Shanquella Robinson Update: Lawsuit, Extradition, and Autopsies

The latest update in the Shanquella Robinson case: her mother’s wrongful death lawsuit against the six friends who traveled with her to Mexico is moving forward in Mecklenburg County Superior Court after a judge denied a key defendant’s motion to dismiss on June 1, 2026. No criminal charges have been filed against anyone in the United States, and a Mexican arrest warrant for femicide remains unexecuted more than three years after Robinson died in San José del Cabo on October 29, 2022.¹

Where the Case Stands in 2026

The civil case is the only active legal proceeding tied to Robinson’s death. It was filed in state court on October 28, 2024, briefly removed to federal court, and then sent back to Mecklenburg County Superior Court in February 2026 after a federal judge dismissed claims against the FBI and the U.S. State Department.¹

The next scheduled event is a July 22, 2026, hearing at the Mecklenburg County Courthouse on defendant Khalil Cooke’s motion to move the litigation to Mexico.² No discovery schedule or trial date has been set.

The Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Salamondra Robinson filed the suit on behalf of her daughter’s estate against the six people, collectively known as the “Cabo Six,” who traveled with Robinson to Mexico:

E’Mani Green, formerly Daejhanae Jackson, identified in the complaint as the person who struck Robinson in the video that surfaced after her death
Khalil Cooke
Nazeer Tyree Wiggins
Alysse Hyatt
Wenter Donovan
Malik Dyer

The complaint alleges battery, negligence, civil conspiracy, and emotional distress, and claims the defendants “concealed critical information and evidence” about Robinson’s death and initially lied about its cause.³ At an April 2025 press conference in Greensboro, attorney Ben Crump said his team had filed a $100 million lawsuit.⁴

Green’s Failed Motion to Dismiss

Green filed a motion to dismiss in July 2025, arguing she had not been properly served and that the statute of limitations had expired. She had legally changed her name from Daejhanae Jackson in November 2024, and a private investigator made several attempts to serve her at addresses in Jamestown, North Carolina, and Hartford, Connecticut, before finally reaching her in Jamestown on May 7, 2025.¹

On June 1, 2026, Judge Matt Osman denied Green’s motion, finding that Salamondra Robinson had made “good faith efforts” to serve Green and granting a retroactive extension of the service deadline.⁵ The ruling was procedural and did not address the underlying allegations or decide liability.

Status of the Other Defendants

The other Cabo Six defendants were served between December 2024 and January 2025. Green responded to the complaint through a typed, mailed letter in May 2025. Malik Dyer is the only defendant who has not responded to the lawsuit.⁶

Cooke’s Push to Move the Case to Mexico

Khalil Cooke has filed a motion to stay the North Carolina case, arguing the matter should be litigated in Mexico. Attorneys for Salamondra Robinson oppose the motion. They argue all parties reside in North Carolina, significant events connected to the case occurred in the state, and moving the litigation to Mexico would impose unnecessary financial and legal burdens. They also contend the defendants failed to cooperate with Mexican authorities.⁷ The July 22, 2026, hearing on the motion is the next scheduled step in the case.

Why There Are Still No U.S. Criminal Charges

The FBI’s Charlotte Field Office opened an investigation in November 2022. In April 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina told the Robinson family that “the available evidence does not support a federal prosecution.” The FBI said it was “prepared to review and examine new information related to the investigation should it become available.”⁸

On the third anniversary of Robinson’s death in October 2025, attorneys Ben Crump and Sue-Ann Robinson issued a statement calling the absence of U.S. criminal charges “not only heartbreaking but unacceptable” and renewing their call for the FBI to release information about the case.⁹

Mexico’s Femicide Warrant and the Extradition Problem

Mexican authorities investigated the death as a femicide, defined under Mexican law as the intentional murder of a woman because of her gender.¹⁰ Baja California Sur Attorney General Daniel de la Rosa Anaya confirmed an arrest warrant was issued for a female U.S. citizen described as Robinson’s friend and the “direct aggressor,” and prosecutors began working with the Foreign Affairs Ministry and Interpol to seek extradition.¹¹ The investigation remains open and no arrest has been carried out.¹²

Extradition of a U.S. citizen is governed by the U.S.-Mexico Extradition Treaty. Mexico must provide evidence establishing probable cause, sworn affidavits, and an explanation of the applicable law, and a U.S. court hearing is required before any citizen can be sent abroad.¹³ Legal experts have pointed to further obstacles: Mexico’s legal system requires pretrial detention with no bail equivalent, and concerns about prison conditions have historically slowed such requests.¹⁴ The Robinson family has said publicly it would prefer prosecution in Mexico, but neither government has acted on the extradition request.

What Happened in Cabo

Robinson, a 25-year-old from Charlotte, traveled to San José del Cabo on October 28, 2022, with six friends for a birthday celebration. She died less than 24 hours after arriving. The group stayed at a rental villa in Fundadores, and Robinson was found unconscious in the living room on the afternoon of October 29. The Baja California Sur State Attorney General’s Office received a report of a foreign woman’s death at approximately 6:15 p.m. local time.¹⁵

Robinson’s parents were told by her friends that she had died from alcohol poisoning. A local police report noted that a guest had alerted medical staff around 2:00 p.m. that Robinson had “drunk a lot of alcohol,” and a doctor recommended transferring her to a hospital for dehydration, but the friends did not follow through.¹⁶ On November 16, 2022, an 18-second video began circulating on social media showing a naked woman being thrown to the floor and beaten while another person recorded. Bernard Robinson confirmed the woman in the video was his daughter.¹¹

The Conflicting Autopsies

The Mexican Secretariat of Health’s autopsy report, dated November 4, 2022, listed the cause of death as “severe spinal cord injury and atlas luxation,” a term describing instability in the uppermost neck vertebrae. It noted an approximate 15-minute interval between the injury and death and marked the death as “accidental or violent,” with no mention of alcohol.¹⁵ Mexican prosecutors concluded her death was “a direct attack, not an accident.”¹⁷

A second autopsy in Mecklenburg County, conducted after Robinson’s body had been embalmed, reached a different conclusion. According to the family’s attorney, the U.S. examination found Robinson’s spine was intact and showed no spinal cord injury, though it did reveal swelling on the brain. The U.S. cause of death was listed as “undetermined.”¹⁰

1
WBTV. Judge Denies Motion to Dismiss Shanquella Robinson Wrongful Death Lawsuit
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WSPA. Attorneys Clash Over Whether Shanquella Robinson Case Should Move to Mexico
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ABC News. Shanquella Robinson’s Family Sues Travel Companions, Federal Prosecutors
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WBTV. Live Updates Expected in Shanquella Robinson Case, North Carolina News Conference
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Yahoo News. Judge Denies Motion to Dismiss Shanquella Robinson Wrongful Death Lawsuit
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Yahoo News. Friend Tied to Shanquella Robinson Death Responds to Lawsuit
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QC News. Attorneys Clash Over Whether Shanquella Robinson Case Should Move to Mexico
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WBTV. Judge Partially Dismisses Shanquella Robinson Lawsuit Filed Against FBI, State Department
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Ben Crump Law. Attorneys Ben Crump and Sue-Ann Robinson Release Statement on the Anniversary of Shanquella Robinson’s Death
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CNN. Shanquella Robinson Mexico Death No US Prosecution
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ABC7 New York. Shanquella Robinson Mexico North Carolina Viral Video
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Good Morning America. Shanquella Robinson’s Family Sues Travel Companions, Federal Prosecutors
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Business Insider. Shanquella Robinson Death Investigation, Experts Discuss American Extradition
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WSOC-TV. Legal Expert Explains Possible Next Steps in Shanquella Robinson Case
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ABC News. Mystery Surrounds Death of American Woman in Mexico
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Time. Shanquella Robinson North Carolina Mexico FBI
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Business Insider. Shanquella Robinson Death Investigation