Where is Chris Watts today? A look at his life in prison after family murders

Chris Watts, who turned 39 on May 16, has been in prison in Wisconsin since 2018 after murdering his wife Shanann and his young daughters Bella and Celeste in Colorado.

RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post via Getty Images

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Chris Watts seemingly had it all. He had met his wife Shanann after sending her a friend request on Facebook, and together they had two beautiful children with a third on the way.

But the semblance of a dream life was shattered when Shanann and her two daughters, Bella and Celeste, disappeared from their Colorado home in August 2018. After initially denying knowledge of their whereabouts, Watts eventually admitted to killing all three.

Since confessing to the murder of his wife and two daughters, Watts – who turned 39 on Thursday, May 16 – has been in prison, mostly in Wisconsin, where he will likely remain for the rest of his life.

Although it has been nearly six years since Shanann, Bella and Celeste died, the case continues to generate attention, including through a Netflix documentary – which a source told PEOPLE “triggered” Watts – and several TV specials.

Here’s what you need to know about what happened in the years following the murders and about Watts’ life today.

Related topics: Chris Watts case: After investigators comment on confession, a look back at the tragic murders of 2018

Chris Watts spoke out after his wife and daughters disappeared

Chris Watts met Shanann in 2010. At that time, she was struggling with health problems.

“I was really, really, really sick and I got a friend request from Chris on Facebook,” she said in a video she posted online months before her murder.

The couple’s first child, Bella, was born in 2013, and Celeste came two years later. In 2018, Shanann became pregnant with a third child, this time a boy.

Shanann and the two girls were first reported missing on August 13, 2018. The next day, Watts gave interviews to local television stations.

“If somebody has them and they’re not safe, I want them back immediately. That’s my mindset. If they’re safe now, they’re going to come back,” Watts told Denver 7. “But if they’re not safe now, that’s the not knowing part. Last night, I had all the lights on in the house and I was hoping that I would just be overrun by the kids just running in and overrunning me, but that didn’t happen. And it was just a traumatic night to be here.”

Watts confessed to killing his wife and daughters

On August 15, 2018, two days after his wife and daughters were reported missing, Watts confessed to Shanann’s murder, according to police, but claimed he smothered the children after telling her he wanted to separate from her.

The next day, Bella and Celeste’s bodies were found in the oil tanks where Watts worked, while her body was found buried in a shallow grave nearby.

Police did not believe Watts’ defense that he killed his wife only because she had killed the two girls. Instead, they believed Watts had murdered all three.

Then in November, Watts made a stunning turnaround and pleaded guilty to killing his wife and daughters.

“The evidence against him was overwhelming,” a source close to Watts told PEOPLE at the time. “Given the evidence, he had no choice. It took him a while to get around to it, but he did it.”

Watts was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Revelation of the Watts affair?

Before Watts pleaded guilty, it was revealed that he had an affair with a colleague.

The woman, Nichol Kessinger, came forward and told authorities that she had assumed Watts would pursue an amicable divorce during the course of their relationship.

Where is Watts imprisoned?

Although Watts was convicted and sentenced in Colorado, he was transferred to a prison in Wisconsin in December 2018. KKTV reported at the time that the move was for security reasons.

A spokesperson for the Wisconsin Department of Corrections told PEOPLE that Watts is incarcerated at Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun, where he has been since 2018.

Watts is part of the general population, meaning he can train once or twice a day Monday through Friday, depending on the day of the week, the spokesman said.

Dodge is a maximum security prison that has also housed other notable inmates, including Jake Patterson, who was convicted of kidnapping Jayme Closs and murdering her parents. He was transferred out of state after serving a few months in Dodge.

Of Watts’ incarceration, a source told PEOPLE in 2019 that the convicted murderer “has nothing else to do but think. He thinks about what he did every day. His past and the mistakes he made torment him.”

Netflix

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Did Watts violate prison regulations?

While incarcerated in Dodge, Watts received two reports about his conduct, according to the spokesperson. The first was in 2020 for “unauthorized forms of communication and unauthorized transfer of property.” For that report, he lost his phone privileges for 15 days and his cafeteria privileges for 30 days.

The second report on his conduct was received in 2021, according to the spokesman, and related to “disobeying orders and possession of various contraband.” Watts subsequently lost access to electronic devices for 10 days.

Further details about the incidents were not initially available.

What does Watts keep in his cell?

In 2019, PEOPLE reported that Watts kept photos of Shanann, Bella and Celeste in his cell, sparking outrage and an online petition with more than 20,000 signatures calling on officials to remove the photos.

The request was unsuccessful and the prison department explained this in a statement to PEOPLE at the time by saying that it had “no legal basis to remove the photos of Christopher Watts”.

“Inmates are permitted to possess certain identified property, including photographs,” the statement continued. “Some photographs are not permitted, such as those showing gang symbols, colors or insignia, or photographs depicting nudity.”

PEOPLE had previously reported that Watts calls himself a man of God and keeps a Bible in his cell.

Who does Watts talk to in prison?

Watts was back in the news in 2022 when PEOPLE reported, citing a prison source, that Watts had corresponded with several women while incarcerated.

“They send sexy pictures and he responds,” the source told PEOPLE. “A lot of women find him attractive and misunderstood. They send a lot of letters.”

The source told PEOPLE that Watts spent money on stamps and paper in the prison cafeteria.

“He has nothing else to do,” the source said. “So this is how he feeds his ego. Because he is not popular at all in prison. He is in protective custody. The only outlet he has is these letters.”

Does Watts have a job in prison?

The Department of Corrections told PEOPLE in 2023 that Watts worked as a janitor at the prison.

Watts turned 38 in prison on May 16, 2023, but received no special treatment, according to a spokesman.

The convicted murderer turns 39 later this month.

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