South Carolina Criminal Lawyer Blog

Gabe Watson is being accused of shutting off his new wife's oxygen tank while scuba diving in Australia on their honeymoon. Watson is now known as the "honeymoon killer" and is now being indicted on two counts of murder.

Allegedly, Watson turned off his new bride's air supply during their diving trip and held her underwater. At first, he was charged with murder in Queensland. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2009 and finished his sentence of 18 months in a Queensland prison. At present, Watson has been deported to the United States under the condition that he would not face the death penalty if he is re-tried in Alabama.

The suspected motive in this case is money. Watson stood to gain over $200,000 in insurance if his wife would die. Watson's criminal defense attorney is arguing that Tina Watson's death was misinterpreted by Australian authorities. The authorities used Watson's dive computer as evidence of guilt and viewed new evidence with that in mind. The criminal defense attorney is also arguing that Tina Watson accidentally knocked off her husband's dive mask, which is why he had to swim to the surface alone.

In fact, two highly experienced divers witnessed the indcident and they found that Watson's story is just not plausible. One witness stated that he saw Watson swim to his wife and he thought Watson was trying to save her, but "then he just let her go." There is a photo of his wife lying motionless on the sea floor that was introduced as evidence and an Australian police officer testified that Watson was calm and cooperative until he was told he could not have his dive computer back. The dive computer is a watch-like device that tracks a swimmer's dive. Watson and his wife quickly returned to the boat at the beginning of his dive because his computer was beeping. Prosecutors think that was a ploy to get his wife away from other divers to kill her.

Many jurisdictions divide murder by degrees. The most common divisions are between first and second degree murder. Generally, second degree murder is common law murder, and first degree is an aggravated murder. The aggravating factors of first degree murder are a specific intent to kill, premeditation, and deliberation. Additionally, murder committed by acts such as strangulation, poisoning, or lying in wait are also treated as first degree murder.

It will be interesting to see the outcome of Watson's trial. If you or someone you know has been charged with a serious crime, call one of the criminal defense attorneys at The Mace Firm. Our Myrtle Beach criminal defense lawyers are ready to speak with you about your case.