00:00An independent autopsy is sparking more questions than answers.
00:04This news is as important as any news finding out why is Nolan Wells dead.
00:14On how an 18-year-old football star vanished and was later found dead
00:18during a 4th of July boating trip with friends.
00:21He's saying based on the examination of the body, he cannot rule out foul play.
00:28Here are Nolan Wells' preliminary autopsy results and the questions that still remain unanswered.
00:35The preliminary results of an independent autopsy of 18-year-old Nolan Wells have been shared with the public
00:41after famed civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Wells' heartbroken parents, Christine and Elmore Wansley,
00:47flew their son's body over 800 miles to Washington, D.C. for an independent opinion on Wells' untimely death.
00:54An autopsy on Wells' body was initially performed by the Jackson County coroner,
00:59but the results have not been released.
01:02According to NBC News, the coroner's office is waiting for the medical examiner
01:06to complete a toxicology report on the teen before releasing the findings.
01:11Crump claims that the investigation into the teen's death is full of, quote, contradictions.
01:16The hope is that when this is presented to the grand jury,
01:21all relevant witnesses and evidence will be presented to them
01:27so that we can have a fair and impartial investigation into the death of Nolan Wells.
01:37According to authorities, Wells and a group of friends took a boat out to Horn Island,
01:41a popular spot about 10 miles off the Mississippi Gulf Coast, to celebrate the 4th.
01:46Though it isn't clear what exactly transpired on the island,
01:50authorities said Wells was last seen around 3 p.m. talking to a girl at the north end of the
01:55island.
01:55Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter told ABC News that Wells' friends eventually left the island
02:01to go back home without him, telling the outlet that Wells supposedly chose to stay on the oasis.
02:06But as it got dark and there was no sign of Wells, the 18-year-old's mother called to report
02:11him missing
02:11at around midnight, according to WLOX.
02:15A U.S. Park Service Ranger recovered Wells' body off the northwestern tip of the island two days later.
02:21In a press conference at the annual NAACP National Convention in Chicago on July 22nd,
02:27Crump revealed that an autopsy performed by Dr. Roger Mitchell,
02:30president of the National Medical Association, found Wells' cause and manner of death
02:35as, quote, undetermined pending investigation, but that he, quote,
02:39cannot rule out if any intervening non-accidental factors contributed to
02:43or caused the death of Nolan Wells.
02:46Even though it tells us significant information,
02:51we still have more questions than we have answers at this time.
02:57In results presented to the standing-room-only audience,
03:00Crump read out Mitchell's preliminary report, which included several notable gaps.
03:05Wells' toxicology results were still pending when the preliminary report was released,
03:10and Mitchell also noted that Wells' anterior internal neck structures
03:14were removed during the teen's initial autopsy,
03:17which meant Mitchell couldn't rule out an injury to his neck as a contributing factor.
03:22Wells' stomach and other organs were also removed in the first autopsy
03:25by the Jackson County coroner, which meant the pathologist couldn't examine the teen's stomach
03:30contents. But something at the back of Wells' head was noteworthy enough for Mitchell to highlight
03:35in his report. Although Wells' body had no fractures or deep tissue injuries,
03:40a 12-by-8-inch section of red discoloration was identified in the deep soft tissues on the back of
03:45his head. The report noted that the discoloration could be an indication of head trauma.
03:50However, because of the body's extensive decomposition and lack of associated injuries,
03:55such as skin lacerations or skull fractures, the board-certified pathologist wrote that that
04:00interpretation was also inconclusive. On top of Wells' missing body parts, the doctor also
04:05highlighted several more unanswered questions in his autopsy report, including what circumstances
04:10led up to Wells entering the water, what position was the body in when found, and was there any water
04:16in the airway, which would indicate drowning. Crump claimed that Wells' body was found face down
04:21and fully clothed despite photos from the day showing him shirtless, wearing swimming trunks.
04:26Police have said nothing points to foul play, at least yet, and they suspect Wells likely drowned
04:31after his friends left the island without him. With so many unanswered questions still swirling,
04:37NAACP President Derek Johnson took a jab at police and local officials for spreading a narrative that
04:43Wells' death was an accident. The narrative should not be it was an accident before there was an
04:49investigation. The narrative should not be the words of individuals who went on the boat to the
04:55island with him, but they came without him, but with his cell phone, you don't investigate those
05:00individuals. Without accusing anyone of anything other than the state of Mississippi and local
05:05officials, we're accusing them of being derelict in their duties.
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