The possibility of criminal charges against the Natchez mayor still looms without answers.

The Mississippi Department of Archives and History has discussed the next step in the Natchez pecan factory saga, but they aren’t sharing their opinions with the public yet.

Members of the Board of Trustees met behind closed doors Friday to discuss the Feb. 8 razing of the Mississippi landmark.

Duncan Morgan of Natchez is a member of the board of trustees. He said the board and staff members would have no comment on what was discussed in executive session, but would refer questions to the state attorney general’s office.

Efforts to reach the attorney general for comment were unsuccessful.

Jim Barnett of Natchez, director of historic sites for the department, was at the meeting, but did not attend the executive session in which the board discussed Natchez Mayor Phillip West’s decision to tear down the Natchez Pecan Manufacturing Co., a 1940s building on the north end of the Mississippi River bluff.

Barnett said he thought the tone of the meeting was one of concern over the unresolved issues.

“Some people who wanted to address the board were unable to do so because the discussions (about Natchez) were in executive session,” he said.

West appeared in Adams County Chancery Court Monday for a civil hearing, but the potential criminal aspect of his case has not been addressed.

Under the state antiquities law, demolition of a building considered a Mississippi landmark is a crime.

If criminal charges are filed, and a guilty verdict is returned, West could face a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $5,000 or jail time of not more than 30 days or both for violation of the state antiquities law.

West has said he does not feel he broke the law.

Executive Director of the Historic Natchez Foundation Ron Miller said the criminal side of the case will set precedents in Natchez.

“The question here is, are the penalties going to be applied or not? If they’re not applied, the message sent is you can do what you want when you want to do it.”

Former Mayor Tony Byrne agreed that the message may be a mighty one.

“I was mayor for a long time, but I never knew I had executive power like that,” he said. “If I’d known that, I might have gotten rid of some things.”