By Jake Offenhartz and Laura Bargfeld
Contributing Writers
CHICAGO (AP) — An independent autopsy commissioned by the family of Mississippi teenager Nolan Wells found the 18-year-old’s cause of death to be “undetermined,” but said it could not rule out “non-accidental factors” in Wells’ death.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Wells’ family, announced the preliminary findings July 22 in front of a standing-room-only crowd at the annual NAACP National Convention in Chicago.
The autopsy report described a “red discoloration” in the back of Wells’ skull as “inconclusive,” meriting further investigation, Crump said, but it showed no evidence of fractures or deep tissue injuries.
Without further information, the forensic pathologist, Dr. Roger Mitchell, wrote that he could not rule out the possibility that “non-accidental factors contributed to or caused the death.”
Speaking at a news conference with family members, Crump characterized that statement as especially telling.
“Understand — he said that based on the examination of the body, he cannot rule out foul play,” Crump said. “That is significant.”
Wells had traveled to an island off the coast of Mississippi on July 4 with a group of friends, who later returned to the mainland without him. His body was discovered two days later floating off the island’s coast.
In his report, the pathologist pointed to several challenges inherent to the independent autopsy, including the decomposition of the body and outstanding questions about whether Wells was conscious when he entered the water.
Because an initial autopsy was performed by the medical examiner in Mississippi, Wells’ body arrived without organs or neck structures — making it impossible to determine if he had suffered a neck injury or whether water had entered his lungs, according to the report, which notes that the practice is not unusual.
Still, the revelation, relayed by Crump, prompted gasps from the crowd of several hundred in Chicago. Crump called on state officials to provide that evidence for the family to review as part of their own independent investigation.
“This is only another part of the puzzle, and even though it tells us significant information, we still have more questions than we have answers at this time,” Crump said of the results.
The Mississippi medical examiner, which has not released the results of the state’s autopsy, did not return a message seeking comment.
The second autopsy was paid for by former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, whose group Know Your Rights Camp has paid for other independent autopsies.
The still-unknown circumstances around Wells’ death have ignited rampant speculation online and prompted calls from Black activists for transparency from local authorities. Wells, who was Black, had traveled to the island with three white high school friends — raising the specter of potential racial overtones in Wells’ death.
A reward of $125,000 — jointly funded by the Rev. Al Sharpton, actor and producer Tyler Perry and former NFL player Terrell Owens — is now being offered in exchange for information leading to an arrest and conviction in connection with the death.
The autopsy announcement comes two days after Wells was laid to rest in his hometown of Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
In his eulogy, Sharpton lamented the “inconsistencies and unanswered questions” that had placed a dark cloud over the grieving family.
He questioned why Wells’ friends had left him behind, taken his phone and keys and failed to report him missing. And he suggested local investigators were premature in statements to the news media that no crime was suspected.
“The reason that a lot of people across the nation are looking at this Nolan situation is because we’re looking at the history in Mississippi,” Sharpton said. “We can’t have someone in law enforcement saying there was no foul play before there was an investigation.”
Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said initial interviews suggested that Wells chose to stay on the island and that his friends believed he would get a ride with someone else. He has said the friends were cooperating with the investigation, which remains ongoing.
“We are trying to be respectful and collaborative as much as we can,” Crump said. “But it’s always troublesome to all of us when these investigations just take forever.”
Jake Offenhartz and Laura Bargfeld write for the Associated Press. Wave staff contributed to this report.
