Public defender Tom Gibson filed a notice to the Nevada Supreme Court Monday he will appeal the conviction of former Nye County Commissioner Peter Liakopoulos.

In his notice Gibson said he is appealing the judgment entered against Liakpoulos Oct. 21.

That was entered after Liakopoulos was sentenced to five years probation on the felony count of asking or receiving a bribe by an executive or administrative officer, which will run concurrent with three years probation assessed for each of the misdemeanor charges of offering a reward for an appointment and grafting by a public officer.

Liakopoulos was also ordered to perform 500 hours of community service and attend an ethics class, but a 60-day jail sentence was stayed pending the appeal.

Liakopoulos was convicted by a jury in 5th District Court on July 1. The charges stemmed from his offer to vote for a county half-cent sales tax in 2007 if the Pahrump town board would appoint his wife as curator of the veteran's memorial.

Liakopoulos' wife wasn't appointed to that position, and he voted against the half-cent sales tax which was defeated by the county commission in December 2007 by a 3-2 vote.

Gibson said he will argue some of the same points in his motion to dismiss the case. He disagreed with prosecutor Conrad Hafen that selective prosecution only involved prosecuting a person because of their race, gender, religion or national origin.

Gibson will reiterate the point that former Pahrump Town Board Chairman Laurayne Murray, the official to whom Liakopoulos made the offer, was not charged.

"If she did nothing wrong, my client did nothing wrong," Gibson said. "She actually went through her end of the bargain. He didn't."

Gibson said Hafen contradicted himself, saying repeatedly during the trial Murray didn't do anything wrong, but then in closing arguments said the state didn't prosecute Murray because she didn't initiate the contact with Liakopoulos.

Gibson predicted it could be two years before the appeal is heard, judging from the amount of time the Nevada Supreme Court is taking to consider his appeal of the Tyler Gibbons case.