A July 4 boat trip, an 18-year-old's death and a family's search for answers in the Deep South - AP News
The family of 18-year-old Nolan Xavier Wells is calling for a transparent investigation into his death following a July 4 boat trip off the Mississippi coast. The family disputes claims of accidental drowning and cites concerns regarding the investigation's handling.
Why it matters
The case highlights ongoing concerns regarding racial justice and law enforcement transparency in the Deep South.
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NEW YORK (AP) — A week ago, 18-year-old Nolan Xavier Wells took a boat trip with friends to celebrate the Fourth of July on an island off Mississippi’s Gulf Coast. He never came back.
Two days later, he was found dead. What happened, Wells’ parents say, is a mystery riddled with conflicting stories, implausible explanations and missing details. It is a case shadowed by the state’s fraught racial history and lingering distrust in law enforcement.
At a news conference Friday in New York City, Christine and Elmore Wonsley called for a thorough and transparent investigation into their son’s death, skeptical of claims that Wells told his friends to leave the island without him and suggestions that he, an elite athlete who knew how to swim, had accidentally drowned.
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