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Nolan Wells‘ unexplained death has reached Washington, where the Congressional Black Caucus is demanding federal scrutiny after a month without answers.
CBC Chair Yvette D. Clarke sent an August 12 letter requesting that Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel act immediately.
“Accordingly, the Congressional Black Caucus requests that the United States Department of Justice immediately undertake an independent federal review of the circumstances surrounding Nolan Wells’ disappearance and death, provide appropriate federal investigative assistance, and determine whether there is a basis for a federal investigation, including under applicable federal civil rights laws,” the letter states.
The caucus said local authorities have shared too little publicly while the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office has directed questions toward the district attorney.
“A local investigation does not diminish the need for federal assistance or an independent assessment of whether additional investigative resources or federal jurisdiction are warranted,” Clarke wrote. “Nor should federal involvement be viewed as prejudging the facts or conclusions of any investigation. We simply want to ensure that every appropriate resource, investigative tool, and avenue of inquiry is being used to establish the truth.”
Nolan, an 18-year-old college athlete, disappeared during a July 4 trip to Horn Island and was found dead two days later.
An independent autopsy classified his cause and manner of death as undetermined, while Mississippi’s official findings remain withheld pending grand jury review.
His cellphone also remains unexamined despite the family and prosecutors discussing a joint forensic download with outside experts possibly attending.
Rep. Lucy McBath joined Nolan’s parents, Ben Crump and Al Sharpton at the NABJ convention in Atlanta to press the federal demand.
“We are demanding a full federal investigation. Kash Patel, we are demanding a full federal investigation as to what was actually happened to Nolan Wells,” McBath said. “We want to make sure that every stone is turned because his life matters.”
The sheriff’s office said Thursday that its investigation remains open, and nobody has been charged in connection with Nolan’s death.
The CBC requested a written federal response within seven days detailing what the department has done or plans to do.
Nolan’s family will hold a national prayer rally on his 19th birthday, August 19, at Greater St. John AME Church in Biloxi.
