No Charges Filed in Death of Black Teen Nolan Wells

A grand jury in Jackson County, Mississippi, has determined there was insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges in the death of Nolan Wells, an 18-year-old Black teen found dead on Horn Island after a July 4 boating trip. The decision was announced Monday by District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath.

The Mississippi medical examiner’s office and an independent forensic pathologist hired by Wells’ family were unable to determine the cause and manner of his death. The grand jury’s report stated that if credible evidence emerges suggesting Wells’ death was non-accidental, the matter could be presented again.

Attorneys for Wells’ family, including civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, have expressed dissatisfaction with the grand jury's findings, asserting that the investigation has been closed without determining the cause of blunt force trauma found on the back of Wells' head and body. They have renewed calls for the U.S. Department of Justice to conduct an independent investigation and for McIlrath to release the investigation file and the full autopsy report.

“Today, the State of Mississippi is attempting to close the chapter on Nolan Wells’ death without getting to the truth,” Crump said in a statement. Wells’ family and the NAACP planned a news conference Tuesday.

McIlrath addressed the case in a social media video, expressing frustration with public speculation, particularly narratives suggesting Wells' death was racially motivated. She stated there was no evidence to support such claims and mentioned that the family’s own investigators had found no evidence of crimes.

Wells disappeared while celebrating the Fourth of July with friends on Horn Island, located off the Mississippi Gulf Coast. His body was discovered two days later. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office initially stated they did not suspect foul play, which raised concerns given the state's history.

Wells’ parents and their lawyers had previously voiced suspicions after Wells’ friends left the island without him. They questioned why Wells would choose to remain on the island without his phone, which was on the boat that later took on water and was towed back to the mainland. Lawyers for Wells’ friends stated their clients were cooperating with authorities.

The grand jury also addressed public assertions that Wells was the only Black person on Horn Island that day, stating that such false claims led to misidentification and rumors. The panel concluded by expressing sympathy for Wells' family and noting that the evidence convinced them of Wells’ outstanding character.