A grand jury investigating the death of Nolan Wells has unanimously decided against making any indictments in the Black 18-year-old South Mississippi resident’s July 4 death on Horn Island, Jackson County District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath said in a statement Monday night.
“Jackson County, after a thorough and exhaustive investigation, your grand jury met last week concerning the death investigation of Nolan Wells and unanimously returned a no true bill,” McIlrath said in a video statement on Facebook. “In addition to bringing prosecutions against the guilty, the grand jury must also exonerate those who have been falsely accused.”
Wells, an 18-year-old resident of Ocean Springs, disappeared on July 4 during a boat trip with a group of friends to Horn Island, a barrier island off the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Authorities found Wells dead on the island two days later.
In the days and weeks after his death, rumors spread about the cause of Wells’ death, with many influencers suggesting Wells’ white friends may have been involved in his death despite a lack of evidence.
“There is absolutely no evidence to support the allegations that Nolan’s disappearance and death were racially motivated. Nolan’s friends loved Nolan and Nolan loved them,” McIlrath said. “Nolan chose to stay on the island that day, and there is not a scintilla of evidence to contradict that.”
The grand jury report released Monday by District Attorney Angel McIlrath indicates the grand jury issued 132 subpoenas and heard from 43 witnesses, with seven individuals being invited to testify before the grand jury.
The Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Wells’ cause and manner of death undetermined and drowning is a diagnosis of exclusion, the report said. The medical examiner’s report also found “there was bruising on the back of Mr. Wells’ head, which was not a fatal injury” and found “no evidence of any fatal injury or organic disease.”
“The Grand Jury considered credible evidence concerning the circumstances of how Mr. Wells sustained the injury to the back of his head, but the exact cause of injury remains uncertain,” the report said. “A witness testified under oath that he saw Wells slip awkwardly off the side of a boat around the time of 3:30 p.m. on July 4, 2026, but could not say whether Mr. Wells struck his head during the fall. The witness testified that Mr. Wells continued to socialize after the fall and did not appear injured.”
An independent autopsy the family had conducted by Dr. Roger A. Mitchell found Wells’ cause and manner of death undetermined pending further investigation. Dr. Mitchell performed the autopsy and sent the findings to the family’s attorney Ben Crump on July 19.
While the grand jury says it found no other evidence to explain the bruising on the back of Wells’ head, it also could not say with certainty that this fall is what caused the bruising found during the autopsies.
The report also noted the grand jury received a 14-page report concerning Wells’ cellphone that was prepared by the family’s own forensic examiner.
After the grand jury convened for a hearing, it received a 21-page “mobile device examination findings—device lock state, screen activity, messages, calls, locations and application usage… final report” and a 261-page “Snapchat Conversation Report” and considered both reports in its investigation into Wells’ death.
In its investigation into Wells’ death, the grand jury considered comprehensive materials and evidence, including the following:
- Testimony of witnesses
- Physical evidence collected during the investigation
- Digital evidence collected during the investigation
- Reports generated during the investigation
- Interviews and recorded statements collected during the investigation
- Images collected during the investigation
- Videos/recordings collected during the investigation
- Maps collected/generated during the investigation
- GPS and location data collected during the investigation
- Cellular phone extractions collected during the investigation
- Responses to subpoenas duces tecum, meaning a formal action or legal document requiring the production of documents or physical evidence
Follow the Mississippi Free Press’ coverage of Nolan Wells and read past stories here.
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