The NAACP has teamed up with the legal team seeking answers in the mysterious death of Nolan Wells, a Black teen who was found dead after a boating trip in Mississippi.
“We’re taking up this fight to search for truth and transparency surrounding the death of Nolan Wells,” Kristen Clarke, general counsel for the NAACP and former assistant attorney general for civil rights at the Justice Department, said in a statement.
Wells’ body was found on Mississippi’s Horn Island on July 6, two days after he visited the island for a Fourth of July celebration. His parents, seeking a thorough investigation into their son’s death, retained noted civil rights attorney Ben Crump shortly after.
Clarke and the NAACP’s Office of General Counsel will work with Crump to push for transparency and timely updates from authorities.
“Drawing on the Association’s long history of pushing for full and fair investigations when Black lives are lost under suspicious circumstances, we will help bring additional investigative resources to bear and work to ensure that no stone is left unturned in seeking answers and accountability for Nolan’s family,” Clarke continued.
In July, Crump released the findings of an independent autopsy for Wells during a press conference at the NAACP National Convention. The autopsy found that the cause and manner of death are both undetermined, pending investigation.
“The world is watching, and Nolan Wells’s family deserves a thorough accounting of what happened,” Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, said in a statement. “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.”
The NAACP is the oldest and largest civil rights organization in the country.
Please uncover who killed Nolan Wells.
Bout’ fucking time.