CO - Shanann Watts (34, dec.), Celeste"Cece" (3) and Bella (4) - MEDIA, MAPS, TIMELINES - NO DISCUSS

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NOV 6, 2018
Colorado dad tearfully pleads guilty to murder of pregnant wife, 2 daughters
Christopher Watts, 33, held back tears as he pleaded guilty to five counts of first-degree murder, unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and three counts of tampering with a deceased human body.

Watts' voice trembled at each of his nine utterances of "guilty" as 19th Judicial District Judge Marcelo Kopcow asked Watts how he would like to plead to each count.

Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke will not seek the death penalty in the case in exchange for Watts pleading guilty to all nine counts, the DA's office announced Tuesday.

Weld County Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wren told Kopcow that the family was "in full agreement" with the deal they reached with the defense.

Rourke said in a news conference that Shanann's family requested his office not seek the death penalty in the case, adding that his office made its decision about four days ago.
 
NOV 6, 2018
To Avoid Death, Chris Watts Admits Murdering His Pregnant Wife and Their 2 Young Daughters
In a bombshell turn of events on Tuesday, triple murder suspect Chris Wattspleaded guilty in the slayings of his pregnant wife and their young children in exchange for being spared a possible death sentence, PEOPLE confirms.

In court on Tuesday, Chris pleaded to nine charges, according to prosecutors: five counts of first-degree murder, one count of unlawful termination of pregnancy and three counts of tampering with a dead body.

He will be formally sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Nov. 19.

Shan’ann’s family was in court for his plea, according to local reporters. The district attorney’s office, in announcing Chris’ plea deal, said it had been reached with the consent of Shan’ann’s relatives.

Colorado father Christopher Watts pleads guilty to murdering his wife and two children | Daily Mail Online
As part of the deal, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the first four counts - murder.

Weld District Attorney Michael Rourke revealed after the hearing that Shanann's family did not want her husband to be executed. He said her mother Sandra Rzucek told him: 'He made the choice to take those lives.'

'I do not want to be in the position of choosing to take his.'
 
NOV 6, 2018
Colorado man pleads guilty to killing pregnant wife, kids :: WRAL.com
The Rzucek family watched from a row of chairs, holding hands, as Rourke spoke to reporters but did not speak. Rourke said they may decide to testify when Christopher Watts is formally sentenced on Nov. 19.

Rourke said Tuesday that investigators never believed that Watts was being entirely truthful.

"The spotlight that he tried to shine on Shanann — falsely, incorrectly and frankly a flat-out lie — has been corrected," Rourke said. "The spotlight shines directly where it belongs: On him."
 
How Chris Watts Decided to Plead to Killing Family: 'Eventually He Acknowledged His Life Was Over'
“There was physical evidence and his own words that would convict him,” the source close to him says. “His story didn’t work. He got angry. He didn’t want to plead guilty. But he really had no choice, considering the evidence. It took a little bit of time for him to come around, but he did.”

Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, not long after Chris pleaded guilty to nine charges, including first-degree murder, Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke said that they were approached several weeks ago by Chris’ defense team about a possible plea — not the other way around.
 
NOV 6, 2018
Dad admits to killing family to avoid death penalty
"I can only say that I hope there is a sense of closure (for family members of the deceased)," Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke said.

"I know that that will never be fully realized because, obviously, the tragedy that sits before us today is the loss of four beautiful lives."

"I was not willing to entertain any further concessions above and beyond removing the death penalty," he said.
 
NOV 6, 2018
Chris Watts pleads guilty to Colorado killing of pregnant wife, daughters - CNN
"I can only say that I hope there is a sense of closure (for family members of the deceased)," Rourke told reporters. "I know that that will never be fully realized because, obviously, the tragedy that sits before us today is the loss of four beautiful lives (including Shanan's unborn baby)."

Prosecutors will ask for a judge to sentence Watts to life in prison, instead of seeking the death penalty.

Investigators never believed Watts' stories, Rourke said.
 
NOV 7, 2018
What We Still Don't Know About the Watts Family Murders — and When We'll Know It
How did they die? And why?

On Tuesday, following Chris’ surprise guilty plea to all three first-degree murders (among other crimes), Colorado prosecutors told reporters that there is more they cannot say about the case — for now.

“I’m not sure if it’s the entirety of the motive,” he said. “But I will be happy to comment on that following sentencing.”

The autopsies on Chris’ three victims, too, will likely be made public after his sentencing on Nov. 19, where he faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.

It remains unclear if a full picture of the family’s home life will ever be made public. Chris’ plea prevents a trial, which may have involved protracted witness testimony about their marriage, possible domestic issues and other insights into what lead up to the homicides.
 
NOV 7, 2018
‘His story didn’t work’: How Chris Watts defense lawyers convinced him to plead guilty to murdering his pregnant wife and two daughters
It appeared that investigators never believed this claim, and it now looks as though Watts’s defense team knew he didn’t have a case.

A source with knowledge of the investigation told People magazine that Watts resisted admitting to the crimes, but that his attorneys convinced him to plead guilty in order to avoid the death penalty.

“The evidence against him was overwhelming,” the source reportedly said.

“There was physical evidence and his own words that would convict him. His story didn’t work. He got angry. He didn’t want to plead guilty. But he really had no choice, considering the evidence. It took a little bit of time for him to come around, but he did.”
 
NOV 7, 2018
Chris Watts won't face the death penalty and the district attorney blames the governor
A plea deal will spare the life of Chris Watts but the Weld County district attorney took jabs at the governor as he explained the decision Tuesday.

He went on to say that asking for the death penalty could subject the family to years of appeals and hearings.

Denver7 asked Governor John Hickenlooper about Dunlap's case and the criticism directed at him by Rourke.

"The bottom line is when I came in I was for the death penalty like a lot of people but when I got the facts and you see how unfair it is, it depends on which DA you get and whether they want to spend all that money. It’s very expensive, it costs baseline $15 million dollars once you get through the appeals to go through a death penalty case," said Hickenlooper.
 
NOV 6, 2018
Shan'ann Watts' Family Was 'Firm' in Not Wanting Death Penalty for Murderous Husband Chris Watts
It was the family of Chris Watts‘ three murder victims — his pregnant wife, Shan’ann Watts, and their girls, Bella and Celeste — who asked Colorado prosecutors not to seek the death penalty against him for his crimes. And it was once he would not face a possible execution that Chris agreed to plead guilty, on Tuesday, to all of the charges against him.

He said the subject of a possible execution for Chris, who was arrested on Aug. 15 in the murders of his family, was a key topic of discussion.

While Rourke said he followed standard procedure in this case, acting no differently despite its notoriety, the clear wishes of Shan’ann’s family’s were unavoidable.
 
NOV 7, 2018
Weld District Attorney’s Office says it will release autopsy reports in Watts case after sentencing
The Weld District Attorney’s Office on Wednesday confirmed it will release the autopsy reports for Shanann, Bella and Celeste Watts following a scheduled sentencing hearing for Christopher Watts, Shanann’s husband and father of the two girls, who has pleaded guilty to killing all three.

In an email sent Tuesday, Assistant Weld County Attorney Karin McDougal said the county would release the autopsy reports no more than 24 hours after the sentencing hearing is complete Nov. 19.
 
November 7

Last night, Shanann's grieving brother, Frankie Rzucek, took to Facebook to make an emotional request following the court hearing.

[...]

He posted: "I appreciate everything and everyone who's here for my family and I. The only thing I ask is to not share or tag me in anything that has that evil 's face. Thanks. I've seen enough."

[...]

But Frankie revealed multiple life terms will be "enough" for him.

"Close to 5 life sentences is enough for me," he told a supporter.

Chris Watts' brother-in-law's heartbreaking plea about "evil" killer's face
 
NOV 8, 2018
Colorado Man Pleads Guilty in Killing of Daughters, Mother From Moore County
“(We) spent quite a bit of time talking with the Rzucek family about the state of the death penalty in Colorado (and) the realties of the death penalty,” Rourke said during a news conference. “We explained to (the Rzuceks) the extraordinary delays that currently exist in the state of Colorado as a result of, in part, the actions of our current governor.”

“I don’t know how I could have sat in Sandy’s kitchen and asked her to commit the next 25 years of her life to the criminal justice system without any assurances that that sentence, if obtained, would ever be imposed,” Rourke said.

“(The Rzuceks) were very strongly in favor of a resolution in this case short of the death penalty,” Rourke said. “That to me, was the most important consideration in deciding how to proceed with this case.”

Shan'ann Watts celebrates her daughter Celeste's third birthday earlier this year.
 
NOV 10, 2018
Bonus Episode: Colorado dad Chris Watts admits killing his pregnant wife & daughters from Crime Stories with Nancy Grace 36 min.

"The Colorado father who pleaded for his pregnant wife and two young daughters to return after they vanished in August is now on his way to prison for life. Chris Watts admitted killing his family in exchange for not facing the death penalty. Nancy Grace looks at the case with Dr. Brian Russell, a psychologist & lawyer who also hosts Investigation Discovery's "Fatal Vows" series, private investigator Vincent Hill, author of "Playbook to a Murder," North Carolina family & divorce lawyer Kathleen Murphy, and CrimeOnline.com reporter Ellen Killoran."

“Chris Watts will have a new story to tell at a dinner table with Satan.”

Shanann made $80,000 per year.
 
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