Three Republican gubernatorial candidates and the director of an open government group said Monday that the State Bureau of Investigation should look into allegations that Gov. Mike Easley's staff told state public information officers to delete e-mail messages to and from the governor's office.

"Those e-mails are in essence public property, and so that information belongs to the people," said Bill Graham, a Salisbury lawyer who is seeking the GOP nomination for governor. "They should look into it, no question about it."

Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory and Bob Orr, a former state Supreme Court justice -- both Republican candidates for governor -- also said the SBI should investigate. In a statement, McCrory called it "another example of the ethical breakdown in our state government."

Easley and his staff have said the state public records law was not violated.

This weekend, The News & Observer reported that handwritten notes by two public information officers show they were told in a meeting with Easley's staff May 29 to delete the messages.

"Delete emails to & from gov office every day," wrote Diana Kees of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Julia Jarema of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety wrote virtually the same notation.

It is a misdemeanor offense to destroy public records without the consent of the state Department of Cultural Resources, which sets the rules for what is a public record and how long it should be kept. David Lawrence, a professor and public records law expert with the UNC School of Government in Chapel Hill, said he does not know of any criminal investigations under the state's public records law during the 39 years he has been at UNC.

The issue arose out of a series The N&O published about the failure of mental health reform. Two days after the series ended, Easley ordered the Department of Health and Human Services to fire its chief spokeswoman, Debbie Crane. She spoke to The N&O shortly afterward and said the governor's press office had given instructions to delete e-mail messages to circumvent the state's public records law.

Jane Pinsky, director of the N.C. Coalition for Lobbying and Government Reform, said the notes suggest that Crane was telling the truth. Pinsky said the SBI should investigate because it would have the expertise to determine whether public records had been destroyed.

"It was stupid," Pinsky said of the instructions. "I don't know if they did that with any criminal intent, but it's hard not to be suspicious."

Democratic gubernatorial candidates Bev Perdue and Richard Moore did not say whether an investigation is needed. A spokeswoman for Moore said he did not know enough about the controversy to comment. Perdue said in a statement: "That's a question for the SBI, but clearly nobody in state government should attempt, or direct employees, to circumvent our state's public record laws."

Governors and agency heads typically request SBI investigations. Since the activity took place in Raleigh, Wake County District Attorney Colon Willoughby could call for an investigation.

Willoughby said Monday that he did not know whether he would look into the matter. He spent much of the day taking part in jury selection for the criminal trial of former state Rep. Thomas E. Wright, a Wilmington Democrat who faces several fraud charges.

"I know there's been some controversy back and forth between [The N&O] and the governor's office, but I haven't been focused on it," he said.

Willoughby said he has received no request for an investigation from Cultural Resources, which is headed by Lisbeth C. Evans. Evans could not be reached for comment.

Her chief deputy and legal counsel, Staci Meyer, said in an interview that she saw no reason to investigate. She referred to a letter sent to The N&O on Saturday by Andrew A. Vanore Jr., a lawyer who works for Easley, that stated there had been no violation of the public records law.

"I think the letter speaks for itself," she said.