密西西比州18岁大学新生诺兰·韦尔斯在7月一次船游后身亡，引发广泛关注。[1]韦尔斯是黑人，同行的三名友人为白人。[1]目前至少两人因向州内公职人员发出威胁而被刑事指控。[1]
俄亥俄州的米歇尔·弗朗辛·爱德华兹因跨州传输威胁通讯罪被控，最高可判5年监禁、罚款25万美元及3年监督释放。[1]据指控，爱德华兹在7月期间约21次拨打乔治县书记官办公室被阻号码电话，留下"不要出去""时间在流逝""去死"等威胁内容，[1]还向杰克逊县警长办公室拨打电话称"外面有炸弹，别出来"。[1]加州的约瑟夫·阿尔弗雷多·委斯克斯·杜马塞因向法官阿什丽·科尔发送Facebook威胁信息而被控同罪，信息包含"包裹将炸掉你们""血到处都是""从船上很难清干净"等内容。[1]
关于韦尔斯的死因，官方验尸由密西西比州法医办公室完成，结果先送交大陪审团，尚未公布。[1]独立验尸由篮球运动员科林·卡佩尼克资助，显示韦尔斯颈部组织缺失和后脑勺有不明"红色变色"。[1]为韦尔斯友人筹款用于诉讼防御的在线募捐已收集约94,000美元。[1]民权领袖阿尔·沙普顿在由电影制片人泰勒·派瑞资助的韦尔斯葬礼上呼吁寻求答案。[1]
An 18-year-old University of Mississippi freshman named Nolan Wells died following a boat outing on Horn Island in July, an incident that has drawn widespread attention amid questions about racial dynamics—Wells was Black while his three companions were white [1]. At least two people have now been criminally charged with transmitting threatening communications across state lines to Mississippi officials in connection with the case [1].
Michelle Francine Edwards of Ohio faces one count of interstate transmission of threatening communications, carrying a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release [1]. Prosecutors allege that Edwards made approximately 21 blocked calls to the George County Clerk's office during July, making statements including "don't go outside," "time is running out," and "go die" [1]. She also reportedly called the Jackson County Sheriff's Office claiming "there's a bomb outside, don't come out" [1]. Joseph Alfredo Vasquez Dumarce of California faces the same charge for sending threatening messages to Judge Ashlee Cole via Facebook, containing language such as "the package will blow you up," "blood is everywhere," and "it's hard to clean off a boat" [1].
The official cause of Wells's death remains undisclosed, having been referred to a grand jury by the Mississippi State Medical Examiner's office [1]. An independent autopsy funded by Colin Kaepernick revealed missing tissue in Wells's neck and an unexplained red discoloration on the back of his head [1]. Civil rights leader Al Sharpton called for answers at Wells's funeral, which was funded by filmmaker Tyler Perry [1]. A crowdfunding campaign to support Wells's friends' legal defense has raised approximately $94,000 [1].