JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – Anthony Fox, a former Jackson police officer, will soon be a free man after the Mississippi Court of Appeals reversed his conviction in the George Robinson case.

Fox was initially convicted in the 2019 death of Robinson. Fox was sentenced to five years in prison in August 2022 after a jury found him guilty of culpable negligence manslaughter.

The Court of Appeals reviewed the case and found that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict.

“They also noted, in their opinion, that not only was the evidence not sufficient, meaning the weight and force of the evidence didn’t support the guilty verdict, but they were also trial errors that occurred during the trial. And even if the evidence had been sufficient, which it wasn’t, the case would have had to been reversed anyway for a new trial because of the errors that took place during the trial,” said Fox’s attorney, Merrida Coxwell.

He said medical opinions on the case stated that Robinson was not injured the way the state claimed he was.

“And when I looked at that issue and actually not just me, but a whole team looked at that issue and looked at the law, we were very confident that the case would be reversed and rendered,” the attorney said.

Coxwell said Fox has a few more steps left until he is back home.

“The opinion that the court issued yesterday is not in order. So, there’s still has to be an order coming down from the appellate court called a mandate. And when that mandate goes back and is issued, then he’ll be released,” he said.

After the incident in 2019, Fox was later hired by the Clinton Police Department. Clinton officials said Fox will resume his duties as a narcotics detective as soon as possible.