For four years, no one took much notice of the death, as there is a drowning in the Australian state of Queensland about once a week. Tina's parents however, set out to get the attention of the media and by 2007 had succeeded. Other people had been diving near Gabe and Tina when Tina died. One diver had photographed Tina, lying on the ocean floor, while taking a picture of another diver on holiday. This picture was not known until a couple of weeks later when the pictures were developed. Investigators were uncertain if Tina was already dead in the picture or if she was unconscious. The picture gives no clues as to what made Tina sink to the bottom.
After being informed by Tina Watson's family that flowers and gifts were repeatedly being vandalized or disappearing from the grave site, even when chained down, Sergeant Flinn investigated. On hidden surveillance videos, he saw Gabe Watson removing them with bolt cutters and putting them into the trash, which Flinn then showed to media.
Tina Watson's father told the media in November 2009, two months after the appeal decision, that he thinks Gabe is a copycat killer. He might have got the idea for the murder by a copying the way another, almost successful, murder was done in the British Virgin Islands.
The death of Tina Watson was shown in a 90-minute account that was shown on "Dateline NBC" on Monday, May 19, 2008. Watson's death caused media attention in both Australian and American media and also from media around the world because of the unusual case.
However, media in particular from the Australian state of Queensland, have continually described Tina's death as "murder" while Queensland Courts have found it to be manslaughter by way of a failure to rescue. This issue finally came to a head with the "Townsville Bulletin" on 10 February 2010. They again described Tina's death as "murder". Seven days later they published an apology and correction which says:
On July 17, 2010 a leading Australian daily newspaper, "The Age", published a complete review of the Watson case "Death on Reef Mystery". The author was award-winning investigative journalist Peter Patrick. This is the first media account to contain first-hand interviews from both Gabe Watson's family and Tina's family. Relying on technical experts, the story reports that Gabe was exonerated by the Queensland Court of Appeal of murder but convicted of failing to comply with a previously unused and little-known part of the Queensland Penal Code. This is a violation of section 290. He says the court decided to call this manslaughter. The story says the charge amounts to a crime by Gabe of failing to rescue his wife, once she got into trouble. It also explains Tina's extensive history of heart irregularity and the medication she was taking, on the morning of her death, including anti-sea-sickness pills. Patrick says that Tina gave a 'no' answer to the medical question at her diving induction, which asked about prior heart disease. He also states that because Mr. Watson had been absent from diving for some years, his level of rescue skill would have been that of beginner.
The story would eventually have worldwide ramifications, for in a footnote, Patrick revealed he had written to Australia's Attorney General, Robert McClelland MP, requesting Watson not be deported to Alabama, because of the risk he faced from the death penalty in that state and because he had already been tried in the Australian State of Queensland, with a comprehensive review by the Queensland Court of Appeal. This brought an instant response from an Alabama police web site, questioning the link between the journalist and Mr. Watson.
On December 15, 2010, Watson appeared before Judge Tommy Nail in the 10th Judicial Circuit, Jefferson County, Alabama and requested bail.
The courtroom was packed with his friends and relatives, both Australian and U.S. media with a smaller showing from Tina's family.
Don Valeska Alabama's assistant attorney general, told the judge the basis of the Grand Jury indictment of Gabe Watson was evidence from Tommy Thomas that Gabe Watson had murdered Tina Watson for insurance money.
In often heated argument, Judge Nail said that motive could not be substituted for evidence. He asked what hard evidence the State had against Watson. Mr Valeska replied that the question of motive was a question for the jury.
After an hour-long hearing, Watson was granted bail with a bond of $100,000. He had to wear a monitoring radio bracelet, surrender his passport, not leave Alabama, and remain indoors at his home from sundown to sunup during the bail.
On hearing that bail was to be granted, those in the courtroom rose and cheered, causing Judge Nail to respond with the words, "Sit-down, sit-down; this is not a spectator sport."
On January 31, 2011, Gabe Watson appeared in Judge Nail's court to formally answer two charges: firstly, that he had kidnapped Tina and taken her to Australia with the intention of murdering her, and secondly, that he had then murdered her while Scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef.
He pleaded "Not Guilty" to both charges.
The trial date was set for 23 May 2011 (later changed to 13 February 2012 due to security concerns). Mr Valeska told Judge Nail that important witnesses were to be flown in from Australia. He then added that a previous witness Mr David Glasgow, the Queensland Magistrate who was the Australian official responsible for Gabe's indictment of murder in Australia, would not now be called. No reason was given as to the reason why the State had changed its mind on calling Mr Glasgow. The arraignment lasted just fourteen minutes.
On February 23, 2012, the case against David Gabriel "Gabe" Watson was dismissed by Judge Tommy Nail in a Birmingham, Alabama County Court. The Judge found the State's case lacked credibility and said, "It just doesn't make any sense quite frankly."
In concluding his findings, His Honor determined, "There is no evidence to suggest that he [Gabe] intended to kill her and he hatched it here and carried it out there. I'm going to grant this defendant's motion. Case dismissed."
Watson was never at risk of facing the death penalty as both the U.S. Government and the State of Alabama had given undertakings to the Australian Government, he would not be executed. He faced a mandatory life sentence, if found guilty.
On 25 August 2012, The Lifetime Movie Network ran a cable TV movie titled, ""Fatal Honeymoon"".
It was billed by the Network as a movie, based on the true-story murder allegations that Gabe Watson had kidnapped then murdered his new wife, Tina Watson, during their scuba-diving trip to Australia in 2003. It stars Billy Miller as Gabe Watson and Aussie Amber Clayton as Tina, with Harvey Keitel in a supporting role as the father of the dead bride. Well-known Aussie actor, Gary Sweet plays tough Queensland cop Detective Campbell, as the lead Australian investigator.
The screenplay follows much of the work of Lindsay Simpson and Jennifer Cooke, published in their book, "Honeymoon Dive", and seems based on this title. While this work remains the most comprehensive attempt to review the death of Tina Watson, current events since publication have largely overtaken the Simpson/Cooke account of the fatality.
"Fatal Honeymoon" was directed by Nadia Tass. The screenwriters were Mac Gudgeon and Teena Booth.
Geoff Berkshire, writing for Variety TV Reviews says of the screenplay, "There's no sense that these stick figures trapped in a by-the-numbers melodrama could be real people swept up in tragic circumstances...Tech credits are in line with low-budget telepic standards."
Similarly, Jill O'Rourke in a review on the website "Crushable", describes "Fatal Honeymoon" as a show, underscoring Lifetime's skill at "making men look irredeemably evil and women look like clueless victims".
City of Wakefield