Nolan Wells' hometown officials rally behind sheriff after 'derelict in their duties' attack
Officials from Nolan Wells' hometown are rallying behind their sheriff after being accused of being "derelict in their duties" on Wednesday morning.
NAACP President Derrick Johnson accused Mississippi officials of failing to properly handle the case during the same news conference where attorney Ben Crump announced the independent autopsy results.
"We're not accusing anyone of anything other than the state of Mississippi and local officials. We're accusing them of being derelict in their duties," Johnson said. "To follow up and to ensure that regardless of what happened, that there was the proper investigation so that this family and that community could be assured that if anyone was involved, they would be held accountable."
NOLAN WELLS INDEPENDENT AUTOPSY DOESN'T POINT TO FOUL PLAY, FORMER MEDICAL EXAMINER SAYS
Wells, 18, disappeared July 4 after he went with friends on a boat trip to Horn Island, which is a barrier island off Mississippi's Gulf Coast. Officials and search crews searched for two days before a National Park Service ranger located his remains on July 6 while on the island's northwestern tip.
Mississippi State Senator Jeremy England, who represents a portion of Jackson County, where the incident took place, told Fox News Digital the accusation by Johnson was "completely unfair."
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"Our sheriff and our district attorney here in Jackson County, our DPS commissioner over the state of Mississippi law enforcement, our crime lab, the offices they put together, I know many of them personally and professionally, and they have the utmost integrity and they want to get the facts correct and get out there. You know, they understand they're under a microscope at this point in time, but they're being unfairly attacked," England said. "For no reason other than people trying to make shocking claims and get people to think something nefarious has happened or is going on."
NOLAN WELLS INDEPENDENT AUTOPSY DOESN'T POINT TO FOUL PLAY, FORMER MEDICAL EXAMINER SAYS
"But these are very good people, and it's really disheartening to see their name and their reputation being dragged through the mud," England said.
The state senator said Mississippi investigators won't be swayed by public pressure, even as expectations build around the case.
"There's not always someone to blame," he said. "And here in Mississippi, we don't have and we don't follow what you see in some other states and some other communities where you have activist district attorneys and activist sheriffs, and they're listening to the public and they're wanting to respond to the public."
"Our leaders, the people in that office, they don't do that. They take their time, they make sure they get it right, and they're doing that out of respect for the family and for the entire community at this point," England said.
Congressman Mike Ezell, R-Miss., told Fox News Digital he has complete confidence in the current Jackson County sheriff, John Ledbetter, who is running the investigation.
"I have full confidence in Sheriff Ledbetter and all of our law enforcement officials as they are working hard to do a thorough investigation. As a former sheriff and police officer, I know firsthand the demands and pressure of their job, and I know they will handle this matter with integrity."
During Wednesday's news conference, Crump revealed that an area of "red discoloration" was found on Wells' head, but said Dr. Roger Mitchell, who performed the autopsy, couldn't come to a conclusion on a cause or manner of death "pending further investigation." An official autopsy into Wells' death hasn't been completed.
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When asked by Fox News Digital about the case, forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden said the head injury doesn't point to foul play.
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"So that could be from bumping into something in the water. There's a lot of debris in the water, for example. It depends how deep it is, but it's describing a really superficial impact that could have happened before death or after death," Baden said. "What he's describing is a minor injury that could be... totally innocent."
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Without having additional information, Mitchell wrote in his report that he couldn't rule out the possibility that "non-accidental factors contributed to or caused the death."
The independent autopsy's release comes as Rev. Al Sharpton said he's offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the death of Wells. Authorities previously told the Associated Press that foul play isn't suspected.
Wells' friends returned to the mainland that afternoon without him. Ledbetter has said investigators believe Wells chose to stay on the island. It wasn't until later that night that his mother learned he was missing from one of Wells' friends and reported it to authorities.