Al Sharpton called on Democrats to investigate the death of 18-year-old Nolan Wells if they take control of the House.
Wells died after a July 4 boat trip to Horn Island, Mississippi, with three white teenagers. Sharpton, speaking alongside civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Wells’ family at a National Association of Black Journalists convention panel in Atlanta, said questions surrounding what happened and Mississippi’s racial history warrant further scrutiny.
“I don’t know what happened, but I got your history in Mississippi. And the history tells me: Black boy go out with three white kids, three white kids come back. There’s a blurred story on what happened,” Sharpton said.
“Some about this don’t make sense, given your history. And I’m going to stay on this until we find out what happened. It may be nothing, but we’re not going to leave that up to chance with people that are distorted. We’re going to stay on this case.”
Sharpton then turned to the November elections, arguing that a Democrat-controlled House could investigate the case if authorities fail to provide satisfactory answers.
“If we have a change in January and there is a Democratic House, I said that if Hakeem becomes the speaker, he needs to have the chair of Judiciary subpoena them to the Judiciary Department,” Sharpton continued.
Questions about Wells’ death have fueled widespread attention and demands for more information from authorities. Sharpton, actor and producer Tyler Perry, and former NFL player Terrell Owens have put up a combined $125,000 reward for information that could help authorities identify and convict anyone responsible for Wells’ death.
Sharpton also criticized local law enforcement for publicly suggesting that no crime had occurred.
“We can’t have someone in law enforcement saying there was no foul play before there was an investigation,” Sharpton said.
