==========================================START OF PAGE 1======


         UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Litigation Release No. 15319 / April 8, 1997  

SEC v. Marshall E. Melton; Asset Management and Research, Inc.;
Westview Capital, L.C.; Trading Partners, L.C.; and Trading 
Partners II, L.C. (M.D.N.C., Civil Action No. 2:97-CV-00151)

     The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that
on March 31, 1997, the Honorable William L. Osteen, Sr., United
States District Judge for the Middle District of North Carolina,
entered an order of preliminary injunction and other relief
against defendants Asset Management and Research, Inc. ("AMR");
Westview Capital, L.C. ("Westview Capital"); Trading Partners,
L.C. ("TP"); and Trading Partners II, L.C.("TP2").  The order
enjoins and restrains each of the defendants from violating
Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. 
Further, the Court ordered defendant AMR enjoined from violating
Section 206 of the Investment Advisors Act of 1940 and defendant
Westview Capital enjoined from violating Section 15(a) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

     The Court also ordered a freeze of all assets held by
defendants Westview Capital, TP and TP2.  By separate order dated
March 31, 1997, the Court appointed a receiver to oversee the
estates of these three companies.  Disposition of the
Commission's motion for injunctive relief and an asset freeze as
to defendant Marshall E. Melton ("Melton") is currently pending
before the Court.

     In its complaint, the Commission alleged that violations of
the antifraud provisions of the securities laws by Melton and the
defendant companies occurred primarily from mid-1994 through late
1996.  During that time, defendants Westview Capital, TP and TP2
raised approximately $5,000,000 from 44 investors, many of whom
invested in more than one of the entities.  Through
misrepresentations and omission of material facts, Melton
solicited and raised funds from unwitting investors.  The
investors were advised that their funds were being invested in
specific investments when, in fact, Melton was consistently
commingling monies among the limited liability companies and
using investors' funds to operate other entities owned by Melton.

     The Commission's complaint further alleged that Westview
Capital acted as an unregistered broker by receiving commissions
on sales of units in TP and TP2, which were organized as pools to
trade in securities.  TP and TP2 deceived their investors by
making distributions of "profits" when any trading returns were
actually being dwarfed by the losses that TP and TP2 were
carrying in their trading accounts..
==========================================START OF PAGE 2======

     
     See also:  L.R. 15267 (February 27, 1997) 
        .