California man guilty of wife’s murder in Las Vegas hotel

Just moments after a Clark County jury found a California man guilty in the murder and dismemberment of his wife in a Las Vegas hotel room, he tried to insist on the ultimate punishment.

"I stipulate to that (the death penalty)," said John Matthus Watson III on Thursday afternoon after being found guilty of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon and first-degree kidnapping. "I agree."

Senior Judge Sally Loerher told the retired teacher that defendants "don't get to choose their punishment" in Nevada. Jurors will reconvene this morning to hear additional testimony before deciding whether he should receive a death sentence, life without the possibility of parole or life with the possibility of parole. Watson showed no emotion as the verdict was read.

"He was a teacher for 30 years," said one of the detectives who worked the case. "She was going to leave him, and he didn't want to give her half his pension."

The body of Everilda "Evie" Watson has never been found, but the circumstantial evidence against Watson, 69, was compelling.

He was caught on Wal-Mart videotape buying cleaning supplies, including bleach, and incense; on videotape at a Lowe's where he bought a band saw; and at both the Circus Circus and Tuscany hotels.

At the Tuscany, he registered with fake identification, which California police found in his possession when he was arrested.

Watson, of Ontario, Calif., drove to Las Vegas in the middle of July 2006, a day before his wife flew in to celebrate her 50th birthday.

Prosecutor Pam Weckerly told jurors Watson drove because he had a handgun and couldn't board a plane.

He rented a room at Circus Circus in his own name with a valid credit card and two rooms at the Tuscany. The second room, Weckerly said, served as a sound buffer to prevent hotel staff or guests from hearing the saw.

Police found Evie Watson's blood in a Tuscany hotel room shower drain, in Watson's Jeep and on garbage bags found in the garage of his California home.

Her children arrived too late to hear the verdict but were pleased to hear the results from prosecutors.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys Stephanie Kice and Pat MacDonald declined to comment until a verdict is reached in the penalty phase of the case.

Contact reporter Doug McMurdo at dmcmurdo@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5512.