KILLER DAD CHRIS WATTS: "GENDER REVEAL PARTY MADE ME A KILLER”

Chris Watts reportedly claimed that the gender reveal party for his unborn son, Nico, was a significant factor that 'pushed him over the edge' to commit the murders. This claim is presented as a potential, albeit outrageous, motive for his actions.

Nancy Grace introduces the topic at the beginning, stating, 'Does a gender reveal party push killer dad Chris Watts to murder his pregnant wife Shannan and his two little girls Bella and Celeste?' and later, 'Tonight we are learning more about what pushed killer dad Chris Watts over the edge. A gender reveal party.'

Shannan Watts's text messages to a friend reveal her distress over Chris's sudden change of heart regarding their unborn baby and the cancellation of the gender reveal party. She had already made extensive preparations, spending over $860 on supplies, food, and decorations.

Shannan's texts read: 'I haven't slept most of the week. My eyes burn from crying so much. I cancelled the gender reveal.' and 'Chris told me last night he's scared to death about this third baby and he's happy with just Bella and Celeste and doesn't want another baby.' Dave Mack details: 'on August 7th... she spends $860 on party supplies, the cake, cookies, all of this. That's a lot of money for a gender reveal party. But Nancy, that's August 7th. The very next day, she cancels the party.'

Contrary to any 'heat of passion' defense, Chris Watts's own letters confirm he meticulously planned the murders for two weeks prior. His actions were a result of psychological detachment, fueled by a desire for a new life with his mistress, who expressed a wish to have his 'first son.'

Cherylyn Kadel, author who interviewed Watts, states: 'I have letters where he tells me what he did. And he says when he put the girls to bed that night, he knew that was the last time he would be kissing his babies good night because he was going to kill them. He had been planning for two weeks how to do this.' Dr. Gerilyn Utter explains: 'he had been over that six-week period fantasizing about this new life with this new woman... he started to look at his family more or less as an obstacle.' Kadel adds: 'She told him, "I want to have your first son." And I think that had a lot to do with in his head why he all of a sudden didn't want the son he had coming.'

The two young girls, Bella and Celeste, were smothered. Bella, the older sister, showed signs of a greater struggle, biting her tongue and cheeks, possibly after witnessing Celeste's murder. Their bodies were then shoved through small openings into cylindrical oil containers, causing abrasions. Shannan was manually strangled and buried in a shallow grave, where the decomposition process led to a 'coffin birth' of their unborn son, Nico.

Dr. Kendall Crowns, Chief Medical Examiner, details: 'each little girl... appear to have been smothered. Bella... bites her tongue, she bites the sides of her cheek. I think it's because she saw her sister be smothered by her father first, and she knew what was coming, so she struggled more.' He continues: 'he then shoved them into the oil tanker and each child has abrasions on their body from actually being shoved through this small opening.' Regarding Shannan: 'she was strangled. He... manually strangled her with her hands until she died, wrapped her in a sheet and then buried her in a shallow grave.' He explains 'coffin birth' as 'the pressures from the decomposition gases causing the fetus to be expelled out of the uterus.'