Family of Haughton man imprisoned in China hopeful he’ll be home soon thanks to new bill
Congressman from New Jersey sponsoring bill
HAUGHTON, La. (KSLA) - A Haughton family is hopeful their son, who is serving time in a Chinese prison, is coming home soon.
New Jersey Republican congressman, Christopher Smith, is the sponsor of H.R.5491, a bill to “encourage diplomatic advocacy efforts on behalf of Americans unjustly detained in the People’s Republic of China.”
KSLA first broke the story about Nelson Wells Jr. in 2023. Wells has been in prison in China for 12 years. His family has desperately worked to get him home after on humanitarian release. They say his health has deteriorated greatly since he’s been imprisoned, and he is now very ill.
The new bill is in direct response to the testimony Nelson Wells Sr. gave in September of 2024 in Washington, D.C. to the Congressional Executive Commission on China (CECC). The hearing was to shine light on the plight of the Wells’ son and others like him that are detained in China.
Congressman Smith is the co-chair of the CECC.
The Wells family is asking Louisianans to contact their congressman to urge them to support the bill.
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