User:Amandashowler/Watts family murders

Background
Christopher and Shanann were North Carolina natives, Christopher from Spring Lake and Shanann from Aberdeen. They met in 2010 and were married in Mecklenburg County on November 3, 2012, according to online records. They had two daughters: Bella Marie Watts (born December 17, 2013) and Celeste Cathryn "CeCe" Watts (born July 17, 2015). At the time of her death, she was 15 weeks pregnant with a son who was to be named Nico. The family lived in a five-bedroom home in Frederick, Colorado, which they purchased in 2013, and declared bankruptcy in 2015. Christopher was employed by Anadarko Petroleum, while Shanann worked from home selling a product called Thrive for the multi-level marketing company Le-Vel.

In July 2018, Christopher started a romantic relationship outside of his marriage with 30-year-old Nicole Kessinger. The two had met at Anadarko Petroleum where Nicole worked in the environmental department and Chris worked as a contractor. Christopher tells Kessinger that he is still married with two children but he is in the process of separating from his wife. On June 27, 2018, Shannan and her children went on a trip to North Carolina for 5.5 weeks. Christopher joins his family in North Carolina on July 31 for the last week of their vacation. From Shanan's text message to a friend during the trip, it can be seen that she is having problems with Christopher and she cancels the gender-reveal party for Nico.

Disappearance
Shanann returned home from a business trip to Arizona at about 1:48 a.m. on August 13, 2018, after being driven home by friend and colleague Nickole Utoft Atkinson. Christopher was home with their daughters. Later that day, Shanann and the girls were reported missing by Atkinson, who became concerned when Shanann missed a scheduled OB-GYN appointment and failed to return her text messages. After Shanann missed a business meeting, Atkinson went to the Watts' home at about 12:10 p.m. When the doorbell and knocks went unanswered, Atkinson notified Christopher, who was at work, and called the Frederick Police Department. An officer arrived to conduct a welfare check at about 1:40 p.m. The officer noticed that all the windows and doors were locked so there was no entry point to the house. The officer tried to gain permission from Christopher to enter but had to wait until he came back to the residence to be allowed inside. During the welfare check, the family dog was discovered unharmed but no sign of Shanann or the girls in the home. During the search of the house, searchers discovered her purse containing her phone and keys. Her car, which still contained the girls' car seats, was in the garage. Shanann's wedding ring was found on the bedside table at Shanann's side of the bed. The couple's neighbour, Nate Trinastich's CCTV camera pointed directly at the driveway of the Watt's home. Christopher, Trinastich and the officer performing the welfare check watch the footage showing Christopher backing his truck into the driveway, loading it and driving away.

The FBI and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation joined the investigation the next day. Christopher initially told police he had no idea where Shanann and the girls might be and had not seen his wife since 5:15 a.m. the previous day, when he left for work. He gave interviews to Denver stations KMGH-TV and KUSA-TV outside the house, pleading for the safe return of his wife and daughters. Investigators with search dogs could be heard on the property during the interview.

Arrest and charges
Christopher was arrested late on August 15, 2018. According to the arrest affidavit and footage from a security camera in the interview room, he failed a polygraph test and subsequently confessed to murdering Shanann. He asked to speak to his father, Ronnie Watts, before confessing. During the investigation, he claimed Shanann had strangled the girls in response to his request for separation and that he had then strangled her in a fit of rage and transported the bodies to a remote oil-storage site leased by his employer, Anadarko Petroleum.

Christopher was fired by the company on August 15, the day of his arrest. The authorities located the bodies of the Watts family on the Anadarko Petroleum site on August 16. The girls' bodies were found in crude oil storage tanks, while Shanann and their unborn son, Nico, were buried in a shallow grave nearby.

On August 21, Christopher was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, including an additional one count per child cited as "death of a child who had not yet attained 12 years of age and the defendant was in a position of trust", unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and three counts of tampering with a deceased human body. He was denied bail at his first court appearance. At a later hearing, his bail was set at $5 million, with him being required to put down 15% to be released.

The case has been connected in the media to the crime of family annihilation (familicide). Many of these crimes occur in August, before school starts, which may delay detection and investigation. According to former FBI profiler Candice DeLong, cases such as the Watts' are rare because "family annihilators usually commit suicide after the murders," an action that Christopher claimed to have contemplated out of guilt for his actions.

In an interview on Dr. Phil, Christopher's lawyer claimed that Christopher confessed to killing Shanann after an argument regarding divorce. During the murder, Bella walked in on the couple. Christopher then told her that Shanann was sick. He loaded Shanann's body and the girls, without their car seats, into the back seat of his work truck. He later smothered the girls, one after the other, with a blanket.

Plea deal and sentencing
The death penalty was not pursued by the district attorney on the request of Shanann's family, the Rzuceks, who did not wish for any further deaths. Christopher was offered a plea deal where he would plead guilty to killing his family to avoid the death penalty. Shanann's family were supportive of his decision to accept the plea deal. Christopher pleaded guilty to the murders on November 6, 2018. On November 19, he was sentenced to five life sentences—three consecutive and two concurrent—without the possibility of parole. He received an additional 48 years for the unlawful termination of Shanann's pregnancy and 36 years for three charges of tampering with a deceased body. His sentence began immediately.

On December 3, 2018, Christopher was moved to an out-of-state location due to "security concerns." On December 5, he arrived at Dodge Correctional Institution, a maximum-security prison in Waupun, Wisconsin, to continue serving his life sentences.

Media accounts
On a December 2018 episode of the ABC News series 20/20, Shanann's parents were interviewed for the first time since she and the girls were murdered. HLN aired a special report show that same month titled Family Massacre: Chris Watts Exposed, in which footage of Christopher from police body cameras and security cameras in the police station's interview room were revealed. In a recorded interview released by Colorado Bureau of Investigation with Christopher's mistress, Nichol Kessinger, she revealed his behavioral changes in the days prior to the murders.

On a December 2018 episode of the American talk show Dr. Phil, Dr. Phil consulted with four crime experts: former prosecutor and TV journalist Nancy Grace, former FBI profiler Candice DeLong, law enforcement consultant Steve Kardian, and body language expert Susan Constantine. The experts analyzed the motivation, secret life, and profiling of Christopher. On a January 2019 episode of the talk show The Dr. Oz Show, commentary is provided on his case by the neighbor who helped build the case against him, who is interviewed in-studio.

Adaptations
On January 26, 2020, Lifetime released a film called Chris Watts: Confessions of a Killer as part of its "Ripped from the Headlines" feature film. It stars Sean Kleier as Christopher and Ashley Williams as Shanann. Shanann's family spoke out against the film, stating that they had not been consulted about it and were not aware of its making until it was already in production. They have also said they are not making any money from it and fear that it will only increase the harassment online that they had already been receiving.

On September 30, 2020, Netflix released American Murder: The Family Next Door, a documentary about the murders. The documentary features archival footage including home movies, social media posts, text messages, and law enforcement recordings.

Additional Edit
* EDIT for criminal_charge in Infobox: Five counts of first-degree murder, one count of unlawful termination of a pregnancy and three counts of tampering with a body.