Photo: Instagram
They claim their son was in an abusive relationship with the wife he murdered.
By Kayla Kibbe — Written on Nov 16, 2018
Who are Chris Watts' parents? Cindy and Ronnie Watts, the parents of the Colorado man accused of murdering his wife and two young daughters, have spoken out about the case for the first time, coming to their son's defense in the wake of his recent guilty plea in a recent interview with local station KMGH.
Watts, 33, was arrested back in August, two days after his pregnant wife, Shanann, 34, was reported missing. Her body, along with the bodies of the couple's two daughters, Bella, 4 and Celeste, 3, was uncovered the following day at Andarko Petroleum Corporation, where Watts was employed until his arrest. Watts was charged on August 20 with five counts of first-degree murder, one count of unlawful termination of a pregnancy and three counts of tampering with a deceased body.
Although Watts initially maintained his innocence, giving a series of eerie interviews pleading for the safe return of his wife and daughter in the hours before his arrest, he has since pleaded guilty to the nine charges.
Watts' parents, however, continue to support their son, coming to his defense with the controversial claim that their son was the victim of an abusive relationship with his slain wife.
Here's everything you need to know about Ronnie and Cindy Watts and their controversial defense of their son.
1. A "normal" childhood
Watts' parents maintain their son had a normal childhood and didn't display any worrisome behaviors growing up. “He was in sports from when he was 5 until 17 years old,” Watts' mother said in an interview with the local station. “He was normal, he didn’t have a temper, he was just easygoing like his dad.”
2. "Not A Monster"
"He's not a sociopath, he's not a psychopath," Watts' mother said in the interview. However, while Cindy Watts maintains her son is "not a monster," investigative experts disagree. Following Watts' arrest in August, criminal analyst and forensic profiler Dale Yeager told People that the confessed killer "comes off as sociopathic," noting his "incredibly large ego" and comparing Watts to a "less charismatic" Scott Peterson, the notorious murder who killed his pregnant wife back in 2002.
3. Abuse Allegations
According to People, the couple claims their son "changed when he married Shanann." Watts' parents called their son's marriage difficult, adding that their own relationship with their daughter-in-law was strained. "It was a very hard relationship with her as far as I’m concerned. I couldn’t do anything right," said Cindy. The couple claims their daughter-in-law was "abusive" and "isolated Chris from his family."
4. Questioning Shanann
Prior to his guilty plea, Watts claimed that he murdered Shanann after "flying into a rage" when he allegedly discovered his wife strangling their daughter with the cord of a baby monitor. In their interview, Watts' parents claim that their son suggested Shanann was responsible for the death of the couple's daughters. "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 told the station. "It’s hard for me to believe that he would hurt them girls no matter what,” he continued. “The story he told me that night, I believed it: The way he looked at me, the way he was crying, I believed it."
5. Response from Shanann's family
Shanann's family has since responded to the Watts' interview, slamming the couple's suggestion that their son may not be responsible for the tragedy in a statement released to the station. "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," the statement read before concluding, "Shanann’s memory and reputation deserves to be protected. And her family is fully prepared to do so."
Chris Watts awaits sentencing on Monday.
Kayla Kibbe is a writer wrapping up her final semester at Connecticut College where she is an English major with a concentration in creative writing. She covers trending celebrity and entertainment news, love and relationships, and astrology.
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