FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          AT
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1995                          (202) 616-2771
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888

              MISSISSIPPI DOOR COMPANY CHARGED WITH
                FIXING PRICES OF RESIDENTIAL DOORS

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A Mississippi door company was charged
with participating in a conspiracy to fix the prices of
residential flush doors, according to the Department of Justice's
Antitrust Division.  
     Southwood Door Company of Quitman, Mississippi, was charged
yesterday with participating with a co-conspirator in a price-fixing 
conspiracy for sales of eight-foot solid core and bifold
Colonist-style doors in the southeastern United States from the 
spring of 1993 to the summer of 1994.
     This is the fifth case filed as a result of the Antitrust
Division's investigation into collusive practices in the 
$600 million residential flush door industry.  Residential flush
doors are made of flat wood that can be covered with various
types of door facings and are used primarily in residential
basements, bedrooms and bathrooms.  They are sold to U.S. door
distributors and wholesalers, home improvement centers and
residential construction companies.  
     Anne K. Bingaman, Assistant Attorney General in charge of
the Antitrust Division, said that the charges, filed in the U.S.
District Court in Tampa, Florida, arose in connection with a
grand jury investigation in Tampa into collusive practices by
flush door manufacturers.  The continuing investigation is being
conducted by the Division's Litigation I Section with the
assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
     The maximum penalty for a corporation convicted of a
violation of the Sherman Act is the greatest of a $10 million
fine, twice the gross pecuniary gain the corporation derived from
the crime or twice the gross pecuniary loss caused to the victims
of the crime.
                               ###
95-108