Chris Watts may be forced to remove photos of murdered wife, daughters he keeps in his cell following petition
An online petition has now pleaded with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections to ban convicted triple murderer Chris Watts from displaying any photographs of his murdered wife and two young daughters. The petition 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."
The 33-year-old man is currently serving several life sentences after he pleaded guilty in November 2018 to the murders which took place on August 13 last year. Watts brutally murdered his 34-year-old pregnant wife Shanann, and their two young daughters: 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste.
He was transferred to a prison in Wisconsin from the one in Colorado late last year because of security concerns. The petition was launched about a week ago and has more than 5,300 signatures as of April 11. The petition continues to state: "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."
MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) previously reported that in a February confession that was recorded inside the Dodge Correctional Institution, Wisconsin, 33-year-old Watts told investigators from the FBI, CBI, and a member of the Frederick Police Department that he reads a book to his daughters every night and also reads The Bible.
He also told the investigators that Shanann "may have been praying" as he was strangling her to death and also said that Bella saw him smother her sister Celeste. Right before Watts killed his older daughter, she screamed: "Daddy, no!". He also told them that he speaks to the photos that he has of his family in his cell and that he reads a book to his daughters every night.
It was these specific details that infuriated members of the Seek the Truth and Armchair Detective Group, which is the one behind the petition. The petition continues: "Wisconsin inmate Chris Watts DOC# 674796 should not be allowed a photograph of his murder victims, in accordance with DOC purpose and mission statement. 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."
"As we, the public, mourned the senseless murders of two beautiful little girls, their mother, and their unborn brother, we cried with the victim’s family, we struggled to comprehend the brutality of the crime, and most of all, we continue to grapple the disturbed peace and increased suspicion that we all may live with a murderer. As a result, WE are all victims of Christopher Watts. While Chris Watts enjoys his stay in WI DOC/DCI (at the expense of the taxpayers), we DEMAND that the voices of his victims, SW, BW, CW, and NW, are heard and their picture is RETURNED to the surviving family of Chris’ victims."