NATCHEZ — A Natchez resident has filed an appeal in Adams County Circuit Court of the Natchez Board of Aldermen’s recent appointment of a city attorney.

Resident Gail Guido is appealing the board’s July 1 3-2 decision to appoint Everett Sanders as city attorney.

The appeal was filed July 11, the day before the board met before a standing-room only crowd and discussed the appointment in an executive session that lasted nearly two hours.

The board ultimately decided to have Adams County Board of Supervisors Attorney Scott Slover, who sat in with the aldermen during the meeting, contact the attorney general’s office to seek an opinion about the legality and procedure of the appointment.

Ward 1 Alderwoman Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, Ward 2 Alderman Billie Joe Frazier and Ward 4 Alderwoman Felicia Irving voted against the motion to contact the attorney general’s office. Those same aldermen voted for Sanders in the July 1 meeting.

Ward 3 Alderwoman Sarah Smith, Ward 5 Aldermen Benjamin Davis and Ward 6 Alderman Dan Dillard voted to contact the attorney general. Davis abstained from the July 1 vote.

Grennell broke the 3-3 tie with a vote for the motion to contact the attorney general’s office.

The attorney general’s office, however, cannot issue an opinion on the appointment while there is pending litigation regarding the matter, Slover said Friday. The city has, therefore, elected to postpone its request until the appeal is settled.

In Guido’s notice of appeal, she wrote, “I feel the vote for City Attorney was done inappropriately. This nomination should have been discussed prior to such an impromptu vote. With Alderman Benjamin Davis not willing to make a decision, the vote for City Attorney should have been tabled for furthered discussion. That would give Mr. Davis a chance to make an educated decision.

“In addition, as a citizen of Natchez and voting in Ward 1, I feel my Alderperson, Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, did not follow the wishes of my Ward.”

Arceneaux-Mathis nominated Sanders for city attorney, a position he previously held for eight years. The vote occurred just a few hours after Mayor Darryl Grennell and the aldermen were sworn into office.

Guido said Friday she had no other choice but to file the appeal.

Guido said she was particularly concerned that Sanders was city attorney when the city lost a judgment after failing to respond to an ongoing lawsuit housing development company Roundstone Development filed against the city. The company seeks $1.8 million in damages after the city denied its zoning application to allow construction of a housing development stretching from Old Washington Road to Oriole Terrace.

In 2011, Circuit Court Judge Forrest “Al” Johnson ruled in a default judgment against the city for breach of contract and misrepresentation. The ruling issued by Johnson was a default judgment because the city failed to respond to the lawsuit in a timely manner.

“I’m worried that our taxes might go up, and we may have to pay for (the damages),” Guido said. “This (appeal) was the only way I could do something.”

The aldermen’s vote split along racial lines, with the three black aldermen who voted voting for Sanders and again voting against seeking the attorney general’s opinion. Public outcry about the questioning of Sanders’ appointment has included implications that he is being targeted because he is black.

“It is not because Mr. Sanders is black, I do not care about color,” said Guido, who is white. “I just don’t know if he’s the right man for the job. It has nothing to do with race.

“If you were interviewing for a job, and you had on your resume what he has, you probably wouldn’t get hired,” Guido said.

Grennell, who is also black, has said Sanders’ nomination blindsided him, as he had publicly tapped former Adams County Board of Supervisors attorney Robert “Bob” Latham as his preferred candidate.

Grennell said Friday he hopes the board of aldermen could sit down together and resolve the issue.

Grennell said he would like to see the board elect to interview attorneys then choose from those candidates. Having a city attorney in place, Grennell said, is of the utmost importance.

“That’s why I thought the board would go with my recommendation,” he said. “(With) the day-to-day operations, I have to pick up the phone and call to get legal guidance. We need an attorney, because there are legal issues we need to be handling as we speak.”

Grennell said he expects the matter of the city attorney appointment will come up at Tuesday’s board of aldermen meeting.

When asked if he could work with Sanders if Sanders ultimately ended up as city attorney, Grennell said, “I can’t say what the future holds. I like Everett. It was just from my personal experience. I called him on an issue years ago (when I was a county supervisor), and asked him for some legal advice, and I’m still waiting for it. I don’t know what he’ll do in the future.”

Arceneaux-Mathis said Friday that as the appointment is now a matter of litigation, she did not want to comment on it, saying only that she would abide by “whatever attorney we end up with.”