This is the seemingly normal photograph that was used as evidence in court against a husband convicted of manslaughter. Although the picture seems perfectly normal at first glance, it shows a woman lying on the ocean floor, surrounded by scuba rescuers desperately trying to save her life.
Tina Watson tragically met her end aged 26 during her honeymoon in Australia in 2003, just 11 days after exchanging vows with her husband, Gabe Watson.
Initially, he faced accusations of being responsible for her death.
The couple’s ill-fated plan was to dive along the anchor line of their ship, drift across the top of a shipwreck, and then ascend via another anchor line to reach the surface.
However, according to Watson’s account, a powerful current diverted them from their intended course.
A lasting image from this case is that of Tina’s lifeless body resting on the seabed.
This photograph was taken when a dive master descended to locate her after her husband had left her behind to sink.
It is said that Watson broke down in court when shown this picture. “As soon as we let go,” he said, “we were moving, moving quite a bit. It was definitely not what I was expecting, and neither was Tina.”
In his version of events, when they found themselves unable to swim against the current, he gestured to his wife to adjust her buoyancy compensator so they could begin ascending.
He said in court: “Nothing happened from the inflator hose,” Watson said. “That was when I realised, you know, We’re — This isn’t good. We’re in trouble.
“So I reached out and grabbed a hold of the b.c. strap right there. And I just pulled her in, and then I turned and started heading back to the anchor rope.”
But then he claims that he felt a sudden blow to his face from Tina, which dislodged his mask. To properly reposition his mask, Gabe released Tina, but upon turning back, he discovered that she had descended 10 feet below and was still sinking.
“She was face up, and she had her arms up. She was reaching out for me to grab ahold of her,” he said.
Gabe went on: “I kinda just turned on my head and gave a few kicks down to see if I could grab her and she was still out of arm’s reach. And that — I just decided I got to go find somebody.”
He left and swam to the surface. “I don’t think I was making rational choices at that point,” he said. “I don’t know what I would have done had I stayed with her. I don’t know that there’s anything that I was actually capable of doing.”
After reaching the surface, Gabe urgently called for assistance. A dive master descended to retrieve Tina, and despite the efforts of crew members and fellow passengers, they made futile attempts for 40 minutes to resuscitate her.
Gabe Watson was subsequently convicted of manslaughter and served 12 months of a four-and-a-half-year sentence.
A later retrial in Alabama in 2012 was dismissed by a judge who cited a lack of evidence to support a murder conviction against Watson.
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