Watts pleads guilty to killing Jeffrey Beach

Published 6:27 am Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Jeff Beach, who was killed in the Long Beach dunes in 2015 after attending a softball tournament, is pictured helping up an opposing player. Nearly a decade following his death, a man has pleaded guilty to the slaying.

LONG BEACH — More than nine years since Jeffrey Beach was killed on July 3, 2015, near the dunes off 120th Place in Long Beach, a man has admitted to the crime but faces a maximum of five years in prison.

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The incident left Beach’s family broken and desperate for answers as to why he was killed and who was responsible.

Beach was on the peninsula for a softball tournament over the Fourth of July holiday. Later, he was on the beach allegedly intoxicated. It is possible he inappropriately touched an underage female, sparking a vicious beating that left him unconscious.

Pull Quote

‘We will continue to close out old cases as we can — this is a long road that we are on but the victims deserve it.’

Sheriff Daniel Garcia

In prior news coverage, the Observer outlined an investigation that saw no significant developments for over six years. The Pacific County Sheriff’s Office quickly got an idea of what happened, but putting enough puzzle pieces together to get an arrest proved to be a significant task — made much more complicated by witness tampering by the prime suspect.

Between 2015 and 2018, then-detective Ryan Tully and the agency had substantial evidence that pointed to twin brothers as potential perpetrators — Charles and Clarence Watts. Investigators knew that the duo were called to the aid of Charles’ daughter, who alleged Beach touched her. The brothers and another man confronted Beach and assaulted him.

Beach then reportedly ran from the scene and was chased by Charles toward the dunes. There are still no known witnesses who saw precisely what happened between the chase and when Beach was found unresponsive by emergency responders, which included Natalie St. John, an Observer reporter and volunteer EMT with Pacific County Fire District No. 1.

Garcia revives case

Pacific County Sheriff Daniel Garcia came into office on Jan. 1, 2023, and vowed to the family and others that he would find answers. He handed off the task to new detectives Cory Nacnac and Kevin Acdal, and the county opened a special inquiry to force witnesses to give formal testimony.

“He is committed to keeping his word,” Chief Civil Deputy Hollie Billeci said about Garcia’s pledge.

As documented in the May 20 Observer article “New detectives crack years-long unsolved murder” — tinyurl.com/Beach-case-solved — Nacnac, Acdal and Pacific County Prosecutor Michael Rothman and former senior deputy prosecutor Daniel Crawford hammered down those testimonies from May 10-15.

According to court records, the investigators and testimony elicited statements from Charles’ daughter, Danja Vancleave, and others to the effect that they were fully aware of what had happened. Vancleave told investigators on May 15 that her dad had shown her how to access financial information that morning in case he was arrested.

Vancleave gave the investigators damning testimony, including stating that “she believes her father was capable of losing control and killing Jeffrey at that time.” Investigators had several witness accounts of the first assault, and that Charles then chased after Beach, and that they took actions to keep everything they knew under tight wraps.

The testimony acquired during the special inquiry landed Rothman enough information to do what two previous prosecutors declined to do: officially filing charges. On May 16, Rothman secured a felony warrant for Charles’s arrest for second-degree manslaughter and first-degree manslaughter.

It was expected the case would take over a year to resolve or even go all the way to trial due to multiple issues, including dysfunction in the prosecutor’s office, which struggles with debilitating staff turnover.

In court

The case reached a surprising resolution on Nov. 20 in Pacific County Superior Court in front of Conflict Judge David L. Mistachkin. The county’s superior court judge, Donald J. Richter, recused himself from presiding over the case because he worked in the Pacific County Prosecutor’s Office during the initial investigation in 2015.

According to court records, Watts pleaded guilty to amended charges of second-degree manslaughter and five counts of witness tampering. Watts faces a standard range of 41-61 months under the plea agreement, with the prosecutor’s office recommending the latter.

The Beach family also got to hear something they had waited over nine years for — an admission that someone was responsible for their son’s death.

“On July 3, 2015, in Long Beach, Washington, I did assault Jeffrey Beach unintentionally but negligently, causing his death,” Watts admitted in his plea agreement. “Following the assault of Jeffrey Beach, I instructed Dejore Owens (Count 2), Taylor Watts (Count 3), Danja Vancleave-Watts (Count 4), Debra Williams (Count 5), and Yolanda Hernandez (Count 6), all persons with knowledge of the assault on Jeffrey Beach, to withhold information from law enforcement investigating the assault of Jeffrey Beach.”

After nearly a decade since the crime, Watts will receive a maximum of five years in prison, with credit for the six months he has already served in Pacific County Jail. The sentencing judge must sentence within the standard range, “unless the judge finds substantial and compelling reasons not to do so.”

Watts is scheduled to be formally sentenced on Dec. 20.

Rothman speaks

Rothman’s decision to plead the case out to lesser counts was based on weighing the ability to secure a verdict at trial, accounting for the statute of limitations, and handing out justice for the Beach family. Defendants can opt to waive their rights under the statute of limitations which is usually done for a ‘favorable’ plea agreement to a lesser count. 

“Given the age of the case the statute of limitations was a concern regarding the manslaughter charges,” Rothman said. “Had the matter proceeded to trial this concern would have forced the prosecution to adopt an all or nothing strategy on a charge of murder in the second degree. After discussing these concerns with the Beach family, we settled on the plea to one count of manslaughter second degree and five counts of witness tampering.”

“I cannot speak to the decisions that were made regarding this case prior to me becoming the prosecuting attorney. I can say that the work of Detectives Cory Nacnac and Kevin Acdal were the driving force behind this conviction. New evidence obtained by the Sheriff’s Office compelled me to file criminal charges.,” Rothman added.

The investigation also involved assistance from the Washington State Attorney General, King County Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Garcia wraps it up

“I am very glad that we were able to put all the work we did into this case,” Garcia said. “I pray for closures and strength for the Beach family. I am grateful for the education and experience this has provided for us to be able to serve the people better.

“We are working hard to ensure that justice does not take this long in the future. Unfortunately, everything we get done is a concession and there are not enough of us for the workload that exists. We will continue to close out old cases as we can — this is a long road that we are on but the victims deserve it.”

Billeci added, “Although the outcome is not what we had hoped for and worked toward, we understand the situation the prosecution was in and all of the nuances of the case.”

One of the biggest concerns with taking the case to trial was how a jury would respond when the defense placed Vancleave on the stand and gave testimony about the alleged sexual assault — and whether they would sympathize with Watts.

Clarence was a co-defendant in the coverup and intimidation of witnesses following Beach’s murder. He faced charges of intimidating a witness and tampering with evidence. He allegedly assisted Charles in bullying others to stay quiet. His charges were suddenly dropped on Nov. 20.

“The resolution of this case is the best possible outcome given the passage of time and available evidence while providing certainty for the victims,” Rothman said. “Clarence Watts’ charges were dismissed at the request of Charles Watts, as part of the plea negotiations. My sympathy goes out to the victims of this crime.”

The Observer reached out to the Beach family, who declined to comment. They are expected to give oral statements during the sentencing hearing.

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