Nolan Wells' Family to Release Cellphone Report Amid Calls for Investigation

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump has announced the planned release of a forensic examination of Nolan Wells' cellphone, occurring just days after a Mississippi grand jury chose not to recommend charges in the death of the 18-year-old Black college student. Attorneys representing Wells' family are advocating for transparency, requesting the public release of grand jury investigative materials and the official autopsy report.

The family's legal team has criticized the grand jury's findings and is working to keep the investigation active. They have also called for federal authorities to examine the circumstances surrounding Wells' death. His body was discovered two days after he attended a July 4 party on a barrier island with a group of mostly white friends. The case has drawn significant attention in Mississippi, a state with a history of racial tension, fueling speculation and suspicion.

Wells' family and their lawyers previously expressed concerns that his phone might have been tampered with, pointing to a lack of activity on social media apps in the hours before he was last seen. They doubted his decision to remain on the island without his phone, as suggested by some accounts.

In its findings, the grand jury addressed some of these suspicions, stating that Wells chose to stay behind, that departures on different boats were common on crowded days, and that it was not unusual for phones to be left on boats and later returned. The report also sought to dispel accusations against the white friends who were with Wells, clearing them of wrongdoing and stating that online interpretations of a call to a sea towing company, suggesting an attack, were inaccurate.

The grand jury report stated that Wells' death was consistent with drowning and that he had not been involved in a fight on the island. However, Crump and Wells' mother, Christine Wonsley, have questioned these conclusions, noting that both official and independent autopsies could not determine the cause of death and that Wells had unexplained blunt force trauma to the back of his head.

According to the report, a witness testified to seeing Wells fall awkwardly off a boat around 3:30 p.m. on July 4, but that Wells continued to socialize afterward and did not appear injured. The panel could not definitively link the fall to the bruising on Wells' body, but indicated it was not a fatal injury.

At a news conference, Wonsley, Crump, and representatives of the NAACP called for an independent investigation by the U.S. Justice Department. While the grand jury report mentioned federal law enforcement involvement, the extent and nature of their participation remain unclear. Wonsley stated that the investigation lacked thoroughness and honesty, emphasizing that the family still has no definitive answers.