OBSTRUCTED INVESTIGATION: Pathology report reveals stomach and vital organs were REMOVED before second autopsy!
The family of 18-year-old Nolan Xavier Wells is confronting major procedural hurdles in their search for answers following the public release of preliminary independent autopsy findings. Presenting the report at the 117th NAACP National Convention in Chicago, civil rights attorney Ben Crump revealed that board-certified forensic pathologist Dr. Roger A. Mitchell Jr. encountered severe forensic limitations because Mississippi state examiners had already removed, dissected, and retained Nolan’s internal organs—including his stomach and anterior neck structures—during the initial July 7 state post-mortem.
Without intact organs to inspect directly for gastric contents, water inhalation, or throat compression, Dr. Mitchell was unable to establish a definitive medical cause, officially classifying both the cause and manner of death as “Undetermined — Pending Investigation.”
The Stomach Content Void: Why Gastric Testing Was Obstructed
One of the most critical elements in establishing a timeline and evaluating physical conditions prior to death in forensic pathology is the direct examination of the stomach.
Dr. Mitchell highlighted in his formal report that the initial state autopsy had dissected and returned Nolan’s internal organs to the body cavity, making it impossible to independently inspect the stomach for gastric contents.
Digestion and Timeline: Analyzing digested food contents provides pathologists with an exact window estimating when a decedent last consumed a meal relative to their time of death.
Alcohol and Ingested Substances: Direct gastric testing helps verify alcohol or liquid intake levels prior to absorption into the bloodstream.
Inability to Test: Because independent doctors could not directly observe the stomach contents or the airway and lungs for water, Dr. Mitchell was blocked from verifying whether Nolan was conscious, breathing, or incapacitated when he entered the Mississippi Sound.
Retained Neck Structures and the “Incomplete” Post-Mortem
Adding to the forensic challenges, Dr. Mitchell revealed that Nolan’s body arrived in Washington, D.C., missing its anterior internal neck structures—including the trachea (windpipe), hyoid bone, and laryngeal cartilages.
While Dr. Mitchell noted in his report that state pathologists retaining neck structures during an initial examination is a “common forensic pathology practice” (often done to perform specialized radiological or microscopic testing for fractures), conducting a secondary examination without those organs creates an insurmountable obstacle.
“A posterior neck dissection performed without review of the anterior neck structures is incomplete,” Dr. Mitchell stated in his findings. “Therefore, this pathologist cannot rule out injury to the neck as a contributor or cause of death.”
Uncovering the 12-by-8 Inch Head Discoloration
Despite the limitations caused by organ removal and marked body decomposition, Dr. Mitchell performed additional multi-layered dissections of the scalp, face, back, and limbs that were not conducted during the state’s primary autopsy.
Through a posterior head dissection, Dr. Mitchell unmasked a 12-by-8-inch focal area of red discoloration in the deep soft tissue at the back of Nolan’s skull overlying the occipital bone. While there were no external scalp lacerations or skull fractures beneath the tissue, Dr. Mitchell flagged the significant finding for urgent further investigation to determine if it resulted from non-accidental blunt force impact prior to entering the water.
Crump Demands Full State Cooperation and Grand Jury Access
Flanked by Nolan’s weeping parents, Christine Wells-Wonsley and Elmore Wonsley, attorney Ben Crump called on the Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office and Jackson County Coroner Bruce Lynd Jr. to immediately release all retained tissue samples, high-resolution crime scene photos, organ dissection logs, and pending toxicology screens.
“This is only another part of the puzzle, and even though it tells us significant information, we still have more questions than we have answers at this time,” Crump declared. “Transparency leads to the truth.”
Under a binding “Courthouse Pact” signed with District Attorney Angel McIlrath, state prosecutors are required to present the complete case file—including Dr. Mitchell’s autopsy findings, MSDMR vessel satellite telemetry, bit-stream phone extractions, and pending state toxicology—to an independent grand jury.
Supported by an active $125,000 cash reward pool established by Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, Tyler Perry, and Terrell Owens, the Wells family remains steadfast, insisting that full state disclosure is the only way to resolve the lingering unknowns and deliver justice for Nolan Xavier Wells.
