Three Charged in Threats Linked to Nolan Wells Death Probe

Three people have been charged in federal court with threatening a judge, a witness and local officials tied to the investigation into the death of Nolan Xavier Wells, an 18-year-old who died after a July Fourth boat trip off Mississippi's Gulf Coast. Edward James Porter of Illinois allegedly called and threatened to kill a witness and their family; Michelle Francine Edwards of Ohio is accused of bomb threats at the George County Chancery Clerk’s Office and Jackson County Sheriff’s Office; Joseph Alfredo Vasquez Dumarce of California was charged for sending a threatening Facebook message to a judge tied to the Wells investigation. Authorities have not released arrests or suspects in Wells’ death, and an independent family autopsy found the cause undetermined; the threats occurred amid public speculation and distrust surrounding the probe.