The US National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) announced on Monday that it joined the legal team involved with the family of Nolan Wells, an 18-year-old Black man whose body was found last month on a Mississippi barrier island while on a Fourth of July outing with some friends. The case has drawn widespread national attention regarding the adequacy of the official investigation.
The NAACP’s Office of General Counsel will work alongside civil rights attorney Ben Crump and the Wells legal team to push for a thorough investigation and increased transparency from the authorities. “We’re taking up this fight to search for truth and to demand transparency concerning the tragic death of Nolan Wells,” stated the NAACP’s General Counsel Kristen Clarke. “Our investigation will be victim-focused, community-based and sensitive to the ongoing pain felt by Nolan Wells’ family and his community.”
Wells disappeared on July 4, 2026, on Horn Island, a barrier island located off the Mississippi Gulf Coast. His body was discovered on the island’s shoreline two days later. Investigators initially said there was no sign of foul play and believed that he had drowned. However, an independent autopsy arranged by the family and presented at the NAACP’s 117th National Convention in Chicago last month concluded that the cause of Wells’ death is still unknown.
The Congressional Black Caucus separately wrote a letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel last week urging a federal review of the circumstances surrounding Wells’ disappearance and death.
“The world is watching, and Nolan Wells’ family deserves a thorough accounting of what happened,” said NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson. “Too often, the deaths of young Black people are dismissed, downplayed, or inadequately investigated unless we demand answers. Our involvement in this case is part of our ongoing commitment to make sure those answers are pursued with urgency and respect for Black lives.”