Missing teenager Nolan Well's cause of death 'undetermined', according to autopsy
The family of Nolan Wells have released their independent autopsy after the 18-year-old was found dead, ‘face down’ and ‘fully clothed’, on Horn Island.
Wells went missing from a Fourth of July party after travelling to the Mississippi island with a group of friends for a large party with around 300 people.
His body was found in the water near the northwest end of Horn Island, just two days after he was last seen.
Earlier today (22 July), family attorney Ben Crump presented the preliminary findings of the autopsy by Dr Roger Mitchell at a news conference.
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Dr Mitchell said Wells’ body was so decomposed by the time of his second autopsy that he might have missed signs of bruising or abrasions.
The forensic pathologist said he could not rule out foul play, despite not finding any fractures or deep tissue injuries on his body.
Why Nolan Wells’ body was returned to the family without his throat and lungs
Investigators had already dissected Wells’ organs and removed his throat structures as part of the official investigation, which Mitchell said was common practice.
It meant that he was not able to examine Wells’ lungs or stomach for possible signs of drowning.
Notably, Dr Mitchell did not conduct his own toxicology, as the official autopsy and toxicology are yet to be released.
Crump said ‘we will persist, persist, persist’ in finding out what happened to the young man.
Jackson County Sheriff’s Office said Wells was last seen on the island at around 3pm local time on 4 July.
The US Coast Guard said one of Wells' friends contacted them at 11pm on Saturday 4 July to report him missing.
“From the people we’ve talked to, it sounds like he chose to stay on the island with the assumption that he was going to ride back to the mainland with someone else,” Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said to the Associated Press.
Why Wells left his phone behind
Crump, however, questioned the idea of a ‘teenager’ leaving their phone behind.
“What teenager would leave their phone behind if they’re going to stay on this island?” Crump said. “What teenager wouldn’t take their phone?”
Wells’ friend Tracestin Shepherd told ABC News that Wells left his phone in a boat because he would be spending time in the water. Many of his friends did the same thing.
Crump previously said Wells is heard on a video, shot from a boat on the water, demanding his phone back.
"That's me yelling. ... there was no talk about a phone in that video," Shepherd clarified, adding that Wells wasn’t in the clip.
"All our friends are out there. Who are we communicating with? And we're in salt water. We're not in fresh water," he said.
"Nobody would ever hurt Nolan in our friend group. We would die for him. We would do everything in our power for that guy. If he needed anything, we would do it. Nolan brought us all together."
A timeline of Nolan Wells' death and the ongoing investigation
3 July
Nolan Wells, 18, makes his family dinner and leaves to spend the night with friends. It’s the last time his family see him alive.
4 July
Wells takes a boat with friends to Horn Island, off the Mississippi Gulf Coast
3pm - The last time Wells is seen alive by friends. His close friend Tracestin Shepherd says he chose to stay behind on the island with a girl he’d met. But Wells’ family’s attorney Ben Crump says the girl said Nolan told her he was going back in the boat with his friends, according to WJHG.
11pm - One of Wells’ friends calls his mother Christine Wonsley to tell her he had not returned from the island.
12pm - After speaking to more of Wells’ friends and growing concerned, she reports him missing to the police, while one of his friends also calls the US Coast Guard about his disappearance.
5 July
Several agencies, including the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, the Coast Guard, US National Park Service and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks launch a search for Wells. Helicopters and boats are sent to comb the island.
6 July
8.45am - Police received a call reporting that a US Park Service ranger has discovered a body on the northwestern tip of Horn Island.
1pm - Wells’ family confirm his death on social media. A statement from police says ‘no foul play was suspected’.
7 July
Wells’ family retain civil rights attorney Ben Crump - who represented Breanna Taylor and George Floyd's families - to conduct an independent investigation into his death.
Meanwhile, the mother of one of the boys who accompanied Wells to Horn Island says she ‘fears for the safety of my child’ following online speculation about the case. The following day, she says she’s started receiving death threats.
With Wells being the only Black man in a group of white friends, speculation is rife that his death could have been racially motivated.
8 July
Jackson County Sheriff’s Department release a statement which reads in part: “We recognize that a significant amount of information, speculation, and commentary has been shared on social media and throughout the community. As with any active investigation, our investigators are working to establish the facts through eyewitness accounts, physical evidence, and other reliable information.”
10 July
Crump says the details of the case are ‘not adding up’. He argued that if Wells drowned, someone would have seen him struggling and offered to help. He also says it was suspicious that Wells did not have his phone with him at the time of his death.
Speaking at a press conference, civil rights activist Rev Al Sharpton accuses police of ‘mishandling’ the investigation, adding ‘this does not smell right’.
He continues: “Some people are saying, 'Reverend, are y’all bringing in race?' Well, we’re not bringing in race, but we’re not discounting race either.
“To tell us don’t rush to judgement saying it was racist is fine. But I’m telling you don't rush to judgement saying it was not racism, because we do not know”
13 July
Shepherd appears on Good Morning America and addresses a viral video taken from before Wells’ death. Many assumed the clip showed Wells getting into an argument with someone.
But Shepherd says the man yelling in the video was actually him. He says he was having an argument with his girlfriend, another man tried to intervene, and he told him to ‘mind his own business’.
20 July
A funeral service is held for Wells at Center Pointe Church in Ocean Springs.
Rev Sharpton officiates and announces a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest or conviction. Actor Tyler Perry pledges another $50k.
The following day, NFL star Terrell Owens pledges $25k.
22 July
The results of an independent autopsy ordered by Crump come in, saying the cause of death is undetermined.
Forensic pathologist Dr Roger Mitchell noted a discolouration to Wells’ head, but didn’t find any lacerations or bone fractures, and the state of decomposition was too advanced to determine if there was any bruising.
Topics: US News
Anish Vij