Friends of Nolan Wells Sue Terrell Owens in Federal Court Over Defamation After Ex-NFL Star Urged Arrests Following Mississippi Island Death Investigation
JACKSON, MS — Three friends of Nolan Wells have filed a federal defamation lawsuit against former NFL star Terrell Owens after he posted online that they should be arrested. The suit says Owens spread a false and damaging account about Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour in the weeks after Wells disappeared during a Fourth of July outing on Horn Island and was later found dead.
The plaintiffs’ fathers filed the case Monday on their sons’ behalf. Under Mississippi law, all three are younger than 21 and are considered minors. Their complaint says Owens wrongly portrayed them as criminals and as people involved in a cover-up, even though a grand jury later declined to recommend charges in the death investigation.
How the Horn Island trip ended in a death investigation
Hudson, Pitalo and Seymour were part of a larger group of friends who traveled by boat with 18-year-old Wells to Horn Island on July 4. The three said Wells did not return to the mainland with the group because he was talking to a girl, an explanation that Wells’ family has disputed.
Wells’ body was found two days later off the island’s coast. The case quickly drew attention because of the circumstances of his disappearance and because Wells was Black while many of the friends photographed with him online were white. Images from before his disappearance spread widely, and some social media users began treating the case through a racial lens and blaming his companions.
Owens’ post and the accusation behind it
According to the lawsuit, Owens joined that online scrutiny in a Sept. 26 post on X that is still visible. The post linked to an Instagram reel by content creator Trent Out Loud, which accused the three young men of deleting Snapchat messages from Wells’ phone after his death and suggested they may have been involved in killing him.
The plaintiffs say Owens amplified a false narrative when he wrote, “ARREST THEM IMMEDIATELY!!” Their complaint argues that the post placed them before Owens’ audience as murderers and participants in a murder cover-up who had avoided justice.
SMAC Entertainment, which lists Owens as a client, also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Forensic review of Wells’ phone became central to the dispute
The lawsuit points to a digital forensic review commissioned by attorney Benjamin Crump and performed by expert Andrew Garrett. Garrett concluded that no one accessed Wells’ phone between 2:18 p.m. on July 4, when Wells last unlocked it, and 3:14 a.m. on July 5, when his parents gained access to the device.
Garrett also explained that Snapchat messages can disappear from a recipient’s phone if the sender deletes them remotely. That finding undercuts the accusation circulating online that the three friends had erased evidence after Wells died. The complaint says there was no evidence to support arrests and no probable cause to believe the plaintiffs had committed a crime.
Grand jury declined charges but autopsies left questions
On Sept. 22, a grand jury said Wells’ death was consistent with drowning and did not recommend charges against anyone. The panel also noted bruising on the back of Wells’ head in the state autopsy report, which has not been made public, and in an independent autopsy commissioned by the family.
The family’s pathologist, Roger A. Mitchell Jr., classified the death as undetermined. He said he could not rule out non-accidental factors because Wells did not appear too intoxicated to swim and had apparent acute blunt force injuries to the head and body before his death. The conflicting medical findings kept the case in public view even after the grand jury acted.
Wells family presses for an FBI inquiry
The lawsuit comes as Wells’ family is pushing for federal involvement. On Monday, the family called for an FBI investigation after the grand jury decision, saying Wells was found on federal land and that they want the case examined more closely.
“Our son was found on federal land and we are asking the FBI to step in and do a full investigation,” said Elmore Wonsley, Wells’ father. The family’s request reflects its belief that unanswered questions remain about how Wells died and whether outside agencies should review what happened on the island.
