MISSISSIPPI – Leaders in the hometown of Nolan Wells are standing firmly behind their sheriff after the handling of the teen’s death investigation drew sharp criticism Wednesday morning.
During a news conference in which civil rights attorney Ben Crump revealed findings from an independent autopsy, NAACP President Derrick Johnson said Mississippi authorities had not done enough to properly pursue answers in the case.
Johnson said the criticism was aimed at state and local officials, accusing them of failing in their responsibilities to fully follow up and ensure a thorough investigation. He said the family and the wider community deserve confidence that, if anyone played a role in what happened, accountability would follow.
Wells, 18, was reported missing on July 4 after joining friends for a boating trip to Horn Island, a barrier island located off the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Authorities and search teams spent two days looking for him before a National Park Service ranger discovered his remains on July 6 near the northwestern end of the island.
Mississippi state Sen. Jeremy England, whose district includes part of Jackson County where the incident occurred, told Fox News Digital that Johnson’s accusation was “completely unfair.”
England defended the local and state officials involved, pointing to the Jackson County sheriff, the district attorney, Mississippi’s public safety leadership, law enforcement agencies and the state crime lab as professionals he knows personally and professionally. He said they have strong integrity, are focused on getting the facts right and understand the intense public scrutiny surrounding the Nolan Wells case, but are being unfairly targeted by claims that suggest wrongdoing without basis.
He added that the officials involved are “very good people” and said it was troubling to see their names and reputations damaged amid the public criticism.
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.
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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.
Here’s the latest on the disappearance and death of Mississippi teen Nolan Wells:
When asked by Fox News Digital about the case, forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden said the head injury doesn’t point to foul play.
“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.”
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.
