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“I think you have to be very, very careful about speculation,” Dr. Priya Banerjee tells PEOPLE
NEED TO KNOW
- An independent autopsy found that Nolan Wells’ cause and manner of death could not be determined without further investigation, and speaking with PEOPLE, an outside expert says that’s not surprising
- Some of the biggest questions that remain unanswered, according to the board-certified forensic pathologist, include how Wells entered the water and what his toxicology report will show
- “I think we can’t jump ahead without this information,” says Dr. Priya Banerjee, “and I think you have to be very, very careful about speculation”
Following the release of Nolan Wells‘ independent autopsy results, a board-certified forensic pathologist is speaking out on the report’s findings.
Questions have swirled surrounding the 18-year-old football player’s final moments since shortly after his death.
The Mississippi teen traveled to Horn Island with friends for a large party on Independence Day, but didn’t return back with them. His body was found on the remote barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico two days later.
As the mystery continues — and the results of an official autopsy remain pending — family attorney Ben Crump presented the preliminary findings of Wells’ independent autopsy on Wednesday, July 22.
According to their autopsy, they could not rule out foul play, but did not find any fractures or deep tissue injuries on the teen’s body. Notably, Dr. Roger J. Mitchell said Wells’ manner and cause of death could not yet be determined without further investigation.
Dr. Priya Banerjee, who is unconnected with the high-profile case and reviewed the second autopsy for PEOPLE, says she is not “surprised” by the findings and agrees that more information is needed to make a determination.
Mitchell’s report noted several limitations to his findings — including not having access to Wells’ body in the immediate aftermath of his death, the lack of access to some parts of the teen’s body body, which remain with law enforcement, and a lack of answers about how Wells may have drowned and whether he was conscious at the time.
Banerjee’s agrees that one of the biggest factors remains how Wells “entered the water and then stayed in the water,” answers that can only come from investigation.
“The investigation is sort of the biggest factor for me,” she says.
“Why wasn’t he found? What was going on? What events were surrounding his entering the water and then what happened? Who saw him? Who didn’t? Who was there? And then why was there a delay in finding him,” she asks, naming just some unanswered questions.
In his findings, Mitchell said that Wells’ body was so decomposed by the time of his second autopsy that he might have missed signs of bruising or abrasions, although he did identify “red discoloration in the soft tissue of the back of [Wells’] head,” behind his ears, according to Crump.
Mitchell said the cause of this discoloration was unknown, but that he didn’t see any cuts or fractures nearby.
Banerjee tells PEOPLE the fact that Wells’ body was decomposed, while concerning, makes sense because of how long his body had been in the water.
As for the discoloration, the expert says, “I don’t know what to make of that.”
But, she adds that the fact that “there’s no evidence of injury, superficial or deep” on the rest of his body means it “doesn’t look like he [was] necessarily beaten or anything like that and then pushed into the water,” although she acknowledged that there’s still a possibility that he was.
At another point, she also pointed out that “there can be injuries related to just being in the water,” but that they don’t usually contribute to a cause of death.
Earlier this week, the president of United Cajun Navy, a nonprofit that assisted in the search for Wells, told Nancy Grace that the 18-year-old was found “face down” on the island — and not far from known rip currents.
Since his body was recovered from the water, Banerjee says that another lingering question is the matter of the toxicology report.
Mitchell did not conduct his own toxicology and the results of the official autopsy and toxicology have not been released.
Banerjee points out that the results of that first autopsy won’t be finalized until after the investigation is complete — and even when, it’s up to officials on whether they’ll release it publicly.
“I think we can’t jump ahead without this information. And I think you have to be very, very careful about speculation,” she says. “There’s a lot of people chiming in that are not involved, but they’re stirring the pot, if you will. It’s not data-driven.”
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Additionally, Mitchell was not able to examine Wells’ lungs or stomach for signs of drowning because investigators had already dissected Wells’ organs and removed his throat structures as part of their official investigation, which Mitchell said was standard.
Banerjee agrees, saying that it’s “common forensic practice” to keep certain samples for additional evaluation.
She went on to say that while the results of the second autopsy are already out, that’s not necessarily a sign that the “primary office is hiding things.”
“I think it’s standard practice for an Medical Examiner’s office not to release preliminary findings. A second autopsy is done by a private doctor and it’s hired by the family. So they’re held at a different legal precedent and different laws than a state office,” she adds.
Local law enforcement have said they didn’t initially find indications of foul play or wrongdoing but note that an official cause of death has yet to be determined. As their investigation continues, Wells’ family has publicly questioned key details surrounding his death.
An autopsy was conducted on July 7, but Jackson County Coroner Bruce Lynd previously told PEOPLE that it could be weeks before the results will be released and declined to share additional details.
Read the original article on People
