The death of 18-year-old WR Nolan Wells at Southwest Mississippi Community College has drawn national attention, and the three friends who traveled with him on the holiday trip to the Mississippi island have sued former NFL wide receiver Terrell Owens. They filed a defamation lawsuit this week in federal court in Mississippi, claiming the NFL Hall of Famer defamed them in a September post to his more than 1.2 million followers on X.

According to reporter Michael Babcock, who covered the filing on his series “A Minute with Mike,” the post told readers to “ARREST THEM IMMEDIATELY!!”

The post was linked to the “The Trent Out Loud Show’s” IG clip, in which the host theorized that the three friends, Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo, and Morgan Seymour, were involved in Wells’ death and tampered with his phone. The plaintiffs say the post exposed them to endless death threats and that they now fear for their safety.

The former wide receiver has been quite vocal about the 18-year-old’s death all summer. He paid his respects by attending the memorial service held on July 20 in Ocean Springs and even pledged $25,000 as a reward for any information that could lead 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,” asserted Edward Paltzik, a defamation and media attorney, who joined the three friends’ legal team in August. 

The suit has been filed by the fathers of the three friends, who are considered minors for being under 21 as per Mississippi law. 

The Pro Football Hall of Famer is not the only public figure in the dispute. The same friends have indicated they plan to take legal action against Rev. Al Sharpton and “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin over comments the two made while discussing Wells’ death.

Babcock noted that the friends have threatened those suits but that it remains to be seen whether they will go through with them. For now, the Owens case is the only one on file. 

The claim in Owens’ post came shortly after a grand jury concluded that Wells likely drowned after hearing from 43 witnesses, and decided not to charge anyone. Even though the authorities suspect no foul play, Owens focuses on what happened on Horn Island on July 4.

The questions Nolan Wells’ family keeps asking

Wells was one of about 30 friends who traveled to Horn Island on three boats for a Fourth of July gathering. According to his three friends, he stayed behind for a girl while the group headed back to the mainland. His family has disputed that account. Authorities later found his body near the island two days afterward.

The officials do not know how Wells died, but the grand jury nonetheless concluded in September, after reviewing for a week, that the death was “consistent with drowning.” The family and their attorneys have challenged that finding. They point to unexplained bruising on the back of Wells’ head and to the absence of water in his airways and stomach. 

Three months after the death, his parents say they cannot move on. This week, they renewed their call for a federal investigation despite the local and federal authorities citing no foul play. 

“What we were left with were many, many inconsistent stories,” said Wells’ mother, Christine Wonsley, at a news conference, as per ABC News and WLOX. 

Another detail the family finds troubling involves Wells’ phone. Some friends said he left his phone on their boat to keep it out of water. However, his parents describe it as out of character and suspicious.

All eyes eagerly await Owens’ response to the suit, which will show whether he defends the post as opinion or disputes that it caused the threats the friends describe.