For the Fourth of July, a day meant for big celebrations, Nolan Xavier Wells decided he would go to Horn Island, Mississippi to spend some time with friends.
What began as a day of fun turned tragic when the 18-year-old went missing, hours after arriving. Two days later, searchers found the teen’s body near the shore on the northern tip of the island.
For the past two months, Wells’ family has desperately searched for answers about what happened to him. Meanwhile, the case has sparked a broader discussion about what it means to be Black in America, especially in the Deep South.
From the very beginning of the case, many people did not accept the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office’s original assessment that Wells died of an apparent drowning.
Wells’ friends on the island with him that day claimed the teen decided to stay behind with a girl. It’s a notion Wells’ parents have disputed, saying it does not sound like their son. They also point to the fact that Wells’ phone was still on the boat and made it back to shore.
“It’s not adding up, and that is the problem when you think about the history of Mississippi,” attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the family, said on “Good Morning America.”
The Picture That Started It All
When Wells went missing, his mother, Christine Wonsley, immediately shared one of the last photos taken of her son.
In the picture, Wells was on a boat with three of his white friends. That picture quickly went viral, with people pointing out the fact that Wells was the only black person.
“Teach your Black children that it is not a badge of honor to be the token,” one user said at the time.
“History always repeats itself. Never be the only Black person with a group full of white people; the same s—t keeps happening,” another commented.
Rumors quickly spread that Wells’ friends in the picture might have had something to do with his death. It didn’t help that some of the friends scrubbed their social media accounts and set them to private soon after.
Wells’ friends eventually fought back against the claims and hired attorneys to represent them. They pointed to Wells’ mother and Crump for making it “a race thing.”
“We have nothing to hide; we want to be fully transparent,” Jax Pitalo, one of the boys in the photo, told Officer Tatum. “Anything to do with justice, we want to help out.”
Chaotic Boat Call Sends Case Spiraling
The theories surrounding Wells’ death didn’t die down, especially after a Sea Tow call from that day was released.
The boat left the island around 4 p.m., but a mechanical issue with the water pump caused it to take on water, prompting Wells’ friends to call Sea Tow for help. The recording of that call begins with indecipherable chatter in the background while the caller waits on hold for the dispatcher to answer.
Netta Brantley, an audio engineer, spent several hours enhancing the audio after she felt like she heard Wells’ name.
“I definitely heard someone say Nolan; they’re yelling Nolan, but allegedly he wanted to stay behind with the girl.”
She also said she heard a voice saying something like “can we cover it up,” and then she heard the name “Bart.”
Bart Edmiston Jr. was on Horn Island the day Wells went missing. He’s another name that people have pointed to as possibly being involved.
“Let me be abundantly clear,” Edmiston’s attorney Russell Latino said in a statement. “Bart Edmiston Jr. did not kill or in any way contribute to the tragic death of Nolan Wells. All he did was help a boat that was in distress.”
Wells’ family’s legal team has since subpoenaed the Sea Tow call so independent investigators could review the audio.
Seeking Answers Leads to Threats
Wells’ parents maintain that hiring independent counsel and taking other steps are all part of their effort to uncover what happened to their son.
But as figures such as Crump and Al Sharpton draw more national attention to the case, the family says that attention has also brought threats.
Christine Wonsley shared a photo on social media of an anonymous piece of mail sent to her home featuring images of Sharpton and Crump with large dollar signs superimposed over their faces, a longtime racist trope used to discredit Black activists and suggest they profit from tragedy.
“Bold enough to send this crap but not bold enough to list your return address. This is America where a grieving mother and father have to deal with this type of behavior because we asked a simple question of what happened to our son and accepted all the help we could get to find answers. Please go touch some grass,” Wonsley said.
The attacks toward the family went even deeper as people started targeting Wonsley’s job by leaving negative reviews. The Mississippi Board of Nursing even opened an investigation after someone left an anonymous complaint. The case was quickly closed.
“It is so unfair to lose your child and be attacked just for asking for answers,” said Crump. “How is it wrong for them to want answers for what happened to their son?”
The FBI was brought in to investigate the threats sent to Wells’ family and friends. Several arrests have since been made, but none involved people accused of threatening the family.
‘If He Was White….’
The lack of movement in the investigation is not lost on many nationwide, with many thinking that if roles were reversed, police would move faster.
“I think that specifically as Black Americans in the United States right now, we are always going to question whether there is a racial motivation,” said Rep. Jasmine Crockett. “If Nolan was white, they would be in jail. They would ask questions later.”
Pastor Jamal Bryant echoed Crockett’s thoughts during a birthday celebration on what would’ve been Wells’ 19th birthday.
“If it was five Black boys and one white boy on the boat, by now there would have been an arrest, there would have been a warrant,” Bryant said to the crowd’s cheers. “They trying to act offended because we asked the question, ‘What happened to our brother?’”
That same question still remains two months later and is a painful reminder for Wells’ family.
“Nolan, baby, I promise your father and I will not stop fighting for you. Keep shining your light on the world. Keep saying his name,” Wonsley wrote to social media.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating. Their findings will be turned over the District Attorney’s Office who will present the findings to a grand jury.
Meanwhile, Wells’ family has their own independent investigation going on, including commissioning an independent autopsy which came back undetermined. The state’s autopsy has not been made public.
The family’s legal team also wanted an examination of the teen’s phone done jointly with the DA’s office last month. It’s unclear at this time whether it took place.
Atlanta Black Star has reached out to the Jackson County District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Office, along with Crump, for a statement on where the case stands. We did not receive a response at the time of publication.
