The district attorney for Mississippi's 19th Circuit Court District has explained why officials are keeping evidence in the Nolan Wells case a secret. In a public statement, Angel Myers McIlrath urged the public to let the investigation and legal process play out smoothly at their own pace.
Shortly after Wells’ body was found, Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said that his team had not found any sign of foul play. He also said that his deputies were talking to people who were on Horn Island that day.
Since then, Ledbetter said that they have interviewed dozens of witnesses. The FBI is also assisting with some areas.
‘We risk undermining the confidence in tomorrow's answers’
"As divided as the discussion around Nolan's death has become, I know we all want the same thing: To understand what happened to Nolan. With that being our shared goal, we must also share in the goal of protecting the integrity of how the truth is discovered," McIlrath said, as reported by the Hattiesburg American. "If we sacrifice the integrity of the process in effort to satisfy today's questions, we risk undermining the confidence in tomorrow's answers."
McIlrath met with Well’s parents and also the team of attorney Ben Crump, who has been hired by the family, on Wednesday, July 15. During the meeting, the district attorney shared information on victim services resources and also explained that the case will go to a grand jury.
This is standard for many kinds of death in Jackson County, and not an indication that a crime may have been committed.
"Every death in the county except those of natural causes and non-criminal car wrecks are presented to your grand jury," McIlrath said. "Many people don't know that. We have handled death investigations in this manner my entire career. Nolan's case is being handled the same way, with the same care and the same commitment to the truth that we handle all death investigations."
"I understand the public's urgency to understand what happened to Nolan, but we are not taking time for time's sake. We are taking the time required to complete the work that this investigation demands," McIlrath further said.
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The Ocean Springs, Mississippi, teen was found dead in the water on the northwest end of Horn Island on Monday morning, July 6. Wells went missing on July 4 after taking a boat to the island with friends. The search for the teen was called off after a body was found by a park ranger on Monday, July 6.