Neighbor Joanne Carroll told us about this 2004 Kessler Park murder case, which has gone cold. She is close to it because she was a tennant of Steve Watts until about a year before he was killed. We asked her to write something about the case, and this is what she sent us:
James Stephen Watts, 64, know as "Steve" to his friends, loved animals. He’d help a stray at anytime of day of night. He was an antique collector and interior designer. He was soft-spoken and had no known enemies. No one could think of who would want to hurt Steve, let alone kill him.
Steve was beaten to death in his home the same weekend that there was a quadruple homicide in McKinney, so his story didn’t get much news coverage. Police were surprised that they had not received any tips, even with a reward that was offered. Six years later, you can barely find any reference to his death on the Internet. What happened to Steve is clear to police, but the who and why have escaped them.
On March 12, 2004, Steve’s brother made arrangements to visit him. When he arrived at the airport, Steve was not there to pick him up as planned. He called Steve’s cell phone but got no answer. So Steve’s brother eventually took a cab to the house. The door was locked and no one answered. Sensing that something was wrong, he forced open the door. Inside he found his brother, beaten to death. Missing from Steve’s home were some small items of value. The police questioned a few people vigorously, but there were no arrests and the case went cold.
After six years, police have no solid leads. They assume the killer is someone from Steve’s personal life, and they are certain it was not a stranger. If anyone has any information about this unsolved homicide, please call Det. John Davision of Dallas Homicide at 214.671.3687.
