Live Nolan Wells Press Conference

[0:00] Live, everyone. Thank you. We're live. Thank you for joining us here on the Don Lemon Show for this special broadcast. I'm here with our Washington, D.C. correspondent, Daniel Grimes, and we are awaiting word from Benjamin Crump on an update on the Nolan Wells case, as well as two other cases that recently happened around the country of young black men who died and under mysterious circumstances, and they're trying to get to the bottom of it. [0:28] Daniel, one of them involves, let's see, well, Nolan Wells is the one that people are interested in mainly. Of course, the other ones as well, all of them big cases, but none has garnered the attention of the country as much as a Nolan Wells case. One is Daniel Irving, right, which is from Dallas, and the other one is Tyler Smith from Lexington, Kentucky. [0:50] But this is all happening at the National Urban League conference right now in, I think it's Nashville is where they are. [1:01] And yeah, I think it's Nashville. But anyway, so the conference is getting ready to happen. The press conference is getting ready to happen. The conference has been going on for a few days. [1:11] Let's see. Let's see. And so we expect Ben Crump. We expect the family to be there as well and to give remarks. We don't know what the updates are going to be. [1:21] So we shall see what it is and what we get. National Urban League, Nashville, Tennessee, you're right. Okay. So there's also a little bit earlier, Daniel, you and I were watching in our team watching this live feed. [1:36] And the family were on the stage. The family was on the stage with Ben Crump and with Mark Morial, who is the CEO right now, president of the National Urban League. So we are waiting. [1:52] Yeah, John, you know, we as we do here at the Lemon Media Network, tried to push the Crump team just to give us any insight into what is the update? [2:03] Is it around either autopsy that was performed on Nolan? Does it have something to do with any arrests that could be made or just any of the people that investigators have have talked to? [2:14] Are they going to announce anything about a private investigation? And so we they are saying tight lipped about what they are going to announce. [2:24] And again, as you noted, not just about Nolan Wells, but about the two other young black men who died under mysterious circumstances, Daniel or Daniel Irving and Tyler Smith. [2:36] And so we'll see what they announce about these three cases. But it's just I mean, it's wild to me to think of Daniel Irving also died due to a drowning. [2:49] We know that there was two arrests that were made in that case earlier this month. [2:54] That was because of tampering of evidence. They are alleging that two of the friends that Daniel was with moved his clothes and did other things that tampered evidence when he was potentially drowning. [3:10] And so we'll have to see if there's an update in that case. [3:13] Obviously, with Tyler Smith, he attended a party on July 4th, died due to a gunshot wound to the head. [3:20] And police initially said it was a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but there's a lot of questions around the accuracy of that statement. [3:27] And so he was reportedly the only black person to attend, I believe, a party of 10 people in on July 4th. [3:35] And so, again, we are going to hear updates on these three cases. We know Ben Crump is on it. [3:40] He when it comes to incidences involving not just young black men, but sadly this year, Don, there's been I mean, we've covered several instances of of young black people dying under mysterious circumstances. [3:52] So I'm looking forward to hearing what they have to say. [3:56] Yeah, I am as well. The thing is, is that I'm trying to I'm looking at my monitor when I when I gaze off over here. [4:02] It's not that I'm not paying attention, but I'm trying to get the latest on what's happening. [4:06] OK, so here's the thing for me. [4:09] Just to give it. We know what happened with Nolan Wells of Fourth of July celebration. [4:13] They went out to Horn Island. He went with a bunch of friends. [4:16] There were black people there, not as many whites as most mainly white thing, but all in many of the photos that you saw initially, it was just him with white kids. [4:25] As you know, he went missing and then turned up dying. [4:30] He ended up dying. And so we want to know what's happening with that case. [4:34] And so far, no one has provided information to our knowledge that leads to some answers about what led to his death. [4:41] There was an initial autopsy that was done by officials in Mississippi and then an autopsy done by a second autopsy done at the parents request. [4:51] And that provided very little information. [4:54] That one provided information saying that the cause of death was undetermined and there were missing body parts, which is not that unusual. [5:02] People think, you know, why was this missing? Why was that? [5:04] Those are good questions and they should be asked, but it's not that unusual because sometimes people want to examine tissue for longer and all the other things. [5:10] But the conspiracy theories surrounding this case just abound and they have gotten to a level right now that is just I don't know if it's beyond correcting because I, in my humble opinion, the officials in Mississippi have not done a good enough job of updating the public. [5:28] And then we have these other cases that Ben Crump wants to inform us about. [5:36] And that is, as you said, Daniel Irving. We can talk about them a little bit more. [5:40] You said 18 year olds old, right? Honor roll student, swimmer from the Dallas area. [5:46] Now, it's interesting when someone is a swimmer and they end up drowning, drowning, that can't happen. [5:51] He drowned in April after jumping off a railway bridge at Lake Ray Hubbard, about 15 miles east of downtown Dallas, while out with two other teens, two teens, including 19 year old Lucas Roper, were the last people to see him alive and later admitted to throwing away, as you said, Daniel, his clothes and dumping his phone after he'd accidentally drowned. [6:14] Authorities arrested Roper and a 16 year old on suspicion of evidence tampering, but no one has been charged in connection with his death, with the death itself. [6:24] OK, then there's Tyler Smith, as you mentioned, 18 years old, recent graduate of Lafayette High School in Lexington, Kentucky. [6:32] He died from a gunshot wound. This was on July 4th as well. [6:37] Police said the shooting was an accident or was accidental and self-inflicted. [6:42] His family says otherwise. He was reported the reportedly the only black attendee at a house party of about 10 people and other friends claimed that he accidentally shot himself while they were playing Russian roulette. [6:56] The Lexington Police Department citation noted the firearm officers recovered did not match the shell casings found at the scene. [7:02] Those are some suspicious circumstances. We don't know what happened, but Ben Crump is investigating and perhaps we'll get some answers to all of it. [7:10] Well, when you consider all of these, something that I've seen conflated when people are discussing, particularly the Nolan Wells case, but any of these cases is the cause of death and the manner of death, because they are different things. [7:24] A lot of people know, but for those of you who don't, the cause of death is how someone died. [7:31] And so when we're waiting for Nolan in particular, you know, the cause of death could be drowning. [7:37] The cause of death could be strangulation. The cause of death could be a number of things. [7:41] We're waiting to see what actually caused him to die. [7:46] But then you have the manner of death, which is, was it homicide? Was it murder? Was it accidental? Is it undetermined? [7:54] You know, that is then how did he ultimately or what caused him to ultimately die in that way? [8:01] And so when we're talking about drowning, I've seen a lot of people say, okay, well, if the lungs come back and because again, as we all know, the lungs were missing from that second autopsy. [8:11] So the Mississippi state still has the lungs, but if they come out and say he drowned, that's just the cause of death. [8:21] Then we have to move to determine, well, what's the manner of death? [8:25] Did he drown because someone held him underwater, which is murder? [8:28] Did he drown because it was an accident? He was trying to swim out to the boat and the waves, the current took him under. [8:34] That's an accidental. You know, we then have to find out the manner of how he actually died. [8:39] If it is actually drowning, we don't know. It's undetermined with Nolan's case. [8:45] And with the other case that we just talked about with Daniel Irving, police did determine that that was an accidental drowning. [8:52] And so then they have to now move forward to say, okay, there were friends there who didn't call 911, who reportedly saw him drowning. [9:01] And not only didn't call 911 or call his family for help, but they chose to do things that inhibited police's ability to actually make a determination in that case. [9:11] And so that is why those two people were arrested because police are charging them with inhibiting their case. [9:18] It's interesting, though, if someone, they're kids, they're young people, and not that I'm making excuses, but they do dumb things, as we know. [9:29] I wonder why that, why someone would, why they would hide his clothes and whatever. [9:35] Do they think they were going to get in trouble as well? [9:38] You know what I mean? [9:39] And not just say, hey, we were doing this, we jumped off the thing, and something happened, and, you know. [9:47] Listen, you can never get into the mind of somebody else, Don, but I agree. [9:50] I don't know why your first instinct isn't to call 911, to call someone for help. [9:55] If you're not the strongest swimmer, and they say, actually, experts say that even if you are the strongest swimmer, that you, they say you shouldn't jump in unless you're actually a lifeguard, [10:04] because there's a higher probability that multiple people will then drown, and so the advice, if you have a life jacket or a life vest or some sort of flotation device, [10:16] that you can try to get that to the person, or at least try to call 911 to get some help. [10:20] So I don't know why they not only, again, reportedly, allegedly didn't call 911 or the family, but also hid his clothes. [10:28] I mean, that then just raises alarm bells, because, as you said, were they just nervous that, oh, they are going to be implicated in the case? [10:36] Did they do something more nefarious that we don't know? [10:38] It's just, it raises a lot of questions that not only did they not act, but they actively did other things to inhibit police's investigation. [10:47] Now, back to this Nolan Wells case, we don't know if that is indeed the case. [10:54] There, we've obviously criticized the investigation. As we know, the investigation was unusual, to say the least, in the beginning. [11:02] Family felt that they weren't getting any transparency. [11:05] They hadn't heard from investigators within, you know, for a long period of time after their loved one had died. [11:12] They had to initiate, they said, contact with them, and then they eventually ended up meeting with the district attorney. [11:17] And the district attorney promised transparency and a joint investigation, but also cautioned that they would not be rushed on this investigation and rushed into answers, or that they did not want to taint any evidence. [11:31] So, here we are. But a lot of these things are about the manner. You mentioned the cause and the manner. [11:39] A lot of these families are concerned, and the attorneys, about the manner in which these cases have been investigated. [11:48] And the lack, in some cases, of professionalism or transparency. [11:53] And I think those are legitimate questions, obviously, because if you just listen to the circumstances that we described, of course people are going to be concerned about it. [12:02] And they, and everyone, has every right to raise questions about all three of these cases, Don. [12:10] Because, as we have seen far too often in this country, when people who die look like me and you, the investigation isn't necessarily as thorough as it should be or can be. [12:23] And so I think that is why I've always been the one to say, we've got to look at those who are investigating, whether it's Nolan or Daniel's case. [12:30] We need to make sure that we are looking at the authorities, because if police, like they did with Nolan's case, or like they did with Daniel Irving, or all three of these cases, where they said, oh, self-inflicted gunshot wound. [12:44] Oh, he drowned. With Nolan, oh, he drowned, no foul play. [12:48] John Ledbetter was out, I want to say, hours after Nolan's body came out saying, oh, no foul play, he drowned. [12:55] And then he walked that back after everyone said, what do you mean, no foul play, he drowned? [13:01] Are you living on the same planet as everybody else? And so he had to walk that back. [13:06] And I'm assuming that's why I see the family walking in there now. But I assume that's why he had to walk that back. [13:14] Yeah. And so there's Mark Morial standing in the middle with the tie, the gold tie. [13:17] There he is. Now he's to the right of your screen. [13:20] And then we've got Ben Crump standing with the orange tie. [13:26] And then next to him is attorney, one of the attorneys that we saw at the district attorney, both of the attorneys we saw at the district attorney's office. [13:31] And I believe I saw the parents there on the end, which is Christine Wells Wansley and then Elmore Wansley on the other side. [13:43] So they're calling for justice for all the children. [13:46] First of all, let me say how much I appreciate you all coming out. [14:05] As we listen to Mark Morial, Andy, if we can, maybe we can find a feed that has a better audio. [14:09] And this is not us. It's a poll feed. [14:11] But anyway, we'll listen to this one, but we're going to try. [14:15] Rest assured, we're working on something that has better audio. [14:17] Maybe they'll realize it and correct it. [14:19] But go ahead. [14:22] I mean, you could have left it up, but, you know, it's a little tough to hear. [14:27] Yeah. Sometimes you and I have covered plenty of these things, Don. [14:30] Sometimes the audio, they'll fix it if they can. [14:34] Those molt boxes can be a little fidgety. [14:37] I hadn't heard molt box in a long time. [14:40] There we go. [14:40] We suffer the tragedy of the loss of a child. [14:44] I think that's off the screen, though. [14:46] It gets lonely. [14:48] Yeah, just waiting to make it full screen. [14:49] And when families suffer the loss of children under circumstances that are suspicious and to the naked eye appear unjust, we must stand with these families. [15:08] Amen. [15:08] When families face the challenge of a non-responsive criminal justice system, [15:20] we must stand with these families. [15:25] With this giant of a lawyer and advocate over the last 15 years, going all the way back to Trayvon Martin, [15:38] we have stood with Ben Crump and his clients, and we have stood with Ben Crump and his clients [15:51] because we want the community to know that we are not going to be silent in the face of injustice. [16:01] Amen. [16:02] You and I cannot even fathom the pain of these families. [16:15] I want to thank them for their courage in being here in public under the glare of the media in these circumstances. [16:29] But we want them to know they are with family. [16:34] We are standing with family. [16:38] So Ben Crump is going to bring us all up to date on the latest facts, events, and status of these three cases. [16:54] And we are going to continue, as we said in the earlier session, to advocate until there is justice. [17:05] Might have to switch back to the other piece. [17:16] I thought that was Justin. [17:17] And we will not be silent. [17:20] We will not get distracted. [17:22] Amen. [17:22] Until justice. [17:23] So I'm proud to introduce a man who is known as the, and I dare say he stands with the great lawyers that our community has produced. [17:39] Having some audio issues, obviously, but we'll stay with it. [17:45] Perhaps it will get better. [17:46] It's an important thing to listen to. [17:48] And I can name so many others. [17:50] Johnny Cockney. [17:57] And I can name so many others. [18:00] Who over the years have been advocates for our community in many, many ways. [18:07] So ladies and gentlemen, the next voice you are going to hear is from one of America's great lawyers. [18:14] It's someone who is giving voice to families and the victims of injustice. [18:19] Ladies and gentlemen, Ben Crump. [18:22] Thank you to President and CEO of the National Urban League, Mark Morial. [18:33] Please give a great round of applause for him not being in love for you to invite the families to be here at this great convention. [18:42] We are so grateful to him and the others in the civil rights community for standing up like they have stood up in the past. [18:51] And just like we got justice for George Floyd, just like we got justice for Breonna Taylor, Lee Merrick, just like we got justice for Ahmaud Arbery, we're going to get justice for Nolan Wells. [19:08] We're going to get justice for Daniel Irving, and we're going to get justice for Tyler Smith. [19:16] And the last part is because you all are not afraid to speak truth to power. [19:25] Thank you, Mr. Martin. [19:26] Again, I'm attorney Ben Crump, along with attorney Lisa Park, attorney Eric Hurts. [19:35] We are here fighting for the family of other great lawyers, but Nolan Wells, we also have present with us the family of Daniel Irving, who many of you are just learning about outside of Dallas, Texas, and his tragedy. [19:52] We have attorney Sean DeRay and attorney Brooke Cluse fighting to help that family get justice, and we want to applaud his mother, Tamika, who has been fighting. [20:08] Fighting as only a mother would fight with not many people in the world listening, but we're listening today, Tamika. [20:17] You are not alone, Tamika. [20:20] You got Nolan's mother and father, Christine, and Elmore Wonsley, who are standing with you as well, Tamika. [20:29] Your daughter is here. [20:31] You are not alone. [20:32] Y'all, please let her know she is not alone. [20:36] Justice for Daniel Irving. [20:38] You're going to hear from all these families. [20:48] You're going to hear from Tyler's mother and especially his grandmother. [20:53] And, you know, until the lawyers get there, until the community advocates get there, a lot of times these families are just by themselves, President Mariel. [21:04] And thank God for this mother and this praying grandmother who refused to let them sweep the death of her grandbaby under the rug. [21:16] And so I will say briefly about each of these tragedies. [21:24] Obviously, many of you know about Nolan Wells. [21:29] And you're going to hear from his mother and father after brief remarks by Attorney Hertz and Attorney Park. [21:36] But we all know July 4th, Nolan Wells goes with friends, celebrating 4th of July. [21:45] All the friends come back. [21:47] Nolan Wells tragically washes up on the shore two days later, dead. [21:56] And so we know all the current events that have been happening. [22:03] We are announcing that we have the audio from the officials. [22:10] And we have retained in our consultant with some of the foremost audio engineering experts to review those audio tapes from the CTO call in its entirety. [22:27] We also, and Attorney Hertz may go into greater detail on these matters, have consulted President Mariel with oceanic engineering experts to talk about how these facts are lining up. [22:43] The fact that they say Nolan's body was found in the same location where they say they left him at. [22:54] And so we want to know how is that possible with the oceanic tides? [23:01] We want the experts. [23:03] I mean, you got low tides and high tides. [23:05] It's not adding up. [23:07] So we are going to dot every I and cross every T until we find out what happened to Nolan Wells. [23:16] Attorney Hertz, we're also going to a little more detail and Attorney Park about how we're trying to coordinate with Dr. Roger Mitchell, who conducted the independent autopsy of Nolan Wells to be able to inspect his throat that was missing with his body when he was flown to do the autopsy with Dr. Mitchell. [23:43] Also, we are hopeful that they will discuss with Dr. Mitchell the photographs and observations made at the time when Nolan was first discovered because Dr. Mitchell did not get an opportunity until July 10th to be able to examine his body. [24:05] And at that time, we know the airways and the lungs had already been dissected and so forth. [24:11] So we can't tell if there was the presence of water or not. [24:17] That would suggest whether he drowned or not. [24:20] And remember what Dr. Roger Mitchell said in his autopsy, President Mario. [24:26] Well, he talked about the fact that to say he drowned does not draw the conclusions of what happened to Nolan Wells. [24:36] He said it is equally important to know at what condition was Nolan Wells body when he went into the water. [24:45] Was he conscious or was he unconscious? [24:49] Was he forced into the water or did he go unforced into the water? [24:53] He said all of these things are very important. [24:56] And so we are dotting I's and crossing T's. [25:00] We are focused on getting to the truth and we stand for the truth. [25:05] Me and everybody on my legal team stand for the truth no matter who it implicates or who it exonerates. [25:13] We stand for justice no matter who it convicts or who it acquits. [25:21] Yes, and we stand for transparency so everybody can see and that's all we want. [25:29] We want answers. [25:31] We're not casting aspersions on anybody. [25:34] We are saying that we want to make sure everybody who is remotely involved has their questions answered [25:43] to make sure we have a full and fair and impartial and transparent investigation. [25:51] And is that too much to ask for these broken hearted parents? [25:56] Is that too much to ask? [25:59] That's all. [26:00] If it was your child, wouldn't you want the same thing? [26:04] And I get it. [26:05] They're attacking me. [26:06] They're attacking Reverend Al. [26:08] While they're attacking the parents of Nolan Wells, we don't care about those distractions. [26:15] We don't. [26:16] We ain't no ways tired. [26:19] We are completely focused, completely laser focused on getting to the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. [26:29] So help us God. [26:33] And so the threats, the attacks mean nothing to us. [26:37] We will not be deterred. [26:38] Look at into our eyes. [26:44] We're going to get to the truth. [26:45] I am so grateful to Mr. Byron Allen for donating $100,000 to the GoFundMe so we can help get the best experts in the world. [26:57] I am thankful to Reverend Al Sharpton. [27:00] I am thankful to Mr. Tyler Perry. [27:02] I'm thankful to Mr. Tara Owens, Tara Owens. [27:06] I am very thankful to everybody who did not think it robbery to say, what can we do to help people get to the truth and call in to the tip line so we can help not only Nolan Wells' family, but we can help Daniel Urban's family, and we can help Tyler Smith's family as well. [27:29] Everybody on social media, please continue to ask questions. [27:33] Please continue to share photographs, share videos. [27:38] It all helps us solve this potential of what happened to Nolan Wells. [27:44] I mean, isn't it so important? [27:49] Somebody saw something. [27:51] Somebody knows something. [27:54] As Christine and Elmore have said, if you're really Nolan's friend, you know in your heart of hearts that if the roles were reversed, that Nolan would say something. [28:11] He would call and tell what he saw. [28:13] And so that's all they're asking. [28:17] Do for Nolan what he would have done for you. [28:21] Do for Nolan what he would have done for you. [28:25] Do for Nolan what he would have done for you. [28:32] Congresswoman Beatty, we thank you in the Congressional Black Caucus. [28:35] Please stand and join us, Congresswoman, because you all asking the questions from the Department of Justice and the FBI. [28:44] It's important that we have the full weight and force of everybody who has any kind of authority to be able to help us get answers on Nolan Wells and the other 18-year-old black boys. [28:57] Now, before I bring up the lawyers, I just want to say a word about Daniel Urban and by his case. [29:11] And you'll hear from attorney Sean DeRaya and after you hear from his mother, Tamika, so similar, so similar in what they're saying about Nolan Wells. [29:29] And that is her 18-year-old son, President Mario, Congresswoman Beatty, two young white teenagers come, pick them up from their house. [29:45] Lee, they go on, I guess, an alleged fishing trip. [29:54] Her son, I guess they are saying, accidentally drowns. [30:00] But his two friends then throw away his clothes, right Sean, throw away his cell phone, go and delete all the text messages between Daniel Urban and them, and then say nothing. [30:21] If it's an accidental drowning, why wouldn't you come to his mother and tell her he drowned by accident? [30:28] Why wouldn't you go to the authorities? Why wouldn't you go to somebody and say there was a terrible tragedy, he accidentally drowned? [30:35] But no, they go throw away all of the evidence that is germane to finding out what happened. [30:42] And it's only after his mother raised all kind of hell, and for four days they are searching for what happened. [30:50] Minister Dominique Alexander and the activists in Dallas, they're saying, no, something happened to Daniel Urban. [30:57] We got to get to the bottom of this. [30:59] Then and only then, Mark Morial, does the young people come forward to the authorities with their parents, and they say, well, we were there, and they confessed that they threw away his cell phone and his clothes, and they deleted the messages. [31:17] And so law enforcement charged and charged and arrest them after three months. [31:24] Three months passed, not until Nolan Wells started making the news, did they finally come, and they arrest them, but not for the death of Daniel Urban. [31:36] They arrest them with tampering with evidence, and that's it. [31:40] And what his mother is saying, what attorney Durea is saying, what attorney Brooke Gloos is saying is simply this. [31:48] If they would lie about his cell phone and throw it away, if they would lie about his clothes and throw it away, [31:56] if they would lie about deleting text messages between Daniel and them, how can you believe it when they say it was an accidental drowning? [32:06] They need to take this case to a grand jury, and you're going to hear from his mother talk about other things that don't add up about the conduct of the boys immediately after the drowning, the alleged drowning. [32:23] It's so critically important that we remember Daniel Urban as well. [32:27] And then, Attorney Park, Attorney Kloos, we talk about Tyler Smith, and I'll just try to paint the picture real quickly for you, [32:37] and then you'll hear from these parents, these brokenhearted parents. [32:42] Fourth of July, you can't make this stuff up, Congresswoman Baton. [32:49] Attorney Daniel, it's Fourth of July, same Fourth of July, 2026, when Nolan goes missing. [32:55] Tyler Smith, in Lexington, Kentucky, is the only black person in the home where they're having a Fourth of July small house party. [33:15] Somehow, Tyler ends up being shot in his head, dead. [33:25] 9-1-1 is called. [33:29] They come, the police get there. [33:31] They tell them that he shot himself, that they were playing Russian roulette. [33:42] That's what they say. [33:44] They say, this the gun, the police retrieve the gun, and then they take their word as the gospel that he shot himself. [34:00] They don't do gunshot residue on the hands of Tyler or nobody else. [34:05] I mean, basic investigation 101. [34:10] If you say he shot himself, wouldn't you bag his hands? [34:13] And wouldn't you test it for gunshot residue? [34:16] But they don't do that. [34:18] And you're going to hear from his grandmother and his mother as to the explanation, [34:23] the implausible explanation that they offered them. [34:30] And the fact that the gun, President Mariel, that they claimed he used to shoot himself with, [34:41] the police, after they do analysis, it does not match the caissons that they found on the floor to where he shot himself at. [34:51] So, still, they are taking their word for it. [34:59] And it's seven days later, right, Ms. Niecy? [35:03] Seven days later, after they didn't say, who all was in the house? [35:09] They have to identify everybody who was in the home. [35:12] And then they have to track down, well, if this is not the gun that caused the death of Tyler Smith, [35:20] well, where's the gun at? [35:22] So, they have to go investigate. [35:24] And they go surround one of the young men's houses, Lee Merrick, and they surround the house. [35:30] He doesn't come and volunteer after knowing that they are trying to find out [35:35] and get evidence about what happened to Tyler Smith and come forward voluntarily. [35:40] They have to go to his house and surround it. [35:44] And then he comes out and finally he volunteers that this is the gun. [35:50] Think about that, Kathleen Trigg. [35:51] Just think about that for a second. [35:53] You would think, after all of that, he is surely going to be arrested and charged with killing [36:01] or being in some way responsible for the death of this 18-year-old young black man. [36:09] But no, he is only charged with tempering with evidence, correct, Ms. Niecy? [36:14] Nothing more. [36:16] And nobody in all three of the questionable deaths of these 18-year-old young black kids, [36:26] nobody has been held accountable in any way. [36:31] And so, that's why we're here saying that we are not deterred. [36:36] We're not going to let you sweep it under the rug. [36:38] We're going to get to the answers of what happened to Nolan Wells, what happened to Daniel Irvings, [36:46] and what happened to Tyler Smith. [36:48] Three 18-year-old black boys in a three-month period around 4th of July, 2026, [36:57] who all were unalived in very similar ways as Nolan Wells. [37:04] And I'm very thankful to his parents for using the attention that they were given and blessed with [37:11] to also give attention to these other 18-year-old black boys. [37:15] Thank you, Christine. Thank you so much, Elmore. [37:19] At this time, before we get to your questions, [37:22] you're going to hear briefly from Attorney Eric Hertz, [37:25] and then Attorney Lisa Park with some updates, [37:29] and then you'll hear from Nolan Wells' parents. [37:32] Attorney Eric Hertz, a great civil rights lawyer. [37:35] Thank you for showing up. [37:41] I have some brief updates on the Nolan Wells case. [37:44] We have been working with the district attorney. [37:48] We've gotten a letter back yesterday, [37:50] and she's willing to listen to some of the evidence we have, [37:56] although we're having to still discuss her giving us back evidence, [38:01] and that's something that we will see. [38:02] The phones, not just our clients' phones, [38:07] but the other phones that are involved in this situation, [38:10] we are trying to coordinate and have come to a tentative agreement [38:15] with the district attorney [38:17] to go ahead and have them investigated together jointly [38:22] with our experts as well as their experts, [38:26] and I believe if I'm not speaking out of turn, [38:29] the FBI is going to also be present there, [38:31] and that's going to show a lot of stuff that we haven't seen. [38:35] I'm going to keep this short, [38:38] but as I always say and would like to say one more time, [38:42] society is judged by how the most powerful [38:46] treat the most vulnerable, [38:49] and justice will prevail. [38:50] Amen. [38:51] Thank you. [38:52] Thank you very much, Attorney Eric Hertz. [38:57] And now you will hear briefly from Attorney Lisa Park, [39:01] who heads up our Atlanta, Georgia office [39:03] and has been leading on this effort for Nolan Wells. [39:06] So today I just want to recognize all of these families [39:14] for coming here today, traveling here to Nashville, [39:18] even family that's here in the audience. [39:24] I, if you think for just a moment, [39:27] for these tragedies, they really just happened. [39:30] They really just happened. [39:31] And if you've ever had a loved one that you've lost, [39:35] it's hard, [39:36] and you feel like going into a quiet place by yourself, [39:42] mourning, grieving, [39:44] doing all of our own religious rituals, right? [39:49] And so it's quite hard that these families [39:52] have had to come into the spotlight [39:56] to stand up for their children. [39:59] This is not where they want to be. [40:02] And for those people who somehow think [40:05] that they want to be in the spotlight, [40:08] I guarantee you, [40:10] this is not where they want to be. [40:12] For all of these families, [40:15] for every single family member [40:17] that is suffering through these losses. [40:20] So I want to commend all of these families. [40:23] I also want to commend them [40:24] for coming together as a group, right? [40:28] Because all of us, [40:30] we are stronger together. [40:32] We are stronger together. [40:36] And there are so many unanswered questions [40:38] for all three of these cases. [40:41] But there's hope. [40:42] And I see that hope [40:44] because we do get calls. [40:47] We have been getting over 100 calls a day. [40:52] And I want to thank everybody who's called in [40:56] because for every time there's a hater [41:00] that's saying that these people [41:03] just want the spotlight, [41:05] when somebody calls in with some encouragement, [41:08] when somebody calls in with some information, [41:11] it makes up for that. [41:13] Amen. [41:13] Because we know that we're stronger together. [41:16] This, these questions, [41:18] these cases can be solved. [41:21] And we can do it together. [41:23] So I want to thank everybody for calling, right? [41:27] But I also, last thing, [41:29] I want to encourage those who have not called yet. [41:33] And you know that you have some information. [41:36] One, I know that it's scary. [41:39] I know that you may be scared. [41:41] But if there's a time in your life [41:44] to do the right thing, this is it. [41:47] And you just have to be brave. [41:49] And go ahead and please call us. [41:53] These people, we need you. [41:55] We need you. [41:57] Thank you. [41:58] Thank you so much. [42:00] Thank you, Attorney Park. [42:03] And as Nolan's mother and father get ready to come, [42:08] I cannot express to you how encouraged we are [42:13] that we're going to get to the truth. [42:16] I mean, so many things are coming to light. [42:19] And we're going to get to the truth. [42:21] We are not trying to cast aspersions on anybody. [42:26] We want the truth. [42:28] We want the truth. [42:29] That's what we want. [42:30] And like we said, if that implicates you or exonerates you, [42:35] then you got to talk to your Lord. [42:37] You got to talk to your God. [42:39] But we want the truth and nothing but the truth. [42:42] And if it was your child, you would want the same thing. [42:46] And so that's why everybody who got children, you could understand the pain, the agony that this mother and father have been dealing with since 4th of July. [43:02] They have people came, time date, within hours of finding him saying, well, no foul play, just go on. [43:11] How do you tell somebody just go on when my son is dead and nobody's giving us any answers? [43:19] All those people out on that island and you mean nobody know nothing? [43:24] Nobody saw anything? [43:27] No, we refuse to accept that nobody knows nothing. [43:32] We're going to get to the truth. [43:34] We're going to get to the truth. [43:35] We're going to get to the truth. [43:37] We're going to get to the truth. [43:39] And it's starting to come to light because truth is light. [43:43] And we're going to get to the truth. [43:45] Y'all give it up for the mother and father of Nolan Wells, Elmore and Christine. [43:58] We're going to get to the truth. [44:02] Thank you all for being here today. [44:05] It has been 27 days since we have been able to talk to our son, to hug him, to tell him we love him. [44:21] This has been the most difficult time we have ever had. [44:27] I want to tell you who Nolan was. [44:33] Nolan was a God-fearing, God-loving child. [44:39] He loved everyone. [44:42] He was the person who would just make you feel comfortable just being in his space. [44:52] He was never one to exclude. [44:55] He always wanted everyone to be happy, to feel good, to have purpose. [45:02] He would lift anyone up. [45:04] It didn't even matter if he didn't know you. [45:06] If you took that moment to just tell him a little bit about yourself, what you wanted to do with your life, [45:13] right then and there, Nolan would be your biggest cheerleader. [45:18] Today we are begging because I'm not too proud to beg. [45:26] We are begging if anyone knows anything, his friends, strangers, please call the hotline because we will not be able to rest until we get answers. [45:43] But please understand that all of these distractions, these other questions that people, the attacks that people have sent our way, just know we will not be distracted. [46:00] We are ready to do whatever we need to do as his parents to continue advocating for him because Nolan is not here. [46:10] He is not here to speak for himself. [46:14] He is not here to tell us what happened. [46:17] So again, we will not rest until we get answers. [46:21] And if you know something, you need to let us know. [46:27] Please do not be afraid, okay? [46:29] Thank you all so much again. [46:33] We truly appreciate your love and support. [46:36] I'm faced with a new challenge every morning, waking up, trying to process this. [46:56] It's the biggest challenge I've ever had. [47:07] I pretty much was raised up like a lot of you. [47:10] I didn't have a lot. [47:11] But I always said I wanted to give my children more than what I had. [47:16] And I think me and my wife did that. [47:22] We raised Nolan to love everyone, be kind to everyone, because it was just the right thing to do. [47:35] I got a lot of stuff going, but what I really want to say is, like my wife said, [47:45] if you know something and you are really, if Nolan was really your best friend, [47:51] or for the people who said that he was their friend, please come forward and tell us what you know. [47:59] All we want to know is the truth. [48:01] We're not blaming anyone. [48:04] We just want to know the truth. [48:06] Any parent want that. [48:07] And also the disrespect that's been coming toward my wife and my family. [48:21] For any parent, no matter what race you are, they need time to grieve. [48:28] A parent can't grieve when you have people attacking them, attacking their jobs, attacking their character. [48:35] Just attacking them, period. [48:38] Like, where's the empty at? [48:40] We, as Americans, this is a diverse country. [48:47] Yep. [48:48] Yep. [48:50] Not no one race made this country. [48:52] We all made this race. [48:53] Made this country. [48:54] So, we all need to come together. [48:58] And like I say, if we know something, please come forward and just call our attorneys. [49:06] Give them information. [49:07] Then, and they'll take it from there. [49:10] Just help us out. [49:11] And not just us, but all these families. [49:14] All these families need answers. [49:16] Anyone with information on any one of these cases, please come forward. [49:20] Because losing a child is something that you got to live with for the rest of your life. [49:26] Thank you. [49:28] Thank you. [49:29] And President Mario, I would just say the tax. [49:35] I mean, Christine has been a nurse for years and she hasn't ever gotten negative reviews. [49:42] But since she has been advocating to find out what happened to her 18 year old son after he was washed up dead on Horn Island, sick people have been going on her company's website, [50:00] giving her negative reviews. [50:02] Can you all imagine anything worse than that? [50:06] That is a shame before God. [50:08] They are just sick, evil people who would attack this mother and this father for simply saying, we want to know what happened to our child. [50:19] Don't worry, Christine. [50:21] We standing with you. [50:22] We are standing with you. [50:24] We got it. [50:25] Okay. [50:29] Next, we're going to have the mother of Daniel Irvin come and talk about her child and tell you what happened in her words. [50:38] And then you'll hear brief remarks from attorney Sean Durea. [50:42] Well, Sean, you want to briefly go? [50:55] Attorney Durea will briefly speak before her and then we'll have Tamika go. [51:00] Thank you, Mr. Crump. [51:01] Tampering charges in this case is absolutely unacceptable. [51:08] Tampering in itself means that someone intentionally hid, destroyed or altered evidence. [51:21] If the district attorney's office has that evidence, take that evidence, put it together and present it to a new grand jury. [51:30] And if the district attorney's office doesn't want to do it, we are calling on an independent investigation by the Department of Justice. [51:45] Because we are here for the truth. [51:50] And one last point I want to add to what Mr. Crump said. [51:53] Daniel Irving, when these boys said that he drowned, he was a high school swimmer. [51:59] He was on the swim team. [52:00] He was a healthy, young, 18-year-old male. [52:02] So that story that he drowned accidentally, it doesn't add up. [52:06] It does not add up. [52:08] And we want the truth. [52:09] Amen. [52:10] Attorney Durea, Attorney Brooke Goose. [52:15] We'll say a few words and then we'll hear from Tamika Irving. [52:20] Police and law enforcement are supposed to be protecting and serving. [52:27] But my question today is who are they protecting and which communities are they serving? [52:33] Wow. [52:34] What we want to know is why crimes against black and brown people receive less justice and less coverage. [52:44] And I'm going to give you some data to back it up and I'm going to read it because I don't want to make any mistakes here. [52:48] Over a 10-year period, statistics show that 53% of black killings go uncharged, no charges related. [52:58] And so that means over half of those related killings are never prosecuted. [53:04] And when you think about arrest rates, 63% of white victims receive justice versus or compared to 47% of black victims. [53:15] So when people think we have two systems of justice in this country, the data kind of backs that up. [53:24] And now we'll hear from Tamika. [53:26] My name is Tamika Irving. [53:40] Tamika Irving. [53:41] I am the mother of Daniel Irving. [53:43] This is my daughter Azaria Irving. [53:47] This is Daniel's eldest, eldest sister. [53:50] So what a lot of you guys don't know to give you like some context. [53:58] My son told me that he was going to go outside and hang with some friends. [54:05] Okay. [54:06] And I was under the understanding that he would be in the neighborhood. [54:10] So I didn't know where my son was. [54:12] I thought that he was just visiting friends in the neighborhood. [54:18] Around eight o'clock or so, I started to text Mike, call Mike. [54:25] And Mike was, he was an honorable child. [54:29] He wanted to serve and protect, be in the military. [54:32] He loved people. [54:34] He always had a joke to tell. [54:36] He was very comical. [54:38] So I called the police the following day at 1230 in the morning and I said, [54:45] Hey, my son ID is here and his money is here. [54:49] His social security is here and I don't know where he's at. [54:52] And this is not like him. [54:53] So I'm reporting him missing under suspicious circumstances. [54:57] The officers were very dismissive. [55:04] The officers were very dismissive. [55:16] So I didn't get any information about where my son was. [55:22] I canvassed the neighborhood. [55:24] I knocked on doors. [55:25] I asked neighbors for video footage. [55:28] I had to do the footwork, the research, the investigating. [55:33] I had to do it. [55:34] And so to the mothers, to anyone out there who have a loved one, [55:40] do not wait for the police to do their job. [55:45] Okay, so fast forward. [55:55] I reported my son missing. [55:57] My son was to graduate in May. [56:00] He was unable to graduate because the two boys murdered my son. [56:04] They said my son jumped off a bridge and I know that's not the truth. [56:11] He was found in water. [56:14] And not only that, my son was on the swim team. [56:17] He was very comfortable with swimming in the pool, swimming in lakes. [56:24] The autopsy report shows my son had an unobstructed airway. [56:29] So my son did not drown. [56:33] I want to know why the people that are in place to serve and protect failed to do their job from the very start. [56:44] When I reported my son missing, it took them 35 hours, over 35 hours, to input his information only in the state system showing that he was missing. [57:00] They failed to enter his information in the NCIC, the national criminal database. [57:07] Being my son, was under 21. [57:13] Law enforcement had a responsibility to enter his information within two hours and they failed to do that. [57:20] My son will fight for me and I'm here to fight for him. [57:29] I want justice. [57:30] We are in the pursuit of justice. [57:32] Yes, ma'am. [57:33] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:36] Yes. [57:37] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:39] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:40] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:42] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:43] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:44] Justice for Daniel Irving. [57:45] And the final family you will hear from is going to be the family of Tyler Smith, who many of you haven't heard of at all. [57:53] And I want to have his family who drove from Lexington, Kentucky to the National Urban League Convention to say that Tyler Smith, life matters too. [58:03] Y'all, please give him a round of applause. [58:06] Tyler Smith, life matters. [58:09] Tyler Smith, life matters. [58:12] Tyler Smith, life matters. [58:15] I want to thank everyone for showing up today, supporting all these families. [58:24] I was asked many times, who is Tyler? [58:31] What does Tyler mean to you? [58:34] And I had to take a deep dive into that because to give a few words wouldn't be justice. [58:43] So I went into my prayer closet, as most nanas do, because see, Tyler calls me now. [58:51] And when people ask me to tell them, I find a struggle in finding words big enough to describe who he is. [59:00] Tyler is charismatic. [59:02] He's warmth. [59:03] Tyler is love. [59:05] Tyler is compassion and tolerance. [59:07] Tyler is focus and determination. [59:10] Tyler is an entrepreneur with dreams, goals, and a vision for his future. [59:15] Tyler is a calming presence, a peacemaker, and a source of comfort to those around him. [59:22] Tyler is that warm piece of cake straight out of the oven, that soft buttermilk biscuit that the butter glides across the top. [59:30] Tyler is the depth of a baby's laughter and the warmth of a grandmother's hug. [59:37] Tyler is what many people spend a lifetime searching for, but never fully find a genuine soul with a kind heart and a beautiful spirit. [59:47] For me, Tyler is much more than all of those things. [59:51] He's my motivation, my determination, the wind beneath my wings. [59:56] Even in his absence, he continues to give me strength. [1:00:00] He has become a part of the reason I stand, the part of the reason that I keep moving forward. [1:00:11] When I received that call at 6 a.m. that morning that my grandson had been involved in the shooting, I thought, hmm, okay. [1:00:22] Hand, foot. [1:00:23] And I arrived up on the scene of the hospital and found out that this was a gunshot wound to the head. [1:00:31] Again, I'm a praying mother. [1:00:34] I have a son who a year ago had a near-fatal car accident. [1:00:38] I know what God can do. [1:00:39] You can't tell me what God can do. [1:00:41] I've seen it. [1:00:42] I watch it every day. [1:00:44] I watch them learn how to walk and talk. [1:00:46] And I comforted his grandfather and said, don't worry about this. [1:00:51] We've already been through this fire. [1:00:53] It'll be okay. [1:00:54] When the physician came out and pronounced my grandson, and she stated, self-inflicted, [1:01:03] accidental, I told her, you're a lie. [1:01:08] And there is no truth in it. [1:01:11] I explained to her immediately. [1:01:16] I said, how do you have this evidence for you to know this? [1:01:20] She said, because they said. [1:01:23] I said, they said? [1:01:27] She said, yes. [1:01:28] As days progressed, my family and I began to move forward. [1:01:32] We got no, none, effort, energy at all from the Lexington Fayette County Police Department. [1:01:42] We were told that we needed to accept accidental, self-inflicted. [1:01:49] They offered no traces of gun residue, even though I called the coroner's office and the police department. [1:01:56] And I begged and pleaded, please, bag his hands. [1:02:02] No child, and I say child because it's relative, no one was searched on the scene. [1:02:09] They took an investigation as a total from all five of these young people and said, they said, this is what happened. [1:02:20] I asked for gun residue on anyone. [1:02:23] The answer that I was given? [1:02:26] Well, there's no need to bag his hands. [1:02:28] Everyone in this room would have gun residue on them. [1:02:31] Unbelievable. [1:02:32] That was the excuse to me. [1:02:35] When they moved my grandson in an expedient manner, not to our local coroner's office, but to the state capitol, which I was told wouldn't happen until that following Monday. [1:02:45] Miraculously, in two hours, he was on his way to the medical examiner in the capitol. [1:02:53] On Monday morning, at 10 a.m., they came back and told me again, accidental, self-inflicted. [1:03:03] For 17 days, my sons and I worked tirelessly investigating everything on our own. [1:03:10] The police department gave us nothing, absolutely nothing. [1:03:17] They treated me as if I were a pyra, asking all the wrong questions. [1:03:22] Why do you need to know? [1:03:23] We've handed you that carrot already. [1:03:25] Take a bite. [1:03:26] Settle down. [1:03:27] It's accidental, self-inflicted. [1:03:30] As I talked to the police chief, I explained to him. [1:03:36] He said, well, what do you want from this? [1:03:38] What are you looking for? [1:03:39] I said, what would you be looking for? [1:03:42] Exactly. [1:03:43] Exactly. [1:03:45] I want transparency. [1:03:47] I want you to simply do the job that you were paid to do. [1:03:52] Amen. [1:03:53] My family never asked you to go above and beyond. [1:03:56] We just ask you to earn the paycheck that you either received this week or the next. [1:04:03] We ask you to simply, the same way you go into our black and brown neighborhoods and you can investigate and you can interrogate and you can charge, give us the same respect. [1:04:16] Amen. [1:04:17] Amen. [1:04:19] Amen. [1:04:20] Tyler is loved. [1:04:22] He's loved. [1:04:23] But most importantly, Tyler calls her mama. [1:04:27] Tyler calls me. [1:04:29] Yeah, that's my baby. [1:04:32] He's my baby. [1:04:35] It will be my dying breath to say his name. [1:04:39] No stone will go unturned. [1:04:41] I'm not afraid to go to hell and sit with the devil about mine. [1:04:47] Wow. [1:04:48] I want it known. [1:04:50] I want transparency. [1:04:51] I want someone to speak on it. [1:04:54] Continue to say our names. [1:04:55] Continue to say our children's names. [1:04:57] Yes. [1:04:58] We deserve answers. [1:04:59] We deserve justice. [1:05:02] Yes, ma'am. [1:05:03] We deserve transparency. [1:05:04] Yes. [1:05:05] That's all we're asking for. [1:05:06] Thank you, ma'am. [1:05:07] Thank you, ma'am. [1:05:08] And I thank you all so much for the time and the space that you have given every one of us. [1:05:13] We appreciate it for letting you know. [1:05:16] Justice for Tyler Smith. [1:05:19] Justice for Tyler Smith. [1:05:21] Justice for Tyler Smith. [1:05:22] Justice for Tyler Smith. [1:05:23] Justice for Tyler Smith. [1:05:24] And we're going to get to the truth on Tyler. [1:05:26] I promise you, we're going to get to the truth of what happened to Tyler Smith. [1:05:31] At this time, President Mario, we're going to ask that the Congresswoman just say a brief [1:05:37] word and then take questions. [1:05:39] Vince Evans, CBC, thank you all very much. [1:05:42] Let me simply say the two most powerful words we can say. [1:05:46] To you as families, to the Urban League family, to you, President and CEO, and my good friend, [1:05:52] to you, Attorney Ben Crump. [1:05:54] Thank you. [1:05:55] But let me just say, the Congressional Black Caucus, we aren't just coming today. [1:06:01] We communicated with Attorney Crump, with President Mark Morial, and we stand with you. [1:06:10] And I'll end with your words, Mark. [1:06:12] We're going to let justice roll down like a stream and righteousness like mighty waters. [1:06:21] We are the Congressional Black Caucus. [1:06:23] We stand for you for justice, transparency, and righteousness. [1:06:29] Thank you, and God bless you. [1:06:31] Thank you so much, Congresswoman. [1:06:32] This has been moving and powerful. [1:06:38] We want to take questions from members of the media, members of the media. [1:06:43] If anyone in the working media has a question for Attorney Crump, and please identify yourself, [1:06:52] speak real loudly. [1:06:53] Go ahead. [1:06:54] Yes, ma'am. [1:07:09] And that's an excellent question, because thank God for us being able to get the national attention [1:07:17] on Nolan Wells' case. [1:07:19] And that doesn't happen just by coincidence. [1:07:23] It's a lot of the civil rights community, a lot of the activists, I mean Reverend Al, people [1:07:29] like Byron Allen, Tyler Perry, everybody on social media coming to say, no, no, this ain't [1:07:35] adding up. [1:07:36] We got to find out what happened to Nolan Wells. [1:07:39] And then we get contacted by our good friend, Attorney Sean DeRay, saying that, hey, we got [1:07:46] a similar case, Attorney Crump, where you co-counsel with us, and Attorney Brooke Cluse start working [1:07:52] with them. [1:07:53] And then we get a call to the call center, President Mariel. [1:07:57] And I simply can't believe what happened to Titus Smith. [1:08:02] It shocks my conscience. [1:08:03] And so Kareem Ali and Cliff Jones, my investigators, they start to investigate. [1:08:08] And we're saying, this can't be true. [1:08:10] They really didn't do a gunshot residue test on their hands. [1:08:15] I mean, that's basic. [1:08:16] And so it hits me that all of them are 18-year-old black kids that died in very questionable circumstances [1:08:29] when Nolan was the only black kid on the boat, Daniel was the only black kid alleged on a fishing [1:08:40] trip, and Tyler was the only black kid at the 4th of July celebration party, house party. [1:08:49] And all of them are 18-years-old. [1:08:52] Look at the dates. [1:08:53] I mean, that's eerie when you look at the dates. [1:08:57] February 8th, Tyler Smith is born. [1:09:02] July 4th, 2026, he is dead. [1:09:06] Can I see the other photograph? [1:09:08] This is Daniel Irvin. [1:09:10] I mean, he's born. [1:09:12] November 21st, 2007. [1:09:16] He is dead on April 17th, 2026. [1:09:21] Where's the other one? [1:09:26] Nolan Wells, born August 19th, 2007. [1:09:32] He is dead in July of 2026. [1:09:37] The day is yet to be determined. [1:09:41] All of these young black kids were born in 2007. [1:09:47] And all three of these black kids died 2026, 18 years of age, on the cusp of manhood. [1:09:58] And I said, no, we got to show that this is not a coincidence that all these young 18-year-old black men are ending up dead and nobody is being held accountable. [1:10:12] No, we got to ring the alarm. [1:10:14] We got to ring the alarm. [1:10:16] We must ring the alarm for these 18-year-old black boys. [1:10:21] Let me also add this. [1:10:23] Our members who were planning to come to Nashville asked me late last week if we would be commenting on, dealing with, shedding any light on the Nolan Wells case. [1:10:40] I invited Ben Crump to come to Nashville to brief us on the Wells case. [1:10:50] In the course of that conversation, he shared with me, by the way, there are two other similar cases. [1:10:56] I said, two other similar cases? [1:11:01] I said, Ben, can you bring all of the families to Nashville? [1:11:08] Because the thousands of urban leaders who are here are interested in, have a solidarity with, want to hear directly, not through filters, about the circumstances of these cases. [1:11:26] And that is what the National Urban League Conference is all about. [1:11:29] It is about dealing with the pressing, cutting-edge issues that face the nation and face black America. [1:11:38] Amen. [1:11:39] So we are here because this is what we do. [1:11:41] Yes. [1:11:42] Whether it was Trayvon Martin back in the early teens, Michael Brown, George Floyd, Sandra Bland, Breonna Taylor, Tamir Rice. [1:11:57] We deal with these issues because our constituency wants to hear directly. [1:12:04] And I want to say this. [1:12:06] We trust Ben Crump. [1:12:09] Yes. [1:12:10] And we know that he does not engage in chasing false cases. [1:12:18] Amen. [1:12:20] That he also, when he takes a case, that he's going to elevate the word and the personality and the pain of the families. [1:12:32] Yes, sir. [1:12:33] All too often, when black families are victims of violence and victims of unfair justice system, they suffer in silence. [1:12:45] Yes. [1:12:47] They can't find lawyers. [1:12:48] Yes. [1:12:50] With the courage and the ability, they suffer in silence. [1:12:53] Yes. [1:12:54] So I know when Ben Crump has a matter, he is always welcome at the National Urban League Conference to come and bring us up to date. [1:13:04] And that's why we're here in Nashville. [1:13:07] Other press questions. [1:13:08] Any others? [1:13:09] Yes, ma'am. [1:13:10] Identify yourself, please. [1:13:14] New York Post. [1:13:16] Come here, Christine. [1:13:21] Yep. [1:13:22] We know about the question. [1:13:23] We were ready for it. [1:13:24] This attack and this threat to sue us and the family for defamation. [1:13:29] It's a distraction. [1:13:31] We're not distracted by it at all. [1:13:33] It's about getting to the truth. [1:13:35] That's what we want. [1:13:36] And that's what we're focused on. [1:13:38] We haven't done anything other than ask questions to get to the truth. [1:13:44] Okay. [1:13:47] Another question? [1:13:48] I can't hear you. [1:14:01] Okay. [1:14:04] That accusation doesn't deserve a response. [1:14:06] It has no dignity associated with someone standing up for children who have died. [1:14:15] We don't waste our time arguing with donkeys. [1:14:21] We don't waste our time arguing with people who want to distract from the real issue. [1:14:28] We have three dead black young men under suspicious circumstances. [1:14:35] And I don't think the New York Post ought to give elevation to distractions like that. [1:14:46] This is such an old story. [1:14:50] We fight for justice and someone suggests all we want is publicity. [1:14:54] You know what happens when we stand here? [1:14:56] Our inboxes are filled with hate messages, hate mail, hate this, hate that. [1:15:04] No one, our dignity in standing up. [1:15:09] And I'm not your reporter. [1:15:13] You work for the paper. [1:15:14] Your editors told you to ask this question. [1:15:16] I want you to know we will not be distracting. [1:15:19] And I'm not going to. [1:15:20] Ben Crump is like any lawyer. [1:15:25] He should get paid for his work. [1:15:27] Just like every Wall Street lawyer. [1:15:34] Every Trump lawyer. [1:15:37] Every insurance defense lawyer. [1:15:41] And I really want everyone to understand. [1:15:47] Let's not be distracted. [1:15:49] Amen. [1:15:50] Let's not give oxygen. [1:15:54] Let's not give air to haters and distractors and dissuaders. [1:16:02] So thank you for your question. [1:16:06] All right. [1:16:07] Ma'am. [1:16:09] Ma'am. [1:16:20] Yes, ma'am. [1:16:21] Where's your question? [1:16:22] We celebrate all. [1:16:35] So let me say this. [1:16:36] I'm going to say this. [1:16:38] I will not ever surrender the fact that I am an American. [1:16:45] However, we celebrate Juneteenth. [1:16:50] I don't necessarily celebrate July 4th. [1:16:53] But I note it as an important day. [1:16:56] And I'm not going to fall into the trap that some want to. [1:17:02] I fly the American flag in front of my house. [1:17:05] But on the other side of my porch, I fly the Juneteenth flag. [1:17:12] And we are not going to let anyone diminish our birthright. [1:17:20] Our constitutional right. [1:17:22] Our birthright to be treated fairly and justly in this country. [1:17:29] It is very difficult and challenging in these times. [1:17:34] But we are not going to be tricked. [1:17:37] We're not going to be dissuaded. [1:17:39] We're not going to be distracted. [1:17:42] I am an American. [1:17:45] I am an African American. [1:17:48] I am a black American. [1:17:52] And I'm proud to be one. [1:17:56] But I think we need to clearly understand that African Americans, black people, and civil rights leaders have always been the conscience of this country. [1:18:09] Amen. [1:18:10] Amen. [1:18:11] Have always been loyal to the nation, even in the most challenging times. [1:18:16] Yeah. [1:18:17] And I'm not going to suggest it's easy for us. [1:18:20] But what we're not going to allow is for people to marginalize us, treat us like second-class citizens, or suggest that somehow, let me tell you what a true patriot is. [1:18:33] A true patriot stands up for justice. [1:18:37] A true patriot stands up for the families and the victims of violence. [1:18:47] A true patriot holds the justice system accountable, doesn't make excuses for an unjust justice system. [1:18:57] So we've got to understand that we're not going to get tricked and cornered into people suggesting, because we stand up for justice, we're something other than a true and full patriot in this country. [1:19:13] Yeah. [1:19:14] That's the way I feel. [1:19:16] I said last night, I was born in a segregated hospital, born in a segregated city, watched my parents and their friends fight and litigate and march to open doors of opportunity. [1:19:34] Amen. [1:19:36] The reason why these times are so tough and why they're so difficult is because if we are not careful and if we are not vigilant and diligent, our children and grandchildren will be relitigating the battles of our parents. [1:19:52] Yeah. [1:19:53] This movement in this country to turn back the hands of time is palpable. [1:20:03] So when we stand up for these families, and we'll stand up for other families, and we'll stand up for other people, we're doing it because we are true patriots. [1:20:14] We're doing it because we believe in justice. [1:20:18] We do it because we're going to hold the justice system accountable. [1:20:22] This Urban League movement, this Urban League movement has a mission. [1:20:26] Yes, sir. [1:20:27] And its mission is something we will not surrender. [1:20:32] Like the Congressional Black Caucus says, we have no permanent friends. [1:20:38] We have no permanent enemies. [1:20:41] We only have permanent interests. [1:20:43] Amen. [1:20:44] So thank you for your question. [1:20:45] And let me say this before I move on to the final two questions. [1:20:49] You know, we as African Americans, as W.B. Du Bois said, we have this duality. [1:20:57] I mean, on one hand, we know that when the founders wrote the Constitution, they never expected that it would, the rights would apply to us. [1:21:10] But like my personal hero, Thurgood Marshall said, I know they didn't intend it to apply to us, but we're going to make it apply to us anyway, because we are American citizens. [1:21:23] And if anybody built this country, it was our ancestors with the toll in the cotton fields. [1:21:32] I mean, doing the things that made this very young country become such a prosperous country at such an early age in its infancy. [1:21:43] I mean, when you think about what slavery did to elevate America, that were our ancestors. [1:21:50] So, yes, I'm going to celebrate the Fourth of July essence every year because my ancestors built this joint. [1:21:58] And then I'm really going to celebrate on the Juneteenth because I know that is what we do to acknowledge our ancestry. [1:22:09] Just like Jewish Americans celebrate the Fourth of July and their important dates. [1:22:16] Just like Italian Americans celebrate the Fourth of July and their important dates. [1:22:21] Just like Spanish Americans celebrate the Fourth of July and important dates to them. [1:22:26] Black people, we celebrate the Fourth of July because we built America. [1:22:34] Ladies and gentlemen, we have one more. [1:22:36] CNN and iWomenTV, and then that's going to be it. [1:22:39] Okay, go ahead. Yes, ma'am. [1:22:58] I have Sean speak briefly to Daniel Irvin, but that's why I was brought in to bring attention to Daniel Irvin case. [1:23:05] Sean and his team and their mother been fighting and not making progress, but we're going to get the answers, Sean. [1:23:12] We have not had any progress with the Dallas County District Attorney's Office. [1:23:16] We are planning, Mr. Crump and I, to meet with the district attorney if he will meet us. [1:23:21] We want to talk about this case, we want to talk about this evidence, and we want to move this forward and we want murder charges. [1:23:28] Is that right, Mr. Crump? [1:23:29] Absolutely. [1:23:30] You know, one of the things that Sean and Tamika said, Ryan Young, she said that there was a witness after the drowning that said, Tamika, the young man was limping when he came back. [1:23:43] And that was part of the investigation, and she's saying, well, why didn't y'all explore that? [1:23:48] Like, why are you limping? [1:23:49] You're saying my son jumped off the bridge. [1:23:51] Why that's going to cause you to limp? [1:23:53] Yes, that is true. [1:23:57] And there was a witness that provided video footage via flash drive to the detectives, and they failed to enter that information in the probable cause affidavit. [1:24:08] The witness also said that the detectives just grossly overlooked that, and they failed to enter that information. [1:24:29] Again, I know Daniel did not drown, and tampering with evidence is offensive for the murder they committed. [1:24:41] Thank you. [1:24:42] Do we have any more questions? [1:24:43] I would just respond to this here on Ryan's case. [1:24:46] And his mother believes her child was murdered. [1:24:51] We are still trying to get all the information, Attorney DeRay and I, but she does not believe her son went into a lake, a high school swimmer, and drowned. [1:25:05] She just isn't accepting that, and she has a right as a parent to question that. [1:25:11] As it relates to Tyler Smith, we're going to have more information coming forward because of the hard work of his mother and grandmother, and we think the shoe is about to drop on that. [1:25:23] And we're going to meet with the district attorney. [1:25:25] We haven't yet, but we're going to meet with them because people are starting to come forward. [1:25:32] And I, again, thank the parents of Nolan Wells because people are coming forward in their case. [1:25:38] That's inspiring people to come forward and Tyler Smith's case as well. [1:25:42] So thank you all for coming forward. [1:25:44] She had the last one. [1:25:45] Let's go here and then Catherine. [1:25:47] Okay. [1:25:48] My message would be that we have to have tough conversations. [1:26:15] This is something our community already knows. [1:26:18] We have to make sure that, and I know my husband and I, we have had countless conversations with all of our children about the importance of understanding when you are moving in different spaces with people that do not look like you. [1:26:35] And it's unfortunate that we have to have these conversations, but they are needed in order to hopefully keep our children safe. [1:26:46] So I would say to all the mothers out there, especially my black mothers, we just have to keep pushing forward. [1:26:56] We have to do the things to protect our children. [1:26:59] Kathleen. [1:27:00] Kathleen. [1:27:01] Kathleen, last question. [1:27:02] I mean, this is so tragic that this is why Ben Crump is so important. [1:27:46] This is why when families face these types of challenges, they need good counsel. [1:27:52] They should not wallow and try to handle it themselves. [1:27:57] They shouldn't just go to community leaders and politicians, although that's important. [1:28:03] They need good counsel. [1:28:04] They need good civil rights counsel. [1:28:06] They need people like Ben Crump or Lee Merritt. [1:28:08] And there are many, many others around the nation who do this kind of important work. [1:28:15] And I just encourage families that face cases of injustice, cases where they want answers, to work to get good counsel. [1:28:26] We at the Urban League, our affiliates, we get calls all the time. [1:28:33] And what we try to do is guide them in the right direction. [1:28:36] We try to help them identify counsel or people. [1:28:40] And that is really, really important, the case. [1:28:43] I want to confront the question you asked about race. [1:28:48] Something in this country, whenever a black person is the victim of an act of injustice, why is it when we seek justice, [1:29:01] we get this smear campaign of playing the race card? [1:29:09] I have seen this movie for many, many, many years. [1:29:14] And we are going to call it out because we are not going to be dissuaded, distracted, or intimidated for standing up for members of our community. [1:29:30] Let the charges come. [1:29:33] I say it's like they're blowing bubbles. [1:29:37] It's just a lot of rhetoric. [1:29:40] It's nasty and it's hateful. [1:29:42] But you know what I found? [1:29:43] That every loud person attacking us, there's 15 quiet people. [1:29:52] Yes. [1:29:53] Who represent silent supporters of justice. [1:29:56] They may not speak out, they may not go on social media, but they're in solidarity. [1:30:04] And we have to remember that. [1:30:05] The loudest voices in the room are not the most important voices in the room. [1:30:13] Amen. [1:30:14] Let me thank you all for coming. [1:30:16] We've got some other activities on Women of Power Luncheon. [1:30:18] Let's thank Ben Crump. [1:30:20] Let's one more time thank these families for their courage, for their courage, for their courage. [1:30:25] And I want to thank the media for coming out as well. [1:30:29] This press conference is adjourned. [1:30:30] Thank you, Mark Mariel and the National Urban League. [1:30:34] Don, you're muted. [1:30:37] That's Mark Mariel, who's the president of the National Urban League. [1:30:41] They're finishing up the press conference. [1:30:43] Ben Crump there on the stage, along with the parents of Nolan Wells, and also the parents of Tyler Smith and Mr. Irving. [1:30:54] Daniel Irving, who is, I was looking at his mom's name, Tamika Irving was her name, is her name for the mom who was there. [1:31:00] Giving really some very emotional testimony about their son. [1:31:05] She said there was a grandson and the son. [1:31:07] She said, but she called him her son, about the lack of investigating, the circumstances surrounding that. [1:31:15] And it was a very emotional press conference. [1:31:17] Now, I have to be honest, in regards to the Nolan Wells case, not really much of an update, except that they were working more about coordination with law enforcement. [1:31:29] And then saying the attacks that are happening with the mom, that they're not going to be distracted by them and they're not going to stand for them. [1:31:36] And so that was the, you know, what I gained from this and from the notes that I took. [1:31:42] I can't get my notes are not coming up for some reason. [1:31:45] I have an issue with my computer. [1:31:46] But yeah, Daniel, I mean, I thought that it was an interesting press conference. [1:31:50] There were some updates, especially about the phones, that they were going to work to coordinate with anyone who had any information on phones or all the phones that were involved in this. [1:32:00] So that was interesting to me to witness or to hear at least as well. [1:32:05] Yeah, that was my biggest takeaway in terms of a Nolan Wells update. [1:32:10] It was just they're going to now coordinate the phones together to look at the geolocation data and just any of the information, because our understanding is that Christine, Nolan's mother, has said that his phone didn't have any pictures. [1:32:28] The Snapchat was deleted. There was nothing on his phone. [1:32:31] And so they're going to be able to analyze that. [1:32:34] That I think actually would be make for an interesting guess if we can get someone on late notice or five who can talk about what other information they could find and the significance of them looking at all the phones together. [1:32:45] So that was one piece. The other piece. [1:32:47] And again, we knew this, but they are working with investigators to determine the timeline, because as Ben Crump said, we know that he washed ashore and we know that there were tides and tides work, carry bodies in certain ways. [1:33:02] But we know that he washed ashore where that boat where those those young men were on who left. [1:33:09] But he washed ashore where that boat left. And so Ben Crump's mind is saying, well, how can that be the case when you have an ocean and tides and water? [1:33:19] And so that was the other big takeaway. And my last takeaway is just the humanity of this all. [1:33:24] I mean, we have to stop and reflect and remember that when you're talking about any of these cases, I mean, three weeks ago or in the case of Daniel Irving, April, not that long ago. [1:33:38] And these families not only being strong enough there to stand on that stage today and call for justice for their loved one, but also immediately done. [1:33:48] Did you notice that all of them, the police, the investigators said case closed? [1:33:53] Case closed. I mean, we talked about this with every single case. [1:33:57] Nolan, case closed. He drowned nothing. [1:34:00] Daniel Irving, case closed. He drowned. [1:34:03] Tyler Lewis, he self-inflicted gunshot wound. Case closed. [1:34:07] Every single one of those families had to put and continuously to this day has had to put their grief on the back burner to fight for justice. [1:34:16] And I think that that is what is fueling a lot of the the emotion around this case, because all far too often when the victims are black, you have to fight. [1:34:26] And as each one of those families said, when you're fighting for just the simple what happened to my child, you are seen as a pest in America in 2026. [1:34:35] Police departments treat you as a pest, not as a grieving parent, a relative who just wants answers for the loved one who died. [1:34:44] And so it is it is sad that we are still living in the society that you cannot trust the police department, that you heard them say, if something like this happens to your loved one, fight for an independent investigation. [1:34:55] Because sadly, they feel and honestly, I do as well, that the police department is not going to have your best interest in heart if you look like you are. [1:35:03] And it's Tyler Smith's mother who said that and all the other mothers. [1:35:10] But the interesting thing to me is what you mentioned was they said that the people at the police department, she said, well, she said it was a self-inflicted gunshot wound or in the hospital said a self-inflicted gunshot wound. [1:35:22] And they said, well, how do you know that? It's because they said. [1:35:25] And she said, they said, you're a liar. They said, that's not what that's not the evidence. [1:35:30] And still they went and they did it. They did another investigation. [1:35:34] They still said it was a self-inflicted gunshot wound without doing any type of test for trace evidence of bullets or gunshot fragments or any of that gunshot residue. [1:35:45] And so, yeah, you're right about that. [1:35:48] Also, as it relates to the phone, they said there was going to be a joint coordination. [1:35:52] The district attorney was involved. The FBI will be present as well. [1:35:55] And then the last thing that attorney said, which I thought was true when you talked about humanity of it, he said that that society is judged by how most people, the most powerful people treat the most vulnerable. [1:36:06] And that resonated across this case. If you look at what's happening with this administration, how they treat the most vulnerable, how they treat immigrants in this country, how they treat poor people in this country, how they treat people who don't have agency in this country, how they talk about transgender people and members of the LGBTQ and minorities in this country. [1:36:26] It's really that was very one of the most poignant statements. [1:36:29] I thought society is judged by how the most powerful treat the most vulnerable. [1:36:35] The parents said that if you were Nolan's friend, if you're merely Nolan's friend, and if the roles were reversed, she said, what would you, Roland would say something. [1:36:45] Roland, well, she didn't say that. One of the attorneys said Roland would say something. [1:36:50] And so expect him to, you know, that he should, that you should say something as well. [1:36:56] The mom said it's been 27 days since we've been able to talk to our son, to hug him, to tell them that we love him. [1:37:03] This has been the most difficult time that we have ever had, and I want to tell you who Nolan was, she said. [1:37:09] He was God-fearing. He was a good, loving child. He loved everyone. [1:37:12] He was the person who would just make you feel comfortable in his space. [1:37:16] He never excluded anyone. He wanted people to feel good. [1:37:20] He lifted everybody up. He was your biggest cheerleader. [1:37:24] And so she said all they want is just information, and all of the attacks are distractions. [1:37:33] Now let's talk about, when they said the New York Post, we knew what was coming. [1:37:36] I don't know what the exact question was because there wasn't a microphone, but let me just tell you. [1:37:41] Okay, if y'all don't know Louisiana, if you don't know Marc Muriel, that was mild for him when he said we don't answer to donkeys. [1:37:51] Now I know he wanted to say asses or something a bit more specific to that. [1:37:56] He knew where he was. [1:37:58] That has holes on the end of it. [1:38:00] And so that's exactly what he was saying. [1:38:02] But in Louisiana, what we will say is, basically what he was saying to that reporter is, bless your heart. [1:38:08] And then he went on to read her in a very intelligent way, which was the right thing to do. [1:38:15] Do you want publicity? I would have said, hell yes, I want publicity. [1:38:20] Because that's how things get done. That's how we get attention, is through the publicity. [1:38:25] What do you think the media is? The media will put this on, and in a sense, that is publicizing. [1:38:30] That's what it is. That's why it's called a publication. It's because it's publicity. [1:38:35] And so yes, because we don't want people to forget what is happening here. [1:38:40] We don't want people to forget our loved ones. We don't want these investigations to go by the wayside. [1:38:44] And unless you apply pressure, as we have heard, Daniel, from this press conference, then as you said, you get treated as a nuisance. [1:38:52] You know, as, oh, you're a nudge. Stop bothering me. Oh, you're a pest. [1:38:56] I never once heard when the media covered Nancy Guthrie day after day in January when she first went missing. [1:39:05] Oh, they just want publicity. Or when you think about the murders that happened in Idaho of those, I believe, four or five young white children. [1:39:18] Or they were in college who died. And we heard all of the publicity that happened around those cases because we just wanted answers. [1:39:27] Everybody wanted answers. And now there is a gentleman who is behind bars who is charged with the murders of those people in Idaho. [1:39:36] We still don't have answers with Nancy Guthrie. There's a lot of questions around that case. [1:39:41] But why were those cases treated differently than these three cases? [1:39:45] When these three families just say they want the same level of treatment, they just want answers. [1:39:51] Yeah. Well, you know why. You already know why. Thank you, Daniel. [1:40:00] And that was, I mean, look, as far as, look, we did get some new information, but very minimal, I believe, information on that. [1:40:07] But still, what we got out of it I thought was good and pertinent, and it definitely warranted us coming on to discuss it. [1:40:13] And we're going to continue to discuss it today. Don't forget to join us today live at 5 o'clock, 5 o'clock Eastern Time, [1:40:21] because we're going to bring you, as we said, the information. This went on a lot longer than I thought it was going to go on. [1:40:27] But thank you, Daniel. We'll see you at 5 o'clock, and we'll see you all at 5 o'clock. [1:40:31] And as we say always, as we, you know, leave here for a little bit from the News Lounge, we want you to be informed without being inundated until we see you back here at 5 p.m. Eastern Time here on The Don Lemon Show on The Don Lemon Channel. [1:40:46] Turn the TV off. [1:40:48] Thanks for watching, everybody. I appreciate you. Make sure you like, subscribe, and turn on notifications so you don't miss anything. [1:40:58] We're live weekdays at 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern, with new content at 2 p.m. Eastern, sometimes at 8 p.m. [1:41:05] So follow The Don Lemon Show wherever you are. YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitch, Substack, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts. [1:41:12] We are everywhere, and we're there every day. And if you want a little more, join the Lemon community. [1:41:18] Exclusive posts, behind the scenes, live chats. Just hit join or check the channel pages. [1:41:25] All right. I'll see you next time.