JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – A Hinds County judge rejected the family of George Robinson’s legal objection to a settlement with the City of Jackson.

In April 2024, the Jackson City Council unanimously voted to settle with Bettersten Wade, Robinson’s sister, in the amount of $17,000.

Wade filed a lawsuit against the city saying that her brother was killed by a former Jackson police officer. In 2019, Robinson died two days after a Jackson police traffic stop involving former JPD officer Anthony Fox.

Robinson, 62, had been hospitalized for a stroke days before the police encounter and was on medication, Wade has said. He had a seizure hours after he was beaten, and he died two days later from bleeding on his brain.

Lawyers for Wade said they intended to move forward with her cause of action against the city after the settlement was revealed to the public.

Hinds County Circuit Court Judge Faye Peterson ruled against the Robinson family on Friday, May 31. The judge said she found no merit to their arguments nor credible evidence in support of their claims.

Peterson affirmed that the settlement remains legally binding. She also noted that the City of Jackson cannot legally choose to keep settlements confidential.

Fox went on to work for the Clinton Police Department. He 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.

In January 2024, the Mississippi Court of Appeals reversed Fox’s conviction. They reviewed the case and found that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict.

On February 6, 2024, the City of Clinton’s Board of Aldermen approved Police Chief Ford Hayman’s request to re-hire Fox. He returned to work as a K9 narcotics detective.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.