A Mississippi family is still searching for answers in the death of Nolan Wells, 18, whose body was found along the shore of Horn Island after a July 4 trip with friends. (See The Final Call, Vol. 45 No. 41)
His family and their attorney, Ben Crump, met with Jackson County, Miss., District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath and members of her staff on July 15. The DA shared that once the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office completes its investigation, she would present the case to a grand jury, Atty.
Crump said in a news conference following the meeting. “We also agreed that we will have a mutual inspection of the cellphone with our experts and their experts,” Atty. Crump said. Former law enforcement experts are aiding independent investigation, he added.
A complete picture of what happened that day has yet to emerge. Atty. Crump said the meeting focused largely on the legal process, and the DA did not provide the family with information about the investigation.
Nolan traveled from Ocean Springs, Miss., where he grew up, to Horn Island with friends. He was pictured on a boat with three young White men, who returned to the mainland without him.
Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter has said investigators believe Nolan may have chosen to remain on the island and planned to return with someone else. His family questions that account, as his phone remained on the boat after it left the island.
“Every morning they wake up and there‘s a hole in their heart, and they are trying to say what happened to my son. Obviously, they feel strongly that he would not have just stayed behind.
He wouldn‘t have left his cellphone, and so we‘re trying to get to those answers,” Atty. Crump said. He previously shared that messages appeared to have been deleted from the phone.
At the news conference, Atty. Crump said the legal team received dozens of calls a day from people who were on Horn Island that day or know people who were there.
“The hope is that when this is presented to the grand jury, all relevant witnesses and evidence will be presented to them, so that we can have a fair and impartial investigation into the death of Nolan Wells,” he said. “Our lived experiences tell us that we must question everything, everybody‘s role, law enforcement‘s role. That is the lived experience of us as Black people in America.”
The family and legal team were awaiting results from an independent autopsy performed by a forensic pathologist in Washington, D.C. The official cause and manner of death have not yet been released.
Nolan’s family, friends, coaches, teammates and community celebrated his life on July 20 at a homegoing service. Former NFL quarterback and activist Colin Kaepernick paid for the independent autopsy, while producer, actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry paid Nolan’s funeral expenses, according to Atty. Crump.
—Anisah Muhammad, Staff Writer