Nolan Wells’ family is continuing to demand answers after a Mississippi grand jury declined on Monday (September 21) to bring charges in the 18-year-old’s death.
On Tuesday (September 22), Wells’ parents and their attorneys held a news conference to address the grand jury’s findings and renew their calls for a fuller investigation.
Wells’ mother, Christine Wonsley, criticized how the family was notified of the decision, saying she received a text message from the district attorney at 7:54 p.m. Monday, shortly before the report was publicly released.
“To me, that action shows a lack of empathy,” she said.
Wonsley also said the family remains without answers about what happened to her son.
“What we have learned is that we still have no answers, and the report reinforced the fact that Nolan was not given a thorough, transparent and honest investigation,” she said.
CBS News reported that the grand jury issued 132 subpoenas and heard testimony from 43 witnesses. It also reviewed cellphone and GPS data, videos and forensic evidence.
Attorney Ben Crump, who represents the family, is calling for the U.S. Department of Justice to conduct an independent investigation.
"We'll never stop until we get to the truth," Crump said on Tuesday. "We're going to fight until hell freezes over."
The family has continued to question injuries documented on Wells’ head and body.
Rolling Stone also reported that a witness told the grand jury he saw Wells slip awkwardly from a boat around 3:30 p.m. on July 4. The witness said Wells continued socializing afterward and did not appear injured, but the grand jury could not determine whether the fall caused the bruising found on his body.
"How can a jury come to the conclusion of drowning, despite knowing that there was trauma to his body, and despite hearing many inconsistencies?" Wells' mother said during the press conference. "Elmore and I do not believe that Nolan simply and accidentally drowned. And nobody saw anything?"
Wells disappeared during a July 4 trip to Horn Island and was found dead two days later. Both the state medical examiner and an independent forensic pathologist hired by his family listed his cause and manner of death as undetermined.
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