Overview
- Eighteen-year-old Nolan Wells vanished during a Fourth of July boat trip to Horn Island and a body matching him was recovered near the island on July 6 and identified by dental records.
- Jackson County investigators say they currently suspect an accidental drowning but have not ruled anything in or out while the official autopsy and toxicology results remain pending.
- Wells’s family retained civil rights attorney Ben Crump, commissioned an independent autopsy in Washington, D.C., and raised concerns about missing Snapchat content and timeline contradictions.
- After the family met with Jackson County District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath, prosecutors and the family agreed to a mutual, forensics-led inspection of Wells’s cellphone and investigators requested original, unedited photos and videos from witnesses.
- The case has drawn national attention, local protests, and high-profile support for the family; investigators are urging anyone with firsthand video or witness information to come forward as they build a factual record.