
damages to be $10 million."

WVIR's lawyer, Thomas E. Albro, said previously that the television
station was pleased the judge set aside the $10 million verdict.
Channel 29 can still appeal Hogshire's decision and seek a further
reduction in the award, or ask the Supreme Court of Virginia to set
aside the entire verdict and order a new trial on both liability and
damages.

Sheckler has agreed to accept the judge's ruling "under protest,"
Murray said, leaving room for a future appeal. In the meantime, Murray
said Sheckler is still waiting for WVIR to apologize for the error and
broadcast a retraction.

Sheckler, 52, sued over a 2001 news report about a federal drug case
in which a reporter incorrectly stated that authorities had
confiscated cocaine at Sheckler's residence. Sheckler had been charged
with helping to finance since-convicted drug dealer Samuel Rose, but
was acquitted at trial. Sheckler has said he was unaware of Rose's
illegal affairs and that the money he had loaned Rose was to finance a
construction project.

In his suit against WVIR, Sheckler argued that his reputation was
tarnished as a result of the incorrect broadcast.

Liesel Nowak is a staff writer at The Daily Progress in
Charlottesville.