NOLAN WELLS AND EVERY PARENT’S FEAR

Nolan Wells was 18 years old. My son Trevor turned 18 last week.

After hearing the recording from the boat, I couldn’t move on to either of the other episodes I had planned. The chaos in the background, Nolan’s friends screaming, and the realization that an ordinary day at the lake could become the worst day of a family’s life stayed with me.

In this episode, I talk about what it feels like to raise a child for 18 years, teach them everything you can, and then somehow find the courage to let them go. I also discuss the unanswered questions surrounding Nolan’s death, his family’s continued search for answers, and the people helping keep attention on his case.

Nolan was more than a headline. He was an athlete, a young man with plans, and somebody’s son.

My heart is with the Wells family as they continue fighting for the truth.

Rest in peace, Nolan Wells.

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DISCLAIMER

This episode contains commentary and discussion based on publicly available information. The investigation into Nolan Wells’s death is ongoing, and additional facts may emerge. Nothing discussed in this episode should be interpreted as an allegation of guilt or wrongdoing against any individual. All individuals are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

This content is intended for informational, educational, and commentary purposes only. It is not legal advice. The views expressed are those of Christi Chanelle and Sassy Politics.

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:22

Can you give me a description? How far is the water coming up there?

SPEAKER_02 0:32

It's coming up. I don't know. Like we're just we're going down there.

SPEAKER_03 0:37

All right, well let's get you going. Membership number or phone number listed on my counter.

SPEAKER_02 0:42

I don't know what the phone number is. It's either Jerry Hyderson. I think it's Jerry Hyderson. I know we have a membership like Garantie.

SPEAKER_03 0:52

I don't know how many times number anything. It's okay. Um I'll get you over to the captain. What's the principal number to reach you at? Is everybody on board? Do you need the United States? All right, well let's try to get it. You don't have to go to the telephone reception. Can you verify your coordinates one more time? Okay, my coordinates are thirty degrees by fourteen point six eighty four north.

SPEAKER_02 2:27

And then west by eighty-eight degrees by forty-six point seven nine.

SPEAKER_03 2:36

Oh right, it looks like you're on Horn Island, correct? Are you on Horn Island?

SPEAKER_00 2:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 2:41

Alright, is the boat thinking or you have it aground? We are thinking, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:47

I'm Christy Chanel. And this is Sassy Politics. As usual, I had a whole other episode planned. Actually, I had two. One was about AI, the other was about women's health care. Then I heard that recording that you just heard. The one from the boat. The friends screaming in the background, the chaos. While somebody's calmly talking about the boat, the membership, the getting help, I couldn't get it out of my head. I I scrapped both episodes. I just couldn't do it. And this is a sassy politics is about you. It's about doing episodes that connect with people, for people, about people. It's it's not about all the other things that um. Trevor turned 18. My son Trevor turned 18 last week. Nolan was 18. So that's where my mind went. Trevor was at the lake last weekend, and he's going tomorrow again. And this story reminded me how quickly an ordinary Saturday can become the worst day of someone's entire life. How do you not think about that as a parent? When your kids are little, your whole job is to keep them alive. Don't touch the stove, wear your seatbelt, call me when you get there. Don't get in the car if somebody's been drinking, call me. Wear your life jacket in the boat. I used to tell my kids the same thing over and over again. Make good choices, always make good choices. You say it so many times you don't even realize you're saying it anymore. Then graduation comes. You've done it. You've done everything you know how to do. You've raised them. You've taught them right from wrong. You've tried to give them the tools to make good decisions. And now you let them go. You have to. I still worry every single time Trevor leaves. If he's going to the lake, I'm thinking about the boat. I'm thinking about the jet skis. I'm wondering if somebody's driving too fast. I'm wondering if anybody's been drinking. I'm wondering who's the responsible one in the group. Every group has somebody who says, hey, hey, let's slow down. At least I hope they do. I remember being 18, of course. And I also remember feeling invincible. Nothing can harm me. Nothing bad was ever gonna happen to us. At least that's what we believed. Now I'm the parent. Everything looks different from this side. If Trevor isn't home when I go to bed, I make myself go to sleep. Every instinct tells me to stay awake until I hear that garage door open. And I can't live like that every night. It's just not possible. At some point, you just have to trust. You trust the values that you taught them. You trust the decisions that they'll make. You trust the people that they're surrounded by. And that's terrifying. Then I started reading everything I could about Nolan. He was home for the summer. His mom was getting ready to send him back to school. She was shopping. There's a video of her shopping. He played sports. He had plans. He had a future. He was somebody's son. And now his family is searching for answers. They hired an independent pathologist because they wanted another set of eyes on the evidence. That examination raised additional questions. The family's experts said tissue from Nolan's neck had been retained during the state autopsy, which they said limited what they were able to evaluate. Why? Why would tissue from the neck not be sent with the body? I don't know. I'm not an expert, but I have a problem with that. Like if it was your kid, you'd have a problem with that, right? Everything should be together. I'm not an expert though. This investigation is still ongoing. We don't have all the facts. Reverend Al Sharpton has stood beside the family. Attorney Ben Crumb is representing them. He's they're in good hands. Terrell Owens even attended the funeral. He's a pain in the ass when he was on the Cowboys, but I still love him. I still love him. He also helped increase the reward fund. There is now a $125,000 reward for information that helps investigators get closer to the truth. If you know something about what happened that night, please come forward. You could submit a tip through the FBI online or call 1-800-FBI. You can remain anonymous. You don't have to give them your name. Also, Nancy Grace has also started covering this case. If you've watched Nancy over the years, you know exactly what that means. Mm-hmm. She doesn't let stories like this go. She just grabs on and stays holding on until they find out the answers. She asks the hard questions, she digs, she keeps digging, and sometimes, no, all the time, it's exactly what you need. You need somebody like that on your team. Because this story's not over. More evidence will come out, more questions will be answered. I'll keep following it. We'll keep talking about it. Because I could have spent today talking about politics, and you know that. I could have talked about a hundred different headlines. But I wanted to talk about Nolan. Because that's what sassy politics has become for me. People over politics. The headlines are about us. They're about our families. They're about the kids we're raising. They're about the people we love. My heart is with the Nolan Wells family. I hope they get every answer they're looking for. And when the story moves forward, we'll be right here to follow it. Together. Thanks for being here. I'll see you next Tuesday.