A Jackson County grand jury has declined to indict anyone in the death of Nolan Wells, the 18-year-old college football player who disappeared during a Fourth of July boating trip near Horn Island and was later found dead in the water.
The 23-member panel concluded that the circumstances of Wells’ death were “consistent with drowning,” according to a report released Monday by District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath.
The decision followed testimony from 43 witnesses and a review of physical and digital evidence, police reports, interviews, videos, images and maps.
Grand jury finds no crime tied to the trip
Wells vanished July 4 after traveling with friends to Horn Island, a barrier island off Mississippi’s Gulf Coast. Searchers recovered his body two days later after a multi-agency search.
According to the grand jury report, the “position of, condition of, time of discovery, and location” of Wells’ body were consistent with drowning. The panel found “no credible evidence” that anyone traveling to or from the island committed a crime connected to his death.
Investigators also reviewed bruising on the back of Wells’ head. The report concluded the bruise was “not a fatal injury” and said there was no evidence of a fatal wound or organic disease. Investigators could not determine how the bruise occurred.
One witness told the grand jury Wells was seen slipping “awkwardly off the side of a boat” around the time he was last seen. The witness could not say whether Wells hit his head during the fall and said Wells continued socializing afterward without appearing injured.
The report also stated that Wells was not involved in any physical altercation or argument that day.
Family autopsy and alcohol questions reviewed
A private autopsy commissioned by Wells’ family had previously listed the cause and manner of death as “undetermined pending investigation.” At a July 22 news conference, civil rights attorney Ben Crump said the private examination found an area of “red discoloration” on the back of Wells’ head, but pathologist Dr. Roger Mitchell could not determine a cause or manner of death.
Questions had also been raised about alcohol. A July 5 Mississippi Department of Marine Resources Marine Patrol email previously obtained by Fox News Digital described Wells’ alcohol intake as “heavy,” though the email did not identify the source of that characterization.
The grand jury found that Wells had purchased alcohol using a fake ID and that no adults of legal drinking age supplied him with alcohol on the island.
The report said toxicology testing was “not particularly informative” because decomposition fluid is considered unreliable for determining substance levels in a body. It also found no cocaine in Wells’ system and no evidence he had ever used the drug.
Cellphone questions and online allegations
The grand jury also addressed Wells’ cellphone, which returned to the mainland without him.
The report said it was not unusual for Horn Island visitors to return on different boats or leave phones and belongings behind while socializing. Wells’ phone was not the only one that made it back to shore without its owner, according to the report.
Wells’ death drew national attention and fueled online speculation. The grand jury rejected allegations targeting people on the three boats involved in the trip, as well as their relatives and friends, calling the “public attacks” “malicious, false” and unsupported by fact or evidence.
Wells’ family was given an opportunity to present findings from its own private investigation. According to the report, attorneys for the family said that investigation had not produced witnesses or evidence they reasonably believed showed criminal activity that should be referred for prosecution.
Case could return if new evidence emerges
The report does not permanently close the door. Mississippi has no statute of limitations on homicide, and the grand jury said the matter could be brought back before a Jackson County grand jury if credible new evidence emerges.
“If credible evidence comes to light in the future that suggests Mr. Wells’ death was non-accidental, this matter should be represented to the Jackson County Grand Jury for further consideration,” the report said.
