An attorney for the family of says he will release the results of an independent autopsy into the 18-year-old鈥檚 death on Wednesday morning.
The preliminary findings are set to be made public during a news conference held at the annual NAACP National Convention in Chicago, according to the civil rights attorney , who is representing the family. Wells鈥� parents are expected to attend.
Crump has vowed to conduct his own investigation into the circumstances of the teenager’s disappearance, which followed a to an island off the coast of Mississippi. Wells did not return to the mainland with his friends. His body was found floating off the island鈥檚 coast two days later.
The Mississippi State Medical Examiner鈥檚 Office conducted its own autopsy but has yet to release the results.
The second autopsy was arranged by the family and Crump, and paid for by former NFL player Colin Kaepernick. Crump said it would determine if Wells 鈥渉ad any physical injuries to his body beyond drowning.鈥�
The still-unknown circumstances around Wells鈥� death have touched off rampant online speculation and prompted calls from Black leaders for transparency from local authorities. Wells, who was Black, had traveled to the island with a group of high school friends, all of whom are white.
A reward of $125,000 鈥� jointly funded by the Rev. Al Sharpton, actor and producer Tyler Perry and former NFL player Terrell Owens 鈥� is now being offered in exchange for information leading to an arrest and conviction in connection with the death.
The autopsy announcement comes two days after Wells was in his hometown of Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
In his eulogy, Sharpton lamented the 鈥渋nconsistencies and unanswered questions鈥� that had placed a dark cloud over the grieving family.
He questioned why Wells鈥� friends had left him behind, taken his phone and keys and failed to report him missing to police. And he suggested local investigators had spoken prematurely in statements to the press indicating that no crime was suspected.
鈥淭he reason that a lot of people across the nation are looking at this Nolan situation is because we鈥檙e looking at the history in Mississippi,鈥� Sharpton added. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 have someone in law enforcement saying there was no foul play before there was an investigation.鈥�
Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said initial interviews suggested Wells chose to stay on the island and that his friends believed he would get a ride with someone else. He has said the friends were cooperating with the investigation, which remains ongoing.
鈥淲e are trying to be respectful and collaborative as much as we can,鈥� Crump said. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 always troublesome to all of us when these investigations just take forever.鈥�
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