Family of Nolan Wells demand answers after he died during boating trip
The family says deleted phone messages and conflicting witness accounts warrant a second autopsy and a fuller review of how he died.
- On Friday, July 10, the family of Nolan Wells, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, and Rev. Al Sharpton held a press conference in New York demanding a "full, transparent, and urgent investigation" into the 18-year-old's death.
- Wells disappeared July 4 while visiting Horn Island with friends and failed to return to the mainland as planned; his body was discovered off the island's coast on Monday, July 6, following an extensive search.
- Crump cited "inconsistencies" in the timeline, including deleted phone messages, while the family disputes official accounts that Wells voluntarily remained on the island; an independent autopsy has been arranged.
- Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter continues investigating, requesting witnesses provide original media depicting "argument, disturbance or other unusual activity" from July 4 as official autopsy results remain pending.
- National attention intensifies amid racial tensions and skepticism, with the Wells family raising concerns about investigation thoroughness as they await toxicology results and clarity on the teenager's death.
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177 Articles
The Mysterious Death of Nolan Wells
No news story has African Americans more riled up than the death of Nolan Wells, the young African American student-athlete who lifeless body was pulled from the waters of Horn Island in Mississippi the Monday after he and his friends gathered there for a boating trip on the fourth of July. There are few media outlets, traditional and social that this news story has not saturated thus the details of which will not be rehashed here.
A July 4 boat trip, an 18-year-old’s death and a family’s search for answers in the Deep South
A week ago, 18-year-old Nolan Xavier Wells took a boat trip with friends to celebrate the Fourth of July on an island off Mississippi's Gulf Coast. He never came back.
Body of Mississippi teen recovered after his July 4th disappearance on boat trip as family calls for full investigation
"We will not rest until every fact about what happened to Nolan on Horn Island is brought into the light," the family's attorney announced in a statement.
Nolan Wells’ death has sparked scrutiny and speculation. Here’s what’s happening with the investigation
It’s been one week since Nolan Wells and his friends went on a Fourth of July trip to Horn Island. He was later found dead in the water – sparking myriad questions.
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