No need for defence … Gabe Watson celebrates with his family after his acquittal. Prosecutors cannot appeal and Mr Watson will not face any more trials. Photo: Reuters LOS ANGELES: Alabama’s top prosecutor says he is sick to his stomach that a judge let Gabe Watson walk out of court a free man. In a surprise move Judge Tommy Nail ended the trial inside the Jefferson County Courthouse in Birmingham,ghd straighteners, Alabama, on Thursday after the prosecution called its last witness. Judge Nail said ’'the evidence is sorely lacking’‘ that Mr Watson murdered his wife, Tina Thomas Watson, for financial gain when they were scuba diving during their honeymoon in Queensland in 2003 and there was no need for Mr Watson’s legal team to present a defence. Advertisement: Story continues below ’'We are stunned, shocked,’‘ said Don Valeska, the lead prosecutor for the Alabama attorney-general’s violent crime unit. ’'I’m sick to my stomach.’‘ Prosecutors cannot appeal and Mr Watson will not face any more trials. Mr Valeska said he had never before had a trial end in a judge’s acquittal in 41 years of trying cases. Mr Watson, 34,mulberry sale, had faced life in prison without parole. Mr Watson and Ms Thomas flew from Alabama to Australia for their honeymoon in October 2003 and one of the highlights was supposed to be a 10-day scuba diving cruise of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. On October 22, they donned scuba gear and dived the SS Yongala wreck off the coast of Townsville. Mr Watson claimed his 26-year-old wife, an inexperienced diver, got into trouble and he swam to the surface to get help rather than stay with her. Ms Thomas was found lifeless on the sea floor. Mr Watson served 18 months‘ jail in Queensland after pleading guilty in 2009 to his wife’s involuntary manslaughter but Mr Valeska, after being contacted by Ms Thomas‘ father, prosecuted Mr Watson on a charge of murder for monetary gain. Mr Valeska said the prosecution case was dented by Judge Nail’s decision not to allow the jury to see a Queensland police re-enactment at the Yongala dive site and surveillance video of Mr Watson removing flowers from Ms Watson’s grave. Judge Nail also refused to let a jury hear testimony from Mr Thomas that Mr Watson had asked Ms Thomas to increase her life insurance five-fold before they left for Queensland. Judge Nail agreed with defence arguments that prosecutors had failed to show that Mr Watson intentionally killed Ms Thomas for insurance money, but the only eyewitness testified that he thought Mr Watson was trying to save her. The state’s evidence was ’'sorely lacking’‘ and did not prove Watson had any financial motive. ’'I don’t think anyone knows for sure what happened in the water down there,’‘ Judge Nail said. Mr Thomas was devastated by Judge Nail’s decision,roger vivier flats, Mr Valeska said. Mr Watson, his new wife Kim, and other family members wept and hugged in the courtroom when the decision was announced. ’'We hope this decision by Judge Nail gives closure to everyone – to the Thomas family, to the Watson family,’‘ said Mr Watson’s lawyer, Brett Bloomston, with Mr Watson standing behind him outside the court. ’'It has been a nightmare for Gabe and his family and it has been a nightmare for Tina and her family. We all wanted justice. We all wanted the court to hear what little information was presented and the judge determined it wasn’t enough. ’'We are just very, very happy Gabe can get some closure and move on and start his life over.’‘ AAP, Associated Press

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