Frank and Sandra Rzucek, the parents of Shannan Watts, filed a civil lawsuit against their deceased daughter's husband Chris Watts on November 17, the same day he was sentenced to three lifetimes in prison with no chance of parole. In the $100,000 suit, the couple charges Watts with the unlawful death of their daughter and the unlawful termination of 34-year-old Shannan's pregnancy. People reports that Chris and Shannan Watts had already chosen the name Nico for their third child prior to Chris's murder of Shannan and their two daughters. Frank Rzucek was able to file the lawsuit despite a Colorado law restricting the filing of such suits to the spouse of the deceased only because he is the designated representative of his daughter's estate.
The Daily Mail reported details about the final hours of the Watts' daughters, 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste, as revealed in newly released court documents. Those documents indicate that Chris Watts took the girls to a birthday party on the afternoon of Saturday, August 12. While they swam at the party, he texted co-worker Kodi Roberts. At 5:06 p.m., he sent Roberts a text in which he indicated that he was going to drive out to a distant oil field owned by his company, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. The bodies of his wife and two daughters were later found in that field.
