The attorneys for three of Nolan Wells’ friends are reportedly planning to sue Ben Crump. Edward Andrew Paltzik, who represents Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour, and is pushing back against claims that his clients deleted messages from Nolan’s cellphone.

RELATED: Ben Crump Reveals Miss. State Autopsy Shows No Signs Of Water In Nolan Wells’ Throat Or Lungs & Details Findings From His Cellphone 

Here’s Why The Attorneys For Nolan Wells’ Friends Plan To Sue Ben Crump

NewsNation reports that Attorney Edward Andrew Paltzik is shutting down allegations involving his clients, Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo, and Morgan Seymour. Paltzik maintains that none of the three men deleted messages from Nolan Wells’ phone. Paltzik addressed the allegations further while speaking with TMZ, saying, “Warren, Jax and Morgan did not erase anything and never had access to his phone.” “If anything was erased, they didn’t do it.”

Tyler Cox, another attorney representing Hudson, Pitalo and Seymour, said a woman in the group collected the phones they left on the boat, including Nolan’s, and placed them inside a truck.

“It stayed there until Christine’s friend came over to get Nolan’s phone,” Cox said, referring to Wells’ mother. “The same girl in the group retrieved the phone from the truck and gave it to Christine’s friend around 1:30 a.m.,” Cox explained.

Now, both attorneys say they plan to sue Ben Crump for defamation. The potential lawsuit follows forensic examiner Andrew Garret’s findings that someone deleted messages from Wells’ phone. He said the deletions occurred after Wells last used the device on July 4 and before his family got it back.

Ben Crump Reveals What Was Found On Nolan Wells’ Cellphone

Ben Crump recently joined the legal team representing Nolan Wells’ family for a press conference to share new details from the findings on his cellphone. According to Crump, Nolan sent his last text to his aunt on the evening of July 3. The message read, “Thank you.” 

Forensics expert Andrew Garret also broke down the data recovered from Nolan’s phone. Garret said investigators retrieved more than 300 Snapchat messages between Nolan and his friends. He added that analyzing the data took more than 30 hours. The legal team also showed a video tracking Nolan’s phone movements on July 4, along with his Snapchat activity. The data appeared to show that his phone remained on the boat throughout the day before traveling back to land with the group of teens. But Garret said the Snapchat data raised another question. According to his findings, someone deleted Snapchat data from Nolan’s phone before his family got the device back.

Wells’ Autopsy Findings Raise More Questions About His Death

Ben Crump also turned his attention to Mississippi’s official autopsy findings for Nolan Wells. According to the report, Nolan suffered “two dark red-purple” lacerations to the back of his head before his death. The findings also indicated that examiners did not detect water in his throat or lungs. Those details have raised questions about the circumstances surrounding Nolan’s death, particularly after a recent grand jury determined that he died from an accidental drowning.

RELATED: What Happened To Nolan Wells? Here Are 5 Takeaways From The Grand Jury’s Report Explaining Lack Of Charges In Teen’s Death

Although it’s been about four months since one of the most influential fantasy series wrapped up its remarkable run, it still dominates streaming charts. Premiering on August 9, 2014, the series shares a heartfelt story of two lovers separated by circumstances beyond their control, only to be reunited by an extraordinary twist of fate.

After eight seasons and 101 episodes, Outlander concluded its twelve-year, eight-season run on May 15, 2026, closing one of television’s finest fantasy romances. No season has dropped below an 86% critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and the final season has received the highest critical praise, holding a perfect 100% Tomatometer score from 46 reviews. Season 8, with ten episodes, is based on the final books of Diana Gabaldon‘s bestselling series. It primarily adapts the ninth book, Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, and parts of the upcoming tenth novel, A Blessing for a Warrior Going Out.

Since its series finale, Starz’ adaptation of Gabaldon’s novels has continued to receive positive attention. Outlander consistently maintains strong rankings on U.S. streaming charts, remaining among the five most-watched titles on Starz last week. It also briefly topped Vudu’s charts and continues to surge internationally on MGM in the U.K., fluctuating between second and third place, while also ranking on the Apple TV store in Australia, Canada, and Germany.

‘Outlander’ Is One of the Best Fantasy Sagas Ever

Led by Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan, Outlander sees Balfe as Claire Randall, a wartime nurse transported from 1945 to 1743 Scotland, where she meets Highland warrior Jamie Fraser (Heughan), with whom she falls in love and eventually marries. The historical drama’s lasting appeal comes from treating the central romance seriously, even while revolutions, betrayals, family secrets, and supernatural rules repeatedly threaten the Frasers’ hard-won stability.

The franchise also continues beyond Jamie and Claire, giving viewers another route into its complicated family history without undoing the flagship series’ carefully constructed ending. Outlander: Blood of My Blood, the magnetic spin-off that partly fuels renewed interest in Outlander, returned for Season 2 on September 18, 2026, following Jamie and Claire’s parents across separate periods.

Outlander streams on Starz, while the first seven seasons are available on Netflix U.S. Stay tuned to Collider for more streaming updates.

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Release Date

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2014 – 2026-00-00

Showrunner

Matthew B. Roberts

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Directors

John Dahl, Metin Hüseyin, Jamie Payne, Stephen Woolfenden, Anna Foerster, Brendan Maher, Brian Kelly, David Moore, Jennifer Getzinger, Mike Barker, Philip John, Joss Agnew, Lisa Clarke, Jan Matthys, Ben Bolt, Charlotte Brändström, Christiana Ebohon-Green, Denise Di Novi, Douglas Mackinnon, Julian Holmes, Norma Bailey, Richard Clark, Justin Molotnikov, Stewart Svaasand

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Writers

Toni Graphia, Matthew B. Roberts, Ronald D. Moore, Luke Schelhaas, Anne Kenney, Karen Campbell, Shannon Goss, Joy Blake, Richard Kahan, Jennifer Yale, Megan Ferrell Burke, Ira Steven Behr, Diana Gabaldon

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  Jack Tarlton

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  Kenny Lindsay

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  John Sessions

  Arthur Duncan

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It was supposed to be a fun getaway when Nolan Wells went on a Fourth of July 2026 trip with his friends to Mississippi’s Horn Island. However, tragedy took place when the 18-year-old was reported missing and his body was found two days later.

While authorities initially said that they believe Wells accidentally drowned, his parents aren’t convinced and they launched their own investigation separate from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department in order to learn what really happened.

More than two months after his death, the case took a shocking turn when authorities opted to not press criminal charges in Wells’ death.

Everything to know about what happened to Wells, below.

Nolan Wells Went Missing During a Boat Trip With Friends

Wells went missing during a boat ride with friends to Horn Island on July 4, 2026. The group took the trip as a “last hurrah” before Wells planned to return to football camp at Southwest Mississippi Community College.

One of his friends on the boat reported Wells missing to the U.S. Coast Guard around 11 p.m. Soon after, Wells’ mother filed a missing persons report with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department after midnight.

Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter told the Associated Press that Wells’ friends claimed that he chose to stay on Horn Island when the rest of the group left.

“From the people we’ve talked to, it sounds like he chose to stay on the island with the assumption that he was going to ride back to the mainland with someone else,” Ledbetter said.

Nolan Wells’ Body Was Found 2 Days After He Was Reported Missing

Wells’ body was discovered in the water on the northwest end of Horn Island on July 6, 2026.

Jackson County Coroner Bruce Lynd said that authorities identified that the body was Wells through dental records, though he did not reveal a potential cause of death.

Ledbetter told ABC News that investigators did not believe there was foul play and that they found no evidence to indicate “that a crime has occurred.”

United Cajun Navy vice president and spokesperson Brian Trascher told People that photos showed “the boys drinking beer and stuff.” However, Wells’ “blood alcohol level was not at an intoxicated level.”

Following his disappearance, a video went viral that allegedly included audio of the teen in a verbal argument with a friend. Ledbetter told the Sun Herald that they’re still in the process of authenticating the content of the video.

“A lot of people are calling here to report what they saw or read on social media, and it’s not firsthand knowledge,” he told the outlet. “What we have to go on in an investigation is original documentation and firsthand knowledge.”

Ledbetter added, “One barrier we have is social media. We are in the process of documenting, verifying, and corroborating all that information.”

Tracestin Shepherd, one of the boys on the boat, insisted that the group did nothing wrong while appearing on the July 13, 2026, episode of Good Morning America.

“We did no wrong here and we don’t understand how we’re getting so much hate behind us,” he said. “We all cared and loved Nolan, and nobody wanted to see Nolan die. Nobody wanted to see his life be taken so short.”

Nolan Wells’ Family Launched an Independent Investigation Into His Death

After police said they believe his death was an accident, Wells’ family launched an investigation into his death.

Wells’ parents, Christine Wonsley and Elmore Wonsley, and their attorney, Ben Crump, appeared on the July 10, 2026, episode of GMA to explain that they were in the process of doing an independent autopsy in Washington, D.C.

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Related: Inside Kentucky Football Player Nic Smith’s Final Days Before Suicide

University of Kentucky football player Nic Smith exhibited worrying behavior in the days before his death by suicide at age 20. A Fayette County Coroner’s Office report exclusively obtained by Us Weekly on Monday, June 15, determined that the defensive lineman from Loganville, Georgia — who redshirted his first season — took his own life […]

Crump also said they were seeking forensic analysis of the teen’s phone after Christine claimed that the device’s location history differed from what his friends saw on Snapchat. She also said that there were no posts from his two Snapchat accounts on the day he went missing, which was uncommon for her son.

“It isn’t even 24 hours, which is how long videos and pictures stay in Snapchat,” Christine told GMA of when she got his phone. “I’ve seen Nolan whenever he snaps. When he goes and he’s having fun, he does videos. There was absolutely nothing.”

Both Christine and Elmore also admitted they couldn’t “fathom” Wells leaving the group.

“We always taught him that if you go with a group, you stay with a group,” Elmore said. “If you go with five, you come back with five. Do not separate from the group. Because I always said, ‘Safety is in numbers.’ So he knew to stay with this group, so why would he split from the group? I don’t know.”

A Mississippi Grand Jury Declined to Press Criminal Charges in Nolan Wells’ Death

A Mississippi grand jury announced on September 21, 2026, that they declined to press any criminal charges following Wells’ death.

“The Grand Jury finds no credible evidence to support the public allegations that any persons who rode to or from Horn Island on July 4, 2026, on the Triton, the Palm Beach, or the Tideline engaged in any criminal conduct related to the death of Mr. Wells,” a grand jury report said, per CBS News. “The allegations against the occupants of the Triton, the Palm Beach, and the Tideline [boats that traveled to the island] are not based in truth, and are solely the result of public clamor and private malice.”

The report went on to say that the “position of, condition of, time of discovery, and location of Mr. Wells’ body is consistent with drowning.”

“Both the State of Mississippi Chief Medical Examiner and [doctor’s name redacted] opined that the cause and manner of Mr. Wells’ death is undetermined and that drowning is a diagnosis of ⁠exclusion,” the report said, according to Reuters.

Following the ruling, Wells’ family called for the investigation to remain open due to findings in his autopsy report.

Nolan Wells Autopsy Results Came Back Undetermined

Wells’ official autopsy by the Mississippi state medical examiner was released in September 2026, and the report stated that his cause and manner of death were undetermined.

Meanwhile, the independent autopsy that was completed at his parents’ request listed Wells’ cause and manner of death as undetermined pending further investigation. The report added that there were “acute blunt force injuries to the head and body prior to his death.”

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“We are still trying to determine who or what caused the blunt force trauma to the back of Nolan Wells’ head,” Crump said at a news conference on September 24, 2026, per People.

Another one of the family’s attorneys, Liza Park, told reporters that they obtained the state’s official autopsy, which listed two dark red-purple subcutaneous scalp contusions — or bruises — that were found at the back of Wells’ head.

“What it also says is that in the neck, the larynx and hyoid bone are without hemorrhages or fractures,” Park said of the report. “The anterior cervical spine is unremarkable. Lungs, no fluid or debris is within the airways. [Gastrointestinal] tract, unremarkable. The stomach is empty.”

Carrot Top’s hospitalization has taken another troubling turn as new details emerge about the moments leading up to the medical emergency at his Las Vegas home. The comedian, whose real name is Scott Thompson, was reportedly found unconscious but breathing near his backyard pool after his manager became concerned about comments he made during a phone call. The latest account also reveals that Thompson allegedly sent his manager a chilling one-word message shortly before authorities arrived.

Police Report Reveals New Details About Carrot Top’s Hospitalization

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According to a police report obtained by TMZ, officers were dispatched to the entertainer’s Las Vegas home on September 18 following a call involving a suicidal man. The report offers new details about the circumstances leading to Carrot Top’s hospitalization while a separate legal battle involving an alleged explicit recording continues to unfold.

The claims of sexual misconduct referenced in the police report have not been proven, and the report does not establish the truth of those allegations.

Carrot Top Was Found Unconscious Near His Pool

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Medical dispatch reportedly contacted police at approximately 4:21 p.m. on September 18 about an emergency at Carrot Top’s Las Vegas residence. When officers arrived, they allegedly discovered the comedian, whose legal name is Scott Thompson, unconscious in the backyard near his swimming pool. Although he was not responsive, the report stated that he was still breathing.

Emergency personnel transported Thompson to a hospital, where TMZ reported that he has remained under medical care since the incident. The police report did not include a public medical diagnosis or provide further information about his current treatment. Earlier reports indicated that the performer was recovering in the hospital and receiving support from those closest to him.

His Manager Reportedly Received A Troubling Final Text

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According to the report, Thompson’s manager told investigators that he had spoken to the comedian shortly before the emergency. The manager reportedly informed Thompson about an article containing claims that the performer had behaved in a sexually inappropriate manner. The report stated that Thompson reacted by saying that his show was going to be over. He also allegedly expressed concern about a third party and her daughter, saying that he hoped they would be “okay without him.”

After the call ended, Thompson reportedly sent his manager a one-word text message: “Done.” The manager then attempted to contact Thompson but could not reach him. Concerned by the statements and the text message, he requested that authorities conduct an emergency response at the comedian’s home.

TMZ reported that Thompson was informed about the impending allegations approximately one hour before the apparent suicide attempt.

A Separate Legal Fight Was Already Unfolding

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The emergency occurred amid a contentious legal dispute between Thompson and his former friend Brian Evans. The two have reportedly been battling in court over an alleged sexually explicit recording involving Thompson. Evans has denied wrongdoing and disputed claims that he attempted to improperly pressure the comedian for money.

Page Six previously obtained a September 3 report from the Lake Mary Police Department documenting an allegation made by Thompson’s attorney, Ronnie Bitman. According to that report, Bitman told police that Evans claimed to possess a USB containing “sensitive contents of an explicit video about the client.”

Bitman reportedly alleged that Evans demanded $500,000 and threatened to provide the material to tabloids if Thompson did not pay. The complaint was categorized as “information only, extortion of client.” However, the report did not result in a criminal finding against Evans.

Thompson’s Attorneys Made Similar Claims In Court

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Thompson’s legal team raised related allegations in a September 3 filing in Broward County, Florida. His attorneys claimed that Evans demanded “significant sums” while indicating that the alleged recording could be added to a public court filing. Thompson’s team argued that placing the material on a public docket could make it accessible to reporters and other members of the public.

Documents previously reported by Page Six included a request for $500,000 “in immediately available funds, in exchange for resolution of all claims against” Thompson. Evans has denied threatening to release a recording in return for money. He previously maintained that the disputed communication concerned resolving his legal claims and was not an attempt to exchange his silence for payment.

No Criminal Finding Has Been Made Against Brian Evans

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Thompson was not present when his attorney contacted the Lake Mary Police Department, and he reportedly lived outside the department’s jurisdiction. The responding officer advised Bitman that Thompson would need to contact the law enforcement agency responsible for the area where he resides. The Lake Mary report did not lead to charges or any criminal finding against Evans.

The Broward County dispute also remains a civil matter, and the allegations made by Thompson’s attorneys have not been established as fact by a court.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

By Robert Scucci
| Published 16 seconds ago

There are movies that take a little while to show you what they’re all about, and then there’s 1989’s Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death, a movie whose title tells you almost everything you need to know before you even press play.

Almost.

Because the title doesn’t tell you that Bill Maher is here.

Long before spending his Friday nights complaining about whatever people younger than him are doing, Maher was wandering through the California wilderness as a macho idiot named Jim in a movie about feminist cannibals threatening the United States avocado supply. I genuinely wish younger Bill Maher did more crap like this before becoming an insufferable gasbag, because seeing him get dropped into something this profoundly stupid is way more entertaining than it has any right to be.

And I mean “profoundly stupid” with nothing but affection.

Welcome To The Avocado Jungle

In Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death, the federal government has a serious problem on its hands because the Piranha Women, a tribe of cannibals living in the mysterious Avocado Jungle, keep killing the men sent in to harvest the nation’s avocado supply. Their solution is to recruit feminist studies professor Dr. Margo Hunt (Shannon Tweed), who is tasked with convincing the Piranha Women to abandon their home and relocate to a reservation condo in Malibu. Margo brings along her student Bunny (Karen Mistal), while Jim (Bill Maher), a swaggering chauvinist who couldn’t be less qualified for this particular assignment, serves as their guide.

Once inside the jungle, Margo discovers that her former colleague Dr. Kurtz (Adrienne Barbeau) has become the Piranha Women’s leader, while Bunny becomes increasingly fascinated with their way of life. There’s also a rival tribe known as the Barracuda Women, whose ideological disagreement with the Piranhas comes down to whether sacrificed men taste better with guacamole or clam dip. Jim, meanwhile, spends a considerable amount of time learning why being aggressively sexist is a poor survival strategy when you’re surrounded by women who eat men.

Cannibalism Is A Spectrum

If you’re worried that Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death has something important to say about gender politics, relax.

The entire movie is basically one extended argument between exaggerated versions of men and women, with everybody so completely ridiculous that taking sides feels beside the point. Margo teaches feminist studies at Spritzer College. The submissive men living peacefully in the jungle are called the Donnahews. Dr. Kurtz wrote a book called Smart Women, Stupid Insensitive Men. The government’s idea of assimilating the Piranha Women involves introducing them to aerobics and Cosmopolitan magazine.

This movie was made in 1989 and absolutely refuses to let you forget that fact.

The jokes aren’t subtle, and plenty of them land with the sophistication of somebody throwing a folding chair across the room. But Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death moves quickly enough that another completely ridiculous idea is usually waiting right behind the one that didn’t work. Shannon Tweed plays Margo remarkably straight, while Bill Maher is legitimately funny as a guy whose personality makes him the human equivalent of a gas station boner pill.

Then there’s Adrienne Barbeau, who seems perfectly comfortable ruling over a tribe of cannibals from a throne in the middle of the California wilderness, as she should be.

Guacamole Or Clam Dip?

The thing I appreciate most about Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death is that nobody involved seems embarrassed by it.

This is a movie where feminist scholars sword fight over control of a cannibal tribe while the United States government worries about avocado production. Bunny decides joining the Piranha Women sounds like a pretty good idea before learning that her initiation ceremony involves sacrificing Jim. Somewhere in the middle of all this, the movie decides the big ideological divide separating two tribes of cannibal women is how they prefer to eat their men.

Writer and director J.F. Lawton would go on to write Pretty Woman and Under Siege, which makes this movie even more fascinating as an artifact, like when you remember the kind of films Peter Jackson directed before working on the Lord of the Rings films. Before writing one of the biggest romantic comedies of the 1990s, this man made a movie where Adrienne Barbeau rules the Avocado Jungle and Bill Maher runs around acting like exactly the kind of guy the women living there would want to eat.

Everybody has to start somewhere.

We Used To Make Movies

I don’t know if I’d call Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death a good movie in any traditional sense, but I also don’t particularly care.

It’s the kind of low-budget nonsense I’m always hoping to find when I’m scrolling through Tubi late at night. The entire production has the energy of people realizing nobody was going to stop them, so they kept pushing forward until they had something resembling a finished movie.

Nobody needed an elaborate mythology explaining the Avocado Jungle or a serious explanation for why there are rival cannibal tribes living somewhere outside San Bernardino. Somebody came up with the phrase Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death, figured out how much money they had, and made the damn movie. Sometimes that’s enough.

As of this writing, you can stream Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death for free on Tubi. Don’t pay for this one, and you’ll definitely feel like you got your money’s worth.

CANNIBAL WOMEN IN THE AVOCADO JUNGLE OF DEATH SCORE