A highly anticipated state autopsy report on the death of Mississippi teenager Nolan Wells has been completed, but officials won't say when the public will learn the results.
Bailey C. Martin, a spokesperson for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, told USA TODAY that the state medical examiner completed the initial autopsy on Wells on July 7 at 8:30 a.m. Martin confirmed on July 31 that the autopsy report had also been completed, but did not respond to questions about when the report would be released publicly.
Wells' family has demanded transparency and publicly criticized the investigation, saying they fear his death will be written off as an accidental drowning despite their concerns. The family has launched their own independent investigation and commissioned
an independent autopsy.
Angel Myers McIlrath, district attorney for Mississippi's 19th Circuit Court District, has previously said key evidence, like the state's autopsy report, will remain under wraps until the case is presented to a grand jury. McIlrath said prosecutors and other investigating agencies are ethically prohibited from sharing information or making statements that could harm the fairness of legal process by influencing witnesses or prejudicing the grand jury.
Wells, an 18-year-old football player at Southwest Mississippi Community College, vanished after a July 4 boat trip to Horn Island. His body was recovered on July 6.
The results of the second autopsy have been released by family attorney Ben Crump, but the preliminary findings left many questions unanswered as the public awaits the results of the state autopsy.
How long do autopsies take?
Though autopsies take just hours to complete, it can be weeks before the reports detailing their findings are released.
Standard autopsies can take two hours or longer in complicated cases or traumatic deaths, according to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. Preliminary reports are issued to the county medical examiner investigator within a few days but "the availability of final reports varies significantly based on staffing levels, case load, and case complexity," the department has said.
The Associated Press reported in 2022 that Mississippi was facing the worst backlog of autopsy reports in the nation, with reports dating as far back as 2011 still pending. Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell has said the state significantly reduced that backlog and implemented a policy requiring that all reports be completed within 90 days.
Martin told USA TODAY that "there is no autopsy backlog," but did not respond to additional questions about the state's autopsy caseload.
What the second autopsy of Nolan Wells found
Wells' second autopsy was performed on July 10 by forensic pathologist Dr. Roger Mitchell. The autopsy, paid for by former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, could not determine the cause or manner of Wells' death for several reasons.
Mitchell said he could not examine several parts of Wells' neck because they weren't shipped with his body. He said some of Wells' remains may have been kept by the pathologist who performed his initial autopsy, which is common practice. Mitchell also couldn't examine Wells' lungs for water or the contents of his stomach because they were "rightfully removed and dissected" as part of the first autopsy.
Mitchell said several other key pieces of information were needed to make a determination about Wells' cause of death: the toxicology report and more information about how Wells entered the water. One other significant finding that Mitchell said merits further investigation is an area of red discoloration on tissue at the back of Wells' head by the occipital bone.
"It is important to reiterate that this finding could not have been observed in the first autopsy because the posterior head and neck dissections were not performed," Mitchell wrote.
Crump said at a news conference July 30 that the legal team is working to get Mitchell access to the parts of Wells' throat he was unable to examine, as well as "photographs and observations made" when Wells was found.
Contributing: Bonnie Bolden, Mississippi Clarion Ledger
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nolan Wells state autopsy results are done, officials say
