3 of Nolan Wells' friends sue NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Owens for defamation

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Three friends of Nolan Wells , a Black college student who went missing from a Mississippi island during a Fourth of July celebration and was later found dead, are suing NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Owens for defamation.

Lawyers for the friends said they intend to file several more defamation claims this week against content creators and have previously indicated their intent to sue the Rev. Al Sharpton and “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin for comments they made while discussing Wells' death.

The fathers of the three friends, who are under 21 and considered minors under Mississippi law, filed the federal lawsuit Monday on their behalf.

The lawsuit alleges Owens defamed the three friends after posting on X: “ARREST THEM IMMEDIATELY!!” Owens' post also linked to an Instagram video, which theorized the three friends killed Wells and tampered with his phone, according to the lawsuit. The post was made days after a Mississippi grand jury declined to recommend charges in Wells’ death.

Owens has 1.2 million followers on X and had previously pledged $25,000 to a reward fund for information leading to an arrest and conviction in Wells' death.

“Not only is he defaming them, he’s basically saying to the mob, get your pitchforks, get your torches,” said Edward Paltzik, a defamation and media attorney representing the three friends.

The Associated Press attempted to contact Owens through social media and SMAC Entertainment, which, according to its website, manages Owens, but did not immediately receive a response.

The three were part of a group of 30 friends, including Wells, who rode to Horn Island on three boats on the Fourth of July. Wells' friends said Wells did not return to the mainland with them, choosing instead to stay behind to talk with a girl, a claim his family has disputed. His body was found two days later off the island's coast.

Both state and independent autopsies have not determined Wells' cause of death, though the grand jury found his death was “consistent with drowning.” Wells' family and their lawyers disputed the grand jury's findings, pointing to unexplained bruising on the back of his head and noting that his airways and stomach were devoid of water.

Images showing Wells with white friends the day he went missing fueled online speculation that racial dynamics played a role in his death.

Two of the three friends who are suing Owens were singled out online in part because they appear in a photo with Wells and one other friend on a boat, which was circulated on social media after his disappearance. The third called Wells’ mother and the U.S. Coast Guard to report Wells missing.