What we know about the Black teen found dead after Mississippi boat trip

https://i.cbc.ca/ais/650042a5-d30d-4f41-b00c-26ee4a93962a,1784295840801/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%280%2C106%2C2048%2C1152%29%3BResize%3D%28620%29" title="Nolan Xavier Wells, an 18-year-old who died on an island off the coast of Mississippi, with his parents Christine and Elmore Wonsley in an undated photo released by the family attorney Ben Crump on July 10, 2026.

Family handout courtesy of Ben Crump Law/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. /Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY" width="620" />

The death of Nolan Wells, a Black teenager whose body was located on an island off the Mississippi coast after he spent the Fourth of July there with three white friends, has drawn widespread attention amid mounting unanswered questions.