Christine and Elmore Wonsley brought their search for answers to the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Atlanta, where they stood alongside attorney Benjamin Crump and the Rev. Al Sharpton and demanded a federal investigation into the death of their son, Nolan Wells.
Christine and Elmore Wonsley brought their search for answers to the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Atlanta, where they stood alongside attorney Benjamin Crump and the Rev. Al Sharpton and demanded a federal investigation into the death of their son, Nolan Wells.
Wells, an 18-year-old from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, died on July 4 during a boating excursion to Horn Island with companions he considered friends. His body was found two days later. Local authorities initially saw no signs of foul play, but a private autopsy on July 22 produced inconclusive findings. Six weeks after the tragedy, the Wonsleys say they are still in the dark.
The couple spoke at a panel discussion on August 13, moderated by journalist Tiffany Cross. Georgia Rep. Lucy McBath was in the audience. Crump told reporters that the family brought him in because they had serious “concerns about whether they were going to get a fair and impartial investigation” from local authorities. “We want the truth. We want transparency,” he said.
Christine Wonsley, a nurse practitioner, described the ongoing pain of losing her son. “That realization is really sinking in, that we don’t have our son physically here anymore,” she said, her eyes welling with tears. “Our lives have forever changed. This new normal is something I would never wish on anyone, not even my worst enemy.”
She appealed directly to other parents. “The only thing we want to know is what happened. That’s all we want to know… Because many parents out there, you still have your children. You still can hug them… And we do not have that anymore.”
Christine Wonsley also detailed what she called a coordinated smear campaign against her. She recounted receiving one-star reviews online from strangers and an anonymous complaint filed with the Mississippi Board of Nursing accusing her of professional misconduct. The complaint was ultimately dismissed for lack of evidence, she said. “There has been a big smear campaign, not only professionally but personally for me,” she explained. “It started out with one-star reviews of people saying they saw me… Then it went to someone [contacting] the board of nursing, then that opened the investigation into professional misconduct. There was no evidence for that claim.”
She insisted the attacks would not silence her. “These attacks are not going to… it’s not gonna break me. We’ve never blamed anyone. We’ve never smeared anyone.”
Sharpton, who has stood by the family, condemned the criticism directed at them. “Imagine this, you lose your child and you are being attacked for asking what happened… Why are they under attack for asking for the truth?”
Support has also come from celebrities including Tyler Perry, Byron Allen, Nancy Grace, Rachel “Ms. Rachel” Accurso and Colin Kaepernick, several of whom have donated thousands of dollars to aid the family’s fight. A vigil is planned on Martha’s Vineyard next week ahead of what would have been Wells’ golden birthday on August 19, 2026.
Wells, a wide receiver and business major at Southwest Mississippi Community College, would have turned 19 on August 19, 2026, and would have been gearing up for the upcoming football season. Instead, his parents are left to mourn and continue pressing for a federal review. “We have to find out what happened to Nolan,” Christine said. “That is the only question we’ve ever asked.”
The Wonsleys say they will not rest until federal authorities uncover what happened to Nolan.
