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The Selma City Council unanimously approved Wednesday to continue the hearing of Selma Police Chief Fulford, who was placed on administrative leave last month by Mayor James Perkins Jr.

In City Hall, City Council President Billy Young said he and Perkins will work on a hearing date shortly. Councilman Sam Randolph made the motion, seconded by Councilwoman Jannie Thomas. 

At Fulford’s due process hearing, his attorney, Mike McDermott, requested for more time to review the 228-page document presented by Perkins and city attorney Major Madison. McDermott said the documents served to Fulford were not the same documents Perkins planned to present. Perkins placed Fulford on Administrative leave with pay on April 30, saying that Fulford “failed to perform at an acceptable level.”

“About a week ago, the chief was served with 98 pages of complaint,” McDermott said. “Today, when we got here, we were served with 228 pages of complaint. The citizens of Selma deserve a response and answer. As an employee, Fulford has a right to have his story told. He needs time to respond. It’s more of a demotion than a hearing.”

Perkins argued that the complaint in question, obtained by The Selma Times-Journal contained the same information that the chief received over three weeks ago. Perkins said his side was prepared to proceed with the hearing, but did not have a problem on continuing the case.

“There were a couple of additional exhibits or examples of the same kind of infractions that are in the complaint,” Perkins said.

Dallas County Sheriff Mike Granthum, and former Selma Police Chiefs Robert Green and John Brock attended the hearing.