LEXINGTON CEMETERY STRUCK BY VANDALS; TEENS CHARGED

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 13, 1993                   TAG: 9301130236
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-3   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: RON BROWN
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
LEXINGTON CEMETERY STRUCK BY VANDALS; TEENS CHARGED
Two teen-agers have been charged with toppling tombstones at the historic Stonewall Jackson Cemetery in Lexington.
Lexington Police Chief Bruce Beard said John Matthew Kessler, 18, of Route 5, Lexington, was charged Monday with the vandalism of 76 tombstones on New Year's Day.
A 16-year-old Rockbridge County High School student also was taken into custody and faces similar charges.
Both teen-agers face six counts of destroying personal property and two counts of larceny stemming from vandalism of vehicles and the theft of an American flag.
Kessler faces an additional count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Beard said police questioned the teen-agers after receiving a tip on the Rockbridge Crime Line late last week.
Vandals turned over tombstones throughout the cemetery, in which Stonewall Jackson is buried. One of the tombstones dated to the early 1800s, Beard said.
City workers have put most of the tombstones back into place. Three of the tombstones require more extensive repairs, Beard said.
One of the tombstones was broken in half.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB