Nolan Wells’ Family Demands a Federal Investigation After Grand Jury Fails to Bring Indictments

For Nolan Wells’ parents, there is no comfort in a grand jury saying there is no crime to prosecute, and the official cause and manner of his death remain undetermined. Now, they want the federal government to investigate.

At a press conference Monday (Oct. 5), Wells’ parents, Christine and Elmore Wonsley, joined civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Stop AAPI Hate executive director Cynthia Choi – as Wells was Black and Filipino – in calling on the FBI and Department of Justice to reopen the investigation into the 18-year-old’s death. Crump also called for the National Park Service to examine what happened on Horn Island, where Wells’ body was found.

“We were left with many, many inconsistent stories,” Wells’ mother said Monday, adding that she could not accept the grand jury’s ruling and simply move on. For a family still grieving, she says they’ve also been left with “more questions and heartbreak than any answers.”

RELATED: Nolan Wells’ Mother Calls Out the Adultification of Black Children

Although the grand jury declined to indict anyone, it did not provide the definitive explanation Wells’ parents say they need. We previously told you that both the state autopsy and an independent autopsy commissioned by the family listed Wells’ cause and manner of death as undetermined. The state report also documented two dark red-purple contusions on the back of Wells’ head. The report did not determine how the injuries occurred and also found no skull fractures.

The findings were brought to a Mississippi grand jury, which found no credible evidence that anyone involved in the July Fourth trip to Horn Island engaged in criminal conduct.

We also told you that Jackson County District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath has stood by the investigation. She has called out attorney Crump and others for allegedly fueling racial tension connected to the case.

“I cannot take that ruling, and I cannot move on with my life,” Christine Wonsley later said of the grand jury finding. “Elmore and I, our family, our friends, the community, all of you, we cannot accept that. We cannot. cannot. So it is our plea that this case is reopened, reexamined.”

And then there are Wells’ friends: three young men who have found themselves at the center of public scrutiny since his death. Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour appeared on Fox News on Oct. 3, discussing the July 4 boating trip, the grand jury and inconsistencies surrounding Wells’ phone and alleged deleted information.

“We had no reason to access Nolan’s phone,” Hudson told the outlet. “I knew nothing was deleted off of Nolan’s phone because we can’t access Nolan’s phone, even if we wanted to.”

In addition, the group spoke about threats they say they have received and how the experience has deepened their faith. “I learned to lean on the Lord,” Hudson continued. “I know my friends did as well. And I know that’s what Nolan would want me to do.”

Their appearance came as they faced accusations despite direct evidence tying them to criminal wrongdoing. McIlrath has publicly said there was “absolutely no evidence” supporting allegations against Wells’ friends.

But for Wells’ family, the existence of a grand jury finding does not erase the questions surrounding the case and the circumstances that led to Nolan Wells’ death.