Tucson FD: Watson resigns after arrest

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - A Tucson fire captain who was arrested on April 25 and charged with the murders of three women in a 15-year-old cold case resigned on Wednesday, according to the Tucson Fire Department.

David Watson is accused of allegedly killing his ex-wife Linda Watson, her mother Marilyn Cox and Cox's friend Renee Farnsworth.

According to a statement from TFD, the department presented Watson with a notice of intent to discharge. Instead of accepting this paperwork, Watson resigned and is no longer a TFD employee.

A spokesman for the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System said Watson, by quitting, is due his pension equal to what he put into the system.

He is not vested (20-plus years) and therefore does not get lifetime benefits.

State law prohibits denying public safety personnel their pension payments that they paid into, even in the event of a felony arrest/conviction.