Chris Watts sentencing hearing for murder of wife, two kids

Chris Watts, who pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of his pregnant wife and two daughters, will attend a sentencing hearing on Monday.

Below is all we know based on the timeline:

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According to the affidavit, a friend dropped Shanann Watts off at home on Aug. 13 shortly before 2 a.m. They had both been in Arizona on a business trip and had just returned home.

The friend, Nickole Atkinson, told police she became worried when Shanann Watts didn’t return her texts or calls later that morning. Shanann Watts had a doctors appointment at 10 a.m. that day, according to Atkinson.

Atkinson went to the Watts home and found Shanann Watts’ car and a locked door. She called police and Christopher Watts to check on her friend’s welfare.

After arriving, a Frederick police officer called Christopher Watts and asked for the garage code so he could get inside. Watts told him it didn’t work and said he would come home to let them inside, according to the affidavit.

When they still couldn’t find Shanann Watts or the girls, the officer questioned Watts. Watts would tell police that he had talked with his wife about separating before leaving for work that day, and he would also go on to give interviews for television news crews as news of the missing woman and children spread.

On Aug. 14, when the three were still missing, the Frederick Police Department requested assistance from the FBI and Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

According to the affidavit, a two-day investigation found that Watts was having an affair with a coworker, though he had denied it previously.

Shortly after this discovery, Watts asked to speak with his father at the police department. After, he told police what he says happened on Aug. 13.

According to the affidavit, Watts told police that he and Shanann Watts did talk about separating that morning. Watts went downstairs, and when he returned to their bedroom he said he saw Shanann Watts strangling Celeste through a baby monitor. He also saw Bella “sprawled” out in her bed and blue.

Watts told police he went into a rage and strangled Shanann Watts to death. He then put all three bodies into his truck and disposed of them at the Anardarko site.

Court battles

Little new information has come forward so far in the Watts case. The autopsy reports are currently sealed, as the prosecution and Weld County coroner have asked the court for permission to keep them from the public.

A hearing for the release of the autopsy reports has been scheduled for Dec. 21. While the hearing was petitioned by the coroner and is thus a civil matter, both the prosecution and defense in the Watts case have been granted the right to intervene.

The defense has said that releasing the reports wouldn’t matter at this time, as the prosecution has already damaged the integrity of the case.

The defense alleges that the prosecution is responsible for leaks to the media that may have come from law enforcement. The prosecution said it has sent emails to the relevant departments reminding them to not make extrajudicial statements. The court denied the defense’s request for an investigation into the leaks.