FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         CIV
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 1996                          202 616-2765

                                 
     GEORGIA CARPET MAKER SENTENCED FOR MISLABELING CARPETING
     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A federal judge fined a Georgia carpet
maker $100,000 today for selling misbranded carpet--the first
criminal fine under the Textile Fiber Products Identification
Act, the Department of Justice announced.
     U.S. District Judge Robert L. Vining Jr. of Atlanta reduced
the fine against Diamond Rug and Carpet Mills Inc. to $100,000
after finding that Diamond was unable to pay the fine called for
under the federal sentencing guidelines: $500,004 to $1,008,000.
Diamond pleaded guilty to falsely identifying the fiber content
of certain carpet sold from 1989 through 1991 and for providing
customers with fraudulent guarantees.  
     "In light of Diamond's precarious financial situation, this
fine is very significant," said Assistant Attorney General Frank
Hunger of the Civil Division.  "This should put other textile
producers on notice that fraud in this industry will not go
unpunished."
     Diamond, based in Eton, Georgia, pleaded guilty last
December to seven criminal charges and agreed to abide by an
injunction regulating its carpet labeling procedures.    
     Diamond admitted that it willfully misrepresented the fiber
content of certain carpets, claiming the carpets contained nylon
when in fact they were made of polyester or olefin, fibers
considered to be cheaper and less durable.  By representing that
the carpets contained nylon, Diamond could sell the carpets at a
higher price.
     Diamond also admitted that it failed to properly identify
the types and relative weights of fibers in some carpets, and
that it provided certain customers with guarantees asserting that
the carpets were not misbranded when in fact they were
misbranded.
     The federal Textile Fiber Products Identification Act sets
rules for the labeling of carpet and other textile products.
                              #####
96-078