Nolan Wells’ Final Text Revealed as Family Continues to Question Teen’s Death After July 4 Boat Trip

A lawyer for the family of Nolan Wells revealed the final text message the college athlete sent before his dead body was found in the water after a July 4 boating trip.Facebook/Christine Wonsley

The final known text message sent by 18-year-old college athlete Nolan Wells has been revealed as his family continues to challenge unanswered questions surrounding his death following a July 4 boating trip in Mississippi.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump said Wells sent a brief “Thank you” message to his Auntie Gabby at approximately 8:30 p.m. on July 3. Crump also said an examination of the teenager’s phone uncovered 282 pages of Snapchat messages involving his friend group.

Wells disappeared while celebrating Independence Day with friends on Horn Island. His body was discovered in the water two days later.

Grand Jury Finds No Evidence of a Crime

A 23-person grand jury reviewed the circumstances surrounding Wells’ disappearance and concluded that the location, condition and position of his body were consistent with drowning.

The grand jury also found no evidence that a crime caused Wells’ death and no evidence supporting allegations that his disappearance or death was racially motivated.

Despite those findings, Wells’ parents, Christine Wells Wonsley and Elmore Wonsley, have publicly said they do not believe their son simply drowned by accident.

Christine became emotional while speaking about the case and said the family intends to continue seeking answers.

Witness Described an Earlier Fall From a Boat

Nolan Wells, second from right, poses with friends during July 4 celebrations.Facebook/Christine Wonsley

Among the evidence reviewed by the grand jury was testimony from a witness who said Wells had slipped “awkwardly” from the side of a boat earlier during the outing.

The witness could not say whether Wells struck his head but testified that the teenager did not appear injured afterward and continued socializing.

Investigators found bruising on the back of Wells’ head, but the grand jury determined that the injury was not fatal. It also reported finding no evidence of another fatal injury or underlying disease.

Autopsy Listed Cause and Manner of Death as Undetermined

The Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s autopsy report listed both Wells’ cause and manner of death as undetermined.

Crump and attorney Liza Park highlighted another detail from the autopsy: according to Park, no water was found in Wells’ lungs, airways or gastrointestinal tract. The family’s legal team has questioned how that finding fits with the grand jury’s conclusion that his death was consistent with drowning.

Dr. Mary Jumbelic, a board-certified forensic pathologist and former chief medical examiner in New York, explained that the absence of significant water does not necessarily rule out drowning.

She said one possible explanation can involve what is sometimes described as “dry drowning,” in which an upper-airway response can occur before substantial water enters the lungs.

Jumbelic also noted that drowning can be a diagnosis of exclusion. Without a witness to the death itself, and with decomposition potentially limiting what can be learned from the body, a medical examiner may not have enough evidence to identify a definitive cause.

Family Continues to Seek Answers

Wells played football at Southwest Mississippi Community College. His disappearance and death attracted widespread attention, including online speculation about the friends who accompanied him on the trip.

The grand jury strongly rejected accusations directed at those friends and their families, describing the conspiracy theories and attacks against them as false and unsupported by evidence.

For Wells’ family, however, the grand jury’s findings have not ended their search for answers. They maintain that significant questions remain about exactly what happened to the 18-year-old between the July 4 boating trip and the discovery of his body two days later.