Three people have been charged with threatening a judge, a witness and local officials connected to the investigation into the death of Nolan Xavier Wells, an 18-year-old found dead after a July Fourth boat trip with friends to an island off Mississippi's Gulf Coast. None of the three appear to know Wells, his family or the boating group, or be part of the investigation.
The threats came amid rampant speculation and scrutiny of the investigation, deepened in part by uncertainty surrounding Wells' final hours, distrust of law enforcement and the state's long history of racist violence. Authorities have not made any arrests or named any suspects, and an independent autopsy commissioned by Wells' family found his cause of death 'undetermined' pending further investigation.
Wells, who was Black, traveled to the uninhabited island with a group of friends from high school, all of whom were white. He did not return with his friends to the mainland that evening; his body was found two days later off the island's coast. Attempts to reach the three defendants for comment were unsuccessful, and it is unclear whether they have attorneys.
What the Right Is Saying
Federal prosecutors filed charges against all three defendants in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi between July 14 and July 31, reflecting a determination to protect judges, witnesses and public offices from intimidation during an active investigation.
Judge Ashlee Cole, who received one of the threats, wrote on Facebook that her son 'cooperated fully' with the sheriff's investigation and that no one in her family is trying to impede law enforcement. She said she deactivated her account and fears for the safety of her children after posting a screenshot of the threatening message.
What the Left Is Saying
Community advocates and civil rights groups have pressed for answers in Wells' death while expressing distrust of law enforcement, citing Mississippi's history of racist violence. On July 10, a news conference at National Action Network headquarters in New York featured people holding photos of Wells as community members demanded transparency in the investigation.
Family attorney Russell Latino said one defendant, Edward James Porter of Illinois, threatened two members of the family of Bart Edminston Jr., a 21-year-old who knew Wells and provided aid to the boat used on July Fourth. Latino said one of those family members is a witness in the investigation into Wells' death — threats that have heightened concern for the safety of people connected to the case.
What the Numbers Show
The three defendants were charged from three states — Illinois, Ohio and California. Porter was charged July 31 with allegedly threatening to kill a witness and their family; Michelle Francine Edwards of Ohio faces charges over alleged bomb threats at the George County Chancery Clerk's Office and Jackson County Sheriff's Office on July 23, having called the clerk's office 21 times and said 'the clock is ticking'; Joseph Alfredo Vasquez Dumarce of California was charged July 14 for allegedly sending a Facebook message threatening that a bomb would be mailed to Judge Cole's office.
Wells' body was found two days after he failed to return from the island. The independent autopsy commissioned by his family listed cause of death as 'undetermined,' and no arrests or named suspects have been announced in his death.
The Bottom Line
The charges illustrate how an unresolved investigation under intense public scrutiny can draw threats from strangers with no connection to the case. With no arrests made in Wells' death and the autopsy pending further investigation, authorities face pressure both to protect those involved in the probe and to provide answers to a community demanding them.