Grand jury clears the air on Nolan Wells case — but his family isn’t done

BS BULLETIN:

A Mississippi grand jury unanimously found insufficient evidence of criminal conduct in the death of 18-year-old Nolan Wells.
Jurors examined 132 subpoenas, testimony from 43 witnesses, cellphone records, GPS data, video and forensic evidence.
Wells’ family disputes the conclusion and is calling for a Justice Department investigation.

A Mississippi grand jury has reached its conclusion in the mysterious death of 18-year-old Nolan Wells — and it knocks down several claims that exploded across social media after the teenager disappeared over the Fourth of July.

The 23-member Jackson County grand jury unanimously returned a “no true bill,” finding insufficient evidence to charge anyone in connection with Wells’ death.

Wells traveled with friends to Horn Island off Mississippi’s Gulf Coast on July 4. His friends told investigators that Wells remained on the island when they departed because he wanted to speak with a girl.

His body was discovered in the water two days later.

The grand jury conducted an unusually extensive review, examining cellphone and GPS records, photographs, videos, security footage and forensic evidence while issuing 132 subpoenas and hearing from 43 witnesses.

Jurors concluded there was no credible evidence that anyone traveling aboard the three boats associated with Wells’ group committed a crime connected to his death.

They also found the location and condition of Wells’ body were “consistent with drowning,” although both the state medical examination and an independent examination commissioned by Wells’ family left the official cause and manner of death undetermined.

The report addressed some of the more explosive allegations that circulated online.

Jurors said claims of a fight involving Wells were unsupported, viral photographs purportedly showing him at a pool party that day actually came from earlier dates, and an online version of a SeaTow call differed from the original recording.

The report also rejected the widely circulated claim that Wells was the only Black person on Horn Island that day.

Investigators did confirm bruising on the back of Wells’ head, but determined it was not fatal. A witness testified that Wells had slipped awkwardly from a boat earlier but continued socializing afterward.

Wells’ family isn’t accepting the grand jury’s findings as the final word.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, representing the family, has raised questions about the head injury and other unresolved circumstances surrounding Wells’ disappearance and death. The family is calling for the Justice Department to investigate and wants the complete investigative record released.

The case isn’t legally closed forever, either. Mississippi has no statute of limitations for homicide, and the grand jury specifically noted that the matter could be presented to another grand jury if credible new evidence indicating foul play emerges.

MY QUICK TAKE

This case became an internet murder mystery long before investigators finished investigating it.

Now 23 grand jurors have gone through the phones, GPS records, videos, witnesses and forensic evidence and concluded that some of the loudest claims racing around social media simply weren’t true.

That doesn’t answer every question about how an 18-year-old ended up dead in the water.

But there’s a pretty big difference between an unanswered question and evidence of a crime.