NEW ORLEANS , Louisiana ( CNN ) -- A New Orleans police officer who was fired after the 2005 beating of an unarmed man on Bourbon Street was ordered reinstated to his job by an appeals court , the court clerk told CNN on Thursday . Robert Evangelist was acquitted of charges related to the beating in 2007 but lost his job as a police officer . Barring an appeal to the Louisiana Supreme Court , Robert Evangelist can return to his job on the police force , said the clerk with Louisiana 's 4th Circuit Court of Appeals . The ruling was issued Wednesday . The beating of Robert Davis in October 2005 attracted international attention , as it was captured on videotape by The Associated Press and its aftermath was recorded by a CNN photojournalist . The images , broadcast worldwide , added to the woes of the New Orleans Police Department after Hurricane Katrina 's devastation in the city . Evangelist was charged with false imprisonment while armed with a dangerous weapon and second-degree battery in the incident . He was acquitted of the charges in July 2007 . Another officer , Lance Schilling , also was charged with second-degree battery , and he and Evangelist were fired . Schilling committed suicide in June 2007 . Evangelist appealed his termination to the city 's Civil Service Commission , which upheld the firing , according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune . He then appealed to the 4th Circuit Court . A third officer , Stuart Smith , was suspended from the force for 120 days but allowed to keep his job . He initially was charged with simple battery against an Associated Press producer , but the charge was later dropped . Davis , who was 64 at the time , has said he does not remember the incident . He said he asked a mounted police officer about the city 's curfew and then walked away , only to be `` sucker-punched '' by another officer shortly afterward . Davis denied allegations he had been drinking at the time , saying he does not drink . He has said he suffers aftereffects from the beating . Davis ' federal lawsuit against the city was settled last month for an undisclosed amount , the Times-Picayune reported Thursday . His attorney , Stephen Bruno , told the newspaper Wednesday he was surprised by the appeals court ruling . `` He is not fit to be a school crossing guard , `` Bruno said of Evangelist . `` He does not have the moral character to be police officer , and have the power and the force to have a gun and a Taser . '' CNN 's Carolina Sanchez contributed to this report .
Appeals court orders reinstatement of officer in videotaped Bourbon Street incident . Officer had appealed to city 's Civil Service Commission , which upheld termination . Court order reinstates him as a police officer. Beaten man 's suit against city settled last month for undisclosed sum .