This story is developing and will be updated.

A grand jury found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing in the death of Nolan Xavier Wells, a Black teenager whose body was found near a barrier island off the Mississippi Gulf Coast two days after he went missing on the Fourth of July.

The condition of his body was consistent with drowning, according to a redacted copy of the Jackson County grand jury report that District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath released Monday night on Facebook.

“In addition to bringing prosecutions against the guilty, the grand jury must also exonerate those who have been falsely accused,” McIlrath said in a video that accompanied the report. 

The grand jury issued 132 subpoenas during its investigation and heard from 43 witnesses as it reviewed whether criminal wrongdoing had occurred when Wells did not return from an excursion to Horn Island with friends on the Fourth of July, according to the report. 

As part of that review, the grand jury considered physical and digital evidence and heard testimony from witnesses and investigators. The grand jury reviewed cell phone data and forensic reports, with photographs, videos and GPS data. 

The decision by the grand jury not to indict someone is not the same as an acquittal of a potential crime. There is no statute of limitations for murder charges in Mississippi. If new evidence ever surfaces in connection with Wells’ death, a grand jury can meet in the future to consider whether that evidence shows someone may have committed a crime. 

McIlrath said she took her oath as district attorney a little over a year after burying her own child.

“When I was sworn in, I promised to fight for and protect you and your children as I would my own. I meant it then, and I mean it now,” she said. “The death of Nolan Wells has devastated our community. Outsiders and influencers have attempted to exploit Nolan’s death and create chaos here. But we are better together.”

Emails released to social media by the district attorney’s office also show she shared the report with attorneys representing Wells’ family and his estate. 

Correction, 9/21/2026: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of McIlrath.