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

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The chilling cases of dads killing their own children

[...]

Mark Whiteley and colleagues from Arizona State University, US, conducted a recent study and found there were two common elements in these cases.

One was the "despondent" dad who felt he could no longer care for his family because of financial issues and felt great shame as a consequence”.

The other element was the "angry father punishing the wife in an act of emotional revenge". In some cases, the researchers found, the man will commit suicide as a result of his subsequent guilt.

Steven Stack, a professor of Criminal Justice at Wayne State University in Detroit said the perpetrator is often 'triggered' by a separation or threatened separation from one’s partner.

The perpetrator “cannot get his wife/lover back; she is gone. On the other hand, he cannot perceive how he can go on living without her".

Stack believes suicide is even more likely when the father has also murdered his children.

[...]
 
NOV 12, 2018
Chris Watts' parents break their silence after son's guilty plea in murder of wife, daughters
“He’s not a sociopath. He’s not a psychopath,” Cindy Watts said of her son.

“I asked Chris, ‘If you did not do this, do not confess to something you didn’t do.’ She shut me down. She completely shut me down,” Cindy Watts said, referring to Chris Watts’ defense attorney.

“He said, ‘I’m sorry. I lost — I went into a rage, and I killed her.’ And he said, ‘I am so sorry. I ruined your life; I ruined my life,’ Mrs. Watts said.

“After the fact with the bodies, he said, ‘Dad, I could not put the girls with her after what she did — I could not put her with her,’” Ronnie Watts said.

“And so, instead of putting the girls with her, he decided to put her in oil tanks?” Denver7 asked him.

“I don’t understand. I don’t understand,” Mr. Watts replied.

“If he didn’t kill the children, I want him to face that and let them prove it,” Mr. Watts said.

“There’s a whole lot of unanswered questions about the case. Everything happened too quick there, from a case status to a plea,” Mr. Watts said.

“It has been so overwhelming. And I feel like I have to do something to help my son,” Mrs. Watts said. “I just need to do something. If he’s not going to fight, I’m going to fight for him.”

Denver7 News on Twitter
Chris Watts’ parents break their silence after son's guilty plea in murder of wife, daughters http://bit.ly/2Pn2086

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11:52 PM - 12 Nov 2018
 
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NOV 12, 2018 - Includes video
Exclusive: Parents of Chris Watts speak out after his murder plea deal
"It was a very hard relationship," said Cindy Watts, Chris' mother. "It was a very hard relationship (with Shanann) as far as I'm concerned. I couldn't do anything right."

The Wattses said their son changed once he met Shanann.

The Wattses said their son's relationship with Shanann was abusive and they felt she isolated Chris from his family in the time they were together.

Ronnie said he believes the initial thing Chris told police -- that he killed his wife only after finding out she had strangled their daughters.

"It's hard for me to believe that he would hurt them girls no matter what," he said. "The story he told me that night, I believed it: The way he looked at me, the way he was crying, I believed it."

They are hoping someone else might step up to defend Chris.
 
NOV 12 UPDATED Nov 13, 2018 w/statement from Shanann's family
'Not a monster': Chris Watts' parents defend son who murdered family

"Shanann Watts was a faithful wife, and the most gentle and loving mother in the world to her children Bella, Celeste, and Nico. She was also the best daughter any parent could ever hope for. Shanann was a wonderful soul.

Everyone who knew Shanann knows this to be true. Even Chris Watts knows this to be true. Yet Chris Watts still chose to murder Shanann, Bella, Celeste, and Nico. Chris Watts still chose to dump the bodies of his own family in oil tanks. And Chris Watts still chose to lie about it until he could lie no more. He pled guilty to murdering his family because he is guilty.

Monday evening, the parents of Chris Watts gave an interview in which they attempted to defend their son. In doing so, they felt the need to make vicious, grotesque and utterly false statements about Shanann. Their false statements, however hurtful and inaccurate, will never alter the truth about Shanann, and will never alter the truth about the crimes committed by their son, Chris Watts.

Shanann's memory and reputation deserves to be protected. And her family is fully prepared to do so."
 
NOV 13, 2018
Shanann Watts’ parents denounce comments from Christopher Watts’ mom
The parents of Shanann Watts defended their slain daughter on Tuesday, saying statements by the family of Christopher Watts were "vicious, grotesque and utterly false."

On Monday, the family of Christopher Watts spoke about their son's guilty plea earlier this month, with his mother Cindy Watts saying she knows her son killed his wife, but she does not believe he killed his children.

Cindy Watts said she knows her son should spend a long time in prison for killing his wife, but she claims he was stuck in a verbally abusive relationship.

On Tuesday, Shanann Watts' parents, Frank and Sandra Rzucek, responded to the statements made by Cindy Watts in comments released by the law firm representing them.
 
NOV 13, 2018
Chris Watts pleaded guilty to murdering his wife and daughters — but his parents say he's 'not a monster' - NY Daily News
The parents of a 33-year-old Colorado man who pleaded guilty to murdering his family insist he’s ‘not a monster.”

Chris Watts admitted in court last week to killing his 34-year-old pregnant wife Shanann and two daughters, 3-year-old Celeste and 4-year-old Bella, so he could avoid the death penalty — but his parents seem unswayed by their son’s evil acts.

Ronnie Watts said he finds it difficult to believe his son would hurt his daughters, while Cindy wants him to “fight” — hoping others may step up to defend her son.
 
NOV 13, 2018
Christopher Watts' mother: Rescind guilty plea in deaths of daughters, wife
Christopher Watts’ mother says her son was coerced by his lawyers into pleading guilty to murdering his wife and two daughters, and that he should withdraw his pleas and contest the charges — especially the killing of his two girls, which she believes he didn’t commit.

“I know he confessed, but he was railroaded into it,” Cynthia Watts, of Spring Lake, N.C., said Monday in regard to her son’s guilty pleas in the murders of his 34-year-old wife, Shanann, and daughters Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3. “I want him to take back the plea deal.”

Denver attorney H. Michael Steinberg said that if Christopher Watts wishes to withdraw his guilty plea, it is possible the judge would consider that before his sentencing, which is scheduled for Monday. But he would have to offer a better explanation than just the fact that he changed his mind. One possibly valid reason would be that Christopher Watts has not received a psychological evaluation, Steinberg said.

“That would be a significant issue. This case is so high profile the judge may want to make sure everything was done appropriately,” Steinberg said.
 
NOV 13, 2018
Chris Watts’ Parents Claim Son Was in Abusive Relationship with Wife He Admitted Murdering
In an interview with local station KMGH, Ronnie and Cindy Watts said their son was once easygoing and “normal.”

“He was in sports from when he was 5 until 17 years old,” Cindy told the station. “He was normal, he didn’t have a temper, he was just easygoing like his dad. He’s not a monster.”

According to KMGH, the couple claimed their son changed when he married Shan’ann, alleging the couple had an abusive relationship and Shan’ann isolated Chris from his family.

The Watts family says that, despite their son’s guilty plea, they’re not sure exactly what happened. They speculated that he may have pleaded guilty to avoid subjecting his family to a lengthy trial.

As Chris Watts' Parents Defend Him, Murdered Wife's Family Slams 'Grotesque & False Statements'
Vicious. Grotesque. Utterly false.

That’s how Shan’ann Watts‘ family is reportedly describing a recent interview by her killer husband’s parents in which they defended him and claimed his marriage was “very hard” and even abusive.

Shan’ann, 34, “was a faithful wife, and the most gentle and loving mother in the world to her children Bella, Celeste, and Nico [her unborn child],” her parents said, according to local TV station KMGH.

These statements, “however hurtful and inaccurate, will never alter the truth about [Shan’ann], and will never alter the truth about the crimes committed by their son, Chris Watts,” her parents said.
 
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NOV 13, 2018
Chris Watts' parents say they want their son to take back his guilty plea | Daily Mail Online
Ronnie and Cynthia Watts said their son isn't a 'sociopath' despite him telling them that he killed his 34-year-old wife, Shanann.

'I know he confessed, but he was railroaded into it,' Cynthia told the Denver Post on Monday.

'I want him to take back the plea deal,' she said, adding that she believes the story her son told his father, that he killed his wife after he discovered Shanann had strangled their daughters to death, according to the Post.

The plea deal was approved by Shanann's family who told the district attorney they did not want to end his life as he did their daughter's and grandchildren's.

They did not speak after the hearing last Tuesday but watched somberly as the DA announced the outcome of the hearing.
 
NOV 13, 2018 - Letter written by CW
'Not a monster': Chris Watts' parents defend son who murdered family
From the video beginning about 1:52:

"The Watts family told you that there is a letter and they say they told you that supports their position.

Yeah, they say there is a letter that they say the defense has uh, he said in it, he wrote "if anything happens to me, look at my wife," um, and apparently Chris' sister put that away somewhere and it supports the case about their contention that Shanann was unstable."

The reporter goes on to say that there was a conversation about whether the defense destroyed it and he says he has no evidence of that but "they say the letter's out there and supports their contention."
 
NOV 13, 2018
Families of Shanann Watts, her 2 daughters and defendant in Watts murder case trade words
Legal experts, not involved in the case weighed in on the new developments. Defense attorney Chris Decker said, “Basically a desperate act by a loving mother who probably has no idea of the particulars of the evidence or her sons criminal acts or decisions in the aftermath of them. Not particularly uncommon for a mother to have the perspective of “not my son”. The court probably won’t take any action unless something is filed or raised by the defense.”

Defense attorney Harvey Steinberg said there is a way to withdraw a plea before sentencing, but does not believe it will happen in this case. Steinberg said, “Remember the mother is not in a position to withdraw the plea. The mother can scream and yell and do everything she wants. Maybe it’s appropriate, maybe it’s not but ultimately it’s his decision after sitting and talking to his lawyers. There is a rule, rule 32 allows the withdraw of plea prior to sentencing if there is a fair and just reason. I don’t know what the fair and just reason is here. So do I think there is a likelihood that any judge would allow him to withdraw the plea? The answer is no.”
 
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NOV 13, 2018
CW'S Objection to Expanded Media Coverage:
https://www.courts.state.co.us/user...aseofinterest/2018CR2003/Objection to EMC.pdf
#6 of 9: "Counsel is aware that witnesses may be called to give emotional and difficult testimony and statements concerning the sentence in the case. Counsel fears that the existence of video DATE FILED: November 13, 2018 3:32 PM 2 and/or audio broadcasting from the courtroom may cause the witnesses additional undue stress and fear."

NOV 14, 2018
Order Concerning Expanded Media Coverage:
https://www.courts.state.co.us/user.../Order Concerning Expanded Media Coverage.pdf
"Given the nature of the hearing and the factors set forth above, this Court finds and concludes that certain expanded media coverage is appropriate, fair, and provides access of the proceedings to the public. Therefore, expanded media coverage for the sentencing hearing scheduled on November 19, 2018 beginning @ 10:00 a.m. is granted."
 
NOV 14, 2018
Despite Plea, Chris Watts' Mom Doesn't Believe He Killed His Kids: 'He Couldn't Have Done That'
The mother of Chris Watts believes her son is innocent of killing his two young daughters — despite his guilty plea last week to murdering the girls along with his wife.

“He did kill her, but the kids, no,” Cindy Watts said in a Skype interview with Fox 31 Denver. “It’s very difficult, very difficult. I can’t imagine my son doing that. He couldn’t have done that.”

“He went into a rage, and he killed her when he saw her strangling Celeste,” Cindy Watts insisted in the interview, adding that she’s unable to talk to her son to convince him to rescind his guilty plea.

“There’s no telling what would be done to him in prison. I just want him to fight,” she added.
 
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