Found Deceased CO - Shanann Watts (34), Celeste"Cece" (3) and Bella (4), Frederick, 13 Aug 2018 *Arrest* #23

[mtnlites]

I haven't seen that patch before but she's a Thrive person, so probably.

Yes, that is a Thrive patch near her neck.

 

[Allabouttrial]

I have no doubt that one of his lawyers pre that short hearing on 21 Aug would have advised him with a couple of sentences - not to be emotional/ react/ court room etiquette etc ie. the bare basics given to any defendent.

As nutmegg just said "coaching" per se implies something different that likely comes later.

Anyway, I'll read Nikynoo's replies on this as s/he is also an attorney, in case anyone here missed that from the last thread.

Agree.

 

[Bill Carson]

The rest of it, ie the burial in a beautiful peaceful place, etc, I'm always happy to see a well thought out scenario, but I see Chris's subsequent actions as pure CYA, cowardly CYA which discards IMO any thought that he saw those kids as anything more than big heavy anchors.

SBM.

I get that his actions after the "event" are unexplainable. But if it was all CYA, then he did a terrible job of it--not taking her phone or purse, not cleaning up the house, leaving sheets in the trash can, not having a plausible explanation for her disappearance.

My only explanation is that he disassociated himself with the act, went into shock, and everything that occurred after the violent event was zombie-like, almost in a trance, autopilot.

I suspect that he may have intended to commit suicide (like 81% of other family annihilators), but he didn't get a chance to finish what he started. He was caught off guard by NU and never got a chance to go back to the tank site to take his own life.

 

[MsBetsy]

The whole confessions/changing stories thing is unclear.
I think @Nikynoo upthread could be correct in that the LE source told journalists he had confessed and the assumption was made that it was to all three murders, so essentially an unattributed misquote.
I think this People timeline may be closest to what happened, but I don't know for sure.
Essentially, it says that the changing stories were to do with the last time he had spoken to SW, what time they had the "emotional conversation", that she was there when he went to work, etc.
Then after speaking to his father he told them he would tell them "the truth", i.e. that he knew where they were (no longer claiming to have no knowledge of their whereabouts).
At that point he admitted to SW's murder and claimed she had murdered the children.
This is only my best understanding of this; media reports at the time conflicted. Take with grain of salt.
Chris Watts Allegedly Changed Story Several Times Before Being Charged with Murder of Wife, Daughters

Thanks. So is it assumed that he committed the murder and dumping of the bodies between 2:00- 5:00 am? It would seem he steered himself in a corner by saying he saw her in the act of strangling the child yet did nothing to intervene. He would have known that death does not occur quickly in this manner, one would think, and the first reaction would be to try to revive the child. Does anyone know if, after strangulation, the body would really be blue? I think I saw it discussed somewhere but don't remember what the answer was.

 

[wyldcynic]

IMO, he gave the response she wanted, not how he really felt.

IMO, this was an interaction that they had rehearsed and she coached him.

IMO he didn’t want Nico and Shanann was the one who wanted the third pregnancy. I think he had one foot out the door, and she knew it. This pregnancy was her way of keeping him in the marriage. She knew how it would make him look, if he left his sick pregnant wife and two sick kids.

I agree. I scrolled back on SW’s Facebook feed to last year and saw that in both Sept and Dec (I think) she posted a couple “quiz” results, along the lines of “how will your month/year end” and in both posts the outcome was “pregnant”. And early this year she had posted a photo of the girls and said “I wonder what 3 would be like?” She was clearly and openly dropping hints that she wanted and IMO was hoping for another pregnancy. With the earlier posts, when people asked if she was trying to announce a pregnancy, she posted memes of people shaking their head no - in a disappointed fashion. And another response was “not yet.” If she was that open with her desires to her SM network I imagine she was pressing CW hard on the topic privately. I’m guessing he was not on board. I don’t think CW was the one convincing her to try for a 3rd.

Then she got pregnant while he was having affairs. Per our inside informer it sounds like he had been wanting to separate for some time. I think the prolonged NC vacation was maybe SW’s way of saying “fine, see how you do without us for a whole summer.” I think she thought he would fall apart, would miss them terribly, and I think that plan worked against her. He savored the time apart and it reinforced that he definitely wanted out. When she returned, I suspect she told him she wasn’t going anywhere. I think he felt trapped and in his mind couldn’t find any way out of his marriage. That’s JMO of what led up to the tragedy, but I find myself moving towards being on the fence as to who killed the girls. I still think CW did it based on his demeanor and actions after the fact. But there are enough seeds of doubt that I think the prosecution will need some hard physical evidence to pin the charges for the girls on him.

 

[mtnlites]

He could have just used birth control or better yet, not have intercourse with someone he was anxiou to leave.

Word. It does take 2 to have a baby. If he was truly that unhappy and he was begging her for a separation then, yes, you're right. He could have abstained from intercourse or taken precautions. He's definitely not a victim in the whole pregnancy.

 

[Whiteorchids]

The houses are close together. I wonder if neighbors had been able to hear them arguing from inside the house before. I know one neighbor said she caught them arguing outside on the driveway in the past. If the walls were thin it seems to me they would have heard screams unless he choked SW first around the neck and she couldn’t and the kids were asleep. I wonder if AP had been pushing CW towards a divorce and leaving SW. If she was a coworker I assume she would know he was married. JMO

 

[JudgeJudi]

In the article I read it clearly states he admitted to killing all three. I was just wondering at what point he changed his story.

Days after letting police inside his home so they could help find his missing family, he told investigators “he would tell the truth.” He first asked to speak with his father then admitted to killing Shannan. He told police that he killed her after witnessing her strangling one of the girls on a baby monitor and that other child had already been killed by Shanann.

Inside the confession of Christopher Watts

 

[wyldcynic]

SBM.

I get that his actions after the "event" are unexplainable. But if it was all CYA, then he did a terrible job of it--not taking her phone or purse, not cleaning up the house, leaving sheets in the trash can, not having a plausible explanation for her disappearance.

My only explanation is that he disassociated himself with the act, went into shock, and everything that occurred after the violent event was zombie-like, almost in a trance, autopilot.

I suspect that he may have intended to commit suicide (like 81% of other family annihilators), but he didn't get a chance to finish what he started. He was caught off guard by NU and never got a chance to go back to the tank site to take his own life.

A few threads back I mentioned that I thought he was in a dissociative state based on the wording of his interviews and repeated mentions of “it doesn’t seem real”. I still think that is the case and this scenario that you’ve set out seems very plausible to me.

 

[MsBetsy]

Maybe she knew for awhile. Maybe she had a trip already planned but then extended it upon discovering the affair(s). Who knows...

Something keeps gnawing at me. If indeed CW was asking for a separation wouldn't it be more normal for him to be the one to leave the family residence and leave SW and the children in the family home?

Yes, I would think so. Especially if he admitted to having an affair. I don't see how he could get the house or the kids.

 

[Whiteorchids]

Word. It does take 2 to have a baby. If he was truly that unhappy and he was begging her for a separation then, yes, you're right. He could have abstained from intercourse or taken precautions. He's definitely not a victim in the whole pregnancy.

Perhaps he was under the impression she was taking birth control but with her Lupus she thought she could never have kids in the first place.

 

[NuttMegg]

SBM.

I get that his actions after the "event" are unexplainable. But if it was all CYA, then he did a terrible job of it--not taking her phone or purse, not cleaning up the house, leaving sheets in the trash can, not having a plausible explanation for her disappearance.

My only explanation is that he disassociated himself with the act, went into shock, and everything that occurred after the violent event was zombie-like, almost in a trance, autopilot.

I suspect that he may have intended to commit suicide (like 81% of other family annihilators), but he didn't get a chance to finish what he started. He was caught off guard by NU and never got a chance to go back to the tank site to take his own life.

Also, inevitably due to our own personalities and life experiences we tend to be more judgmental or just nicer in our interpretations. I know I tend to be harder. One thing that could fit into your autopilot idea would be as I mentioned before, maybe other oilfield workers had morbidly joked about what great burial places the tanks would be...at least bodies would not smell worse than the product. Maybe that took over his mind, if he didn't have a body of water to throw them in, didn't think of burning down the house (which wouldn't work anyway), couldn't think of just rolling them into a ditch, maybe the black humor of his work buddies determined the whole disposal methodology.

 

[MJPeony]

Word. It does take 2 to have a baby. If he was truly that unhappy and he was begging her for a separation then, yes, you're right. He could have abstained from intercourse or taken precautions. He's definitely not a victim in the whole pregnancy.

Totally agree he's not a victim in the pregnancy, although we have no idea what precautions they may or may not have taken- including perhaps he thought she was on oral bc or that the timing during the month was different, etc. As for him abstaining, I don't think that's too reasonable to have expected- especially if he was having an affair. IMO he'd want to carry on as normal in that area of the relationship. But I agree it takes 2 to tango and he's not a victim.

 

[Mountain_Kat]

Don't mind me, just marking my spot.

 

[Mosaic]

i think that's reaching a little bit in any case, the camera spent way too long invading the privacy of SW's dad and any supposed 'benefit' from CW's 'performance' would have been negated by the harrowing vision of SW's dad.

You have a good point, Nikynoo; but, no one could predict the cameramen actions, with the obvious choice of arraigned person/presiding judge/prosecutors/defense attorney. I agree with you, filming a heartbroken parent was tasteless.
Just my opinion.

 

[MsBetsy]

Days after letting police inside his home so they could help find his missing family, he told investigators “he would tell the truth.” He first asked to speak with his father then admitted to killing Shannan. He told police that he killed her after witnessing her strangling one of the girls on a baby monitor and that other child had already been killed by Shanann.

Inside the confession of Christopher Watts

I wondered if his dad helped him come up with the story. Or explanation.

 

[Madison418]

He could have acne on body parts that are covered. Not all people react to steroids the same way, either. I take them a few times a year for my mast cell activation disorder and I tend to only bulk in my legs.

True. Still imo not a roid rage thing because even if it was you would think once it was over he would've freaked out and had a breakdown rather than trying to cover it all up or killed himself

 

[ZsaZsa]

SBM.

I get that his actions after the "event" are unexplainable. But if it was all CYA, then he did a terrible job of it--not taking her phone or purse, not cleaning up the house, leaving sheets in the trash can, not having a plausible explanation for her disappearance.

My only explanation is that he disassociated himself with the act, went into shock, and everything that occurred after the violent event was zombie-like, almost in a trance, autopilot.

I suspect that he may have intended to commit suicide (like 81% of other family annihilators), but he didn't get a chance to finish what he started. He was caught off guard by NU and never got a chance to go back to the tank site to take his own life.

No zombie like state was apparent. He drove, went to work as normal, had a normal conversation with NA and LE when they attended. He had apparently perfect recall of events leading up to her 'going missing'. The CYA wasn't incomplete because he was in a fugue like state, it was simply that NA showed up and interrupted his plans.

 

[PommyMommy]

Thanks. So is it assumed that he committed the murder and dumping of the bodies between 2:00- 5:00 am? It would seem he steered himself in a corner by saying he saw her in the act of strangling the child yet did nothing to intervene. He would have known that death does not occur quickly in this manner, one would think, and the first reaction would be to try to revive the child. Does anyone know if, after strangulation, the body would really be blue? I think I saw it discussed somewhere but don't remember what the answer was.

Not exactly. The complaint says, "On or about August 13..." in regard to the charge for Shanann and "Between and including August 12, 2018 and August 13, 2018..." for the girls. The charges were filed prior to the autopsies and the dates were likely specified based on reports of "last seen." For example, NUA dropped Shanann off at 1:48 and is seen on camera August 13.

https://www.courts.state.co.us/userfiles/file/Court_Probation/19th_Judicial_District/caseofinterest/2018CR2003/001/COMPLAINT AND INFORMATION.pdf

 

[cottonweaver]

JMO, Nick (in the interview with his wife) said he didn't think CW had lost weight in the time they knew him. To the same question, N's wife, A, totally contradicted N's statement and said CW had lost a lot of weight.

We don't know if N's perception or A's perception is correct.

JMO.

yeah I re-watched that long interview on Wednesday. IIRC he said that CW had pretty much lost the majority of the weight before they knew each other . Let me go see if I can find it easily

Edited to add
Here's the interview where he says that CW had pretty much lost the majority of the weight before they knew each other and then yes she chips in with: he also lost a lot once they started Thrive+running, then she tails off.
So yes it's ambiguous.

All I can deduce is CW lost weight over a longer period.

At c. the 13.00min mark