A petition demands the Wisconsin Department of Corrections remove photos that convicted murder Chris Watts put up in his cell of his victims.
The photos are of his pregnant wife and two young children.
“As taxpayers and members of the public, we are outraged that Chris Watts was allowed to have a photograph of the victims he was convicted of murdering, including his two minor children,” the petion, found on Change.org, reads.
“Allowing a murderer to keep a trophy of his victims goes against the purpose and mission statement of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, which emphasizes public safety and victim advocacy.
We, the public and taxpayers, demand that any pictures of Watts’ murder victims are confiscated and that he does not receive favorable treatment due to the publicity of his criminal case.”
Learned About Pictures Through an Interview
In August, Watts killed his wife, Shanann, 34, and their two children, Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3, before disposing of their bodies at a secluded oil field where he worked.
He pleaded guilty to the killings last last year and is serving five life sentences after prosecutors and Shanann Watts’ family agreed to drop the possibility of the death penalty.
Christopher Watts is escorted into the courtroom before his bond hearing at the Weld County Courthouse in Greeley, Colorado on Aug. 16, 2018. (Joshua Polson/The Greeley Tribune/Pool via AP)
The revelation about the prison cell photos came after the Colorado Bureau of Investigation released notes from an interview its agents had conducted with Watts earlier this year.
“He has pictures of his wife and daughters in his prison cell and he talks to them every morning and every night,” reads the document, in which Watts gives a detailed account of the killings.
The petition, which so far has amassed more than 5,000 signatures, wants the photos returned to the victims’ family.
The family has no comment at this time on the petition, Steven Lambert, attorney for Shanann Watts’ family, said.
Shanann Watts Shortly Before Death
It’s 1:48 a.m. and a pregnant Shanann Watts is arriving home from a business trip to Phoenix.
Front-door video at her Frederick, Colorado, home captures the moment a friend drops Watts from the airport on August 13, 2018. She can be seen carrying her suitcase up the driveway and to the door.
The short video clip is believed to be the last time Shanann Watts, who was 15 weeks pregnant, is seen to be alive. Within hours—possibly even minutes—Shanann was slain, authorities have said.
Her husband, Chris Watts, pleaded guilty in November to first-degree murder and other charges in the death of his wife and young daughters. He was sentenced to five life sentences with no possibility of parole.
Bella Watts, Celeste Watts, and Shanann Watts in file photos. The cause of death for the three females may have been strangulation. (The Colorado Bureau of Investigation via AP)
HLN obtained the new video through an open record request with the Weld County District Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors had not previously released the footage.
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