Nolan Wells death sparks protests, calls for independent investigation

[0:01] Welcome back to Politics Nation on MSNOW. [0:05] Tonight, deep questions persist in the death of Nolan Wells, [0:09] the 18-year-old student athlete whose body was recovered last week near a Gulf Coast Island, [0:17] where he was last seen on July 4th on a 4th of July trip with friends. [0:22] The Jackson County, Mississippi Sheriff's Office does not currently suspect foul play, they say. [0:28] As authorities have said, they suspect that the 18-year-old drowned. [0:34] And a county coroner's autopsy showed no signs of trauma. [0:38] Still, Nolan Wells' parents have doubts about eyewitness accounts that they say conflict. [0:46] And as they await the results of the independent autopsy on their son's body [0:51] and dozens of peaceful protesters took to the streets in Jackson County last night, [0:57] demanding a full investigation. [1:01] As president of the National Action Network, I joined them in that call. [1:05] And I will join Nolan's parents next week to speak at their son's funeral. [1:10] But joining me now are Nolan's parents, Christine and Elmer Wansley. [1:16] Christine, Elmer, we appreciate your strength tonight. [1:19] We've seen peaceful protests and solidarity with you and your family. [1:24] And I know from spending time with you, you're not activists, [1:27] you're not interested in being on TV, but you want what is right for your son. [1:32] And we've seen members of your community, [1:35] people that knew Nolan speak to what kind of young man he was. [1:39] And we've seen people like Tyler Perry and Colin Kaepernick and Byron Allen [1:45] and thousands of others donate to various financial needs you have right now. [1:51] Christina, have you been able to take anything from that goodwill as you go through this? [1:58] It's one of those situations where it warms my heart, right? [2:04] Like it warms my heart, but also my heart is still very broken. [2:07] But to see that people are so willing to assist us, help us in any way that they can, [2:17] just I'm so appreciative. [2:19] And I've always said, you know, even in my post on social media, like, [2:23] hey, you know, if you cannot donate to the GoFundMe, [2:27] which I understand because financially times are hard for people, [2:30] you know, just send us some prayers. [2:32] You know, that's the biggest thing. [2:33] Just send us some prayers. [2:34] You know, at this point, we're willing to accept any help whatsoever. [2:39] But it has just been such a blessing. [2:42] And I am just so grateful to everyone who, whether they've donated, [2:48] sent up prayers, DoorDash orders, just all of that. [2:53] We're just incredibly grateful to everybody. [2:56] And you, Elma, have you been able to take any solace [3:00] from the support you and Christine have received? [3:02] Yeah, see, it's a very good feeling just to see all the love that my son had from the community [3:12] and his friends. [3:14] So people always will come in and say, oh, your son is a great guy, [3:19] you know, individual here and there. [3:20] But to actually see that people, he really touched a lot of people during his time here. [3:27] And it's just a great feeling to know how much of a people person he was. [3:33] Nolan was really a people person and could light up a room with his personality and his character. [3:39] So he would truly be missed. [3:42] Now, between social media and some interviews I've seen with parents in Jackson County, [3:49] Black America has responded emotionally to this tragedy, [3:53] both what you're going through and the circumstances surrounding Nolan's death. [3:58] Some have echoed your admitted lack of trust or concern in aspects of the Mississippi law enforcement [4:05] to investigate in good faith. [4:07] So, Christine, along with the concern that race may or may not have played a role [4:13] in what happened beforehand, do you think investigators feel the pressure [4:18] that is happening so they'll take this seriously? [4:22] You know, that's the hope, because the concern is when it first happened, right? [4:30] It was kind of straight out the gate, like, hey, this is what we're thinking. [4:34] But yet there's been no full investigation. [4:37] At that point, investigation, I don't even think, had started. [4:41] And so to come out publicly and state that, you know, that's kind of where—and the concern [4:48] for how is this investigation going to go? [4:51] Once again, I have said it in pretty much every single interview. [4:55] I've stated it on my personal social media. [4:57] The only thing we're asking for is just a thorough, honest, clean investigation. [5:03] We just want to know what happened to our son. [5:05] Like, I think that, again, any parent in America, or even just any person, if your loved one goes [5:11] missing, you want to know what has happened. [5:15] Christine, both you and your husband have talked about how gregarious Nolan was, [5:21] how much he enjoyed people and seemed to value a court. [5:26] But you said in Friday's press conference that he was not how you wanted the world to meet your son. [5:36] What else do you want us to know about him? [5:40] He was God-fearing. [5:43] He had faith. [5:48] Again, he just—God took his time with him. [5:52] He was—he was rare. [5:55] You don't meet too many people like him, especially in the day and time that we live in, [6:02] who is just so full of joy and light and really just wants everyone to come together. [6:09] And it's just—it's very disheartening, the discourse, the comments on social media, [6:16] like, the lack of empathy, and that people are taking our pain and this situation as a joke. [6:32] And just us simply asking, you know, like, what happened has triggered so many people, [6:38] which is crazy because, again, especially if you're someone who has children, you would want to know. [6:45] But he was just—he was a light. [6:48] Like, he was—just walk into a room and just his personality would get in the room before he would. [6:57] Yeah, he just wanted everyone to be happy. [7:00] That was his biggest thing. [7:01] He just wanted everyone to be happy. [7:05] Elma, it struck me as we spent time in my office at National Action Network talking [7:09] that you are not activists. [7:12] You were not looking for a cause. [7:15] But the fact that he was not there, he was—he was missing, then all of a sudden his cell phone [7:23] and his keys are somewhere that they had not voluntarily brought back to you, [7:28] and law enforcement was saying there was no foul play. [7:31] You were just operating as parents. [7:33] That's why you'd reach out or you would talk to someone like Ben Crump and later me. [7:37] You were not looking for a cause, but things just didn't add up, you were saying, Elma. [7:43] Yeah. [7:43] No, it wasn't. [7:45] And like my wife said, the day that it happened, [7:51] she prayed that the right people who will be put in our lives to help us with this, [7:57] and he answered our prayers. [8:00] Ben Crump got in contact with us, [8:03] and his team has really helped us move this along. [8:08] I really believe if we didn't have him, I don't know where this investigation will be. [8:16] Yeah, and to the support of our friends who have assisted with so many things, [8:21] we have like our own little—almost like a little crisis team. [8:25] They have been phenomenal in making sure that we're getting, you know, the information out, [8:30] making sure, you know, we're settled with meetings, [8:33] and then like, you know, like Elmore said, it's just—it really has been a godsend. [8:38] And at that juncture, once again, I think anybody would accept any help. [8:43] We were literally asking for any help. [8:46] We were desperate. [8:47] Yeah. [8:48] And I might add, you said you want everybody that will come out to be peaceful. [8:54] You said— [8:54] Oh, absolutely. [8:54] Make sure you all keep emphasizing peaceful. [8:57] And many of the ones that came out today were white. [9:01] This is not that only one side has responded, but everybody's saying this just does not add up. [9:08] We want to see justice here. [9:11] That is—that is it. [9:12] Like, that is the bottom line. [9:14] People can make whatever assumptions they want. [9:17] But when it comes down to it, we would give all the money back. [9:20] We would give the gifts. [9:21] Everything that everyone has done for us, we would give that all back just to have him back. [9:27] Yes. [9:28] I'll have to leave it there. [9:29] Thank you for giving us this. [9:32] And this is the first interview you did without a lawyer. [9:34] So you trusted me and I—but I felt you when we sat in our office. [9:39] Thank you to Nolan's parents, Christine and Elmer Wansley. [9:43] I will continue to pray for you, and I'll be joining you later on in the week. [9:48] I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you, and I will continue to pray for you.