Candace Montgomery slashed her best friend Betty Gore 41 times with a three-foot ax in June 1980 after having an affair with Gore’s husband — and got away with it.
Candy Montgomery, a suburban housewife, appeared to have it all: a loving husband, children, and a best friend named Betty Gore in whom she could confide. But the 30-year-old Collin County, Texas, Christian would grow tired of her routine. As a result, she began an affair with her best friend’s husband — and mu*rdered her when she discovered it.
On June 13, 1980, local cops entered the Gore home and discovered it drenched in blood. The 30-year-old mother of two had been slashed to death with 41 axe swings, 28 of which mutilated her head and face. Montgomery was charged with Gore’s m*urder because she was the last person seen with her.
Her trial, as portrayed in Hulu’s Candy series, became one of the most contentious in local history. Montgomery was acquitted of all charges the day before Halloween after pleading not guilty on the grounds of self-defense.
Perhaps most shocking of all, she simply started a new life — as a family counselor.
Candy Montgomery’s Suburban Life And Torrid Affair
Candace “Candy” Wheeler was born in Lucas, Texas in 1951. She grew up as an Army brat, spending the majority of her childhood moving from one military town to the next. When she met Pat Montgomery as an adult, she finally began her own life.
Texas Instruments’ electrical engineer married her right away. They subsequently purchased a lovely home in Wylie. Montgomery gave birth to a daughter, Jenny, in 1973, and a son, Ian, in October 1974.
Betty Gore was mu*rdered while her newborn child slept in its crib.
She later joined the Lucas First United Methodist Church, where she met Betty Gore.
Gore met her husband Allan while working as a teaching assistant in college. Before relocating to Collin County, they married in 1970 and had a daughter, Alisa. Her husband, like Pat Montgomery, worked at Rockwell International as an engineer. Meanwhile, Jenny and Alisa became inseparable.
Then, in the summer of 1978, Allan ran into Candy Montgomery on the church volleyball court.
They agreed to have an affair after weeks of flirting, despite Betty Gore’s recent pregnancy for the second time.
They met at the Como Motel in Richardson on a regular basis until Allan abruptly ended the affair after the birth of his daughter Bethany in July 1979, leaving Montgomery devastated.
The Mu*rder Of Betty Gore
Allan was away on a business trip in Minnesota on June 13, 1980, and his daughter Alisa was at the Montgomery house to give his wife time alone with their newborn.
However, when Montgomery went to pick up a swimsuit for Alisa that day, all hell allegedly broke loose. Betty Gore confronted Montgomery, according to journalists Jim Atkinson and Jim Bloom.
“Candy,” she inquired, “are you having an affair with Allan?”
Montgomery later claimed that Gore first attacked her with the ax before using it in self-defense. Regardless, she struck Gore 41 times, mostly in the face. Her torso, arms, and legs had all been mutilated. Montgomery then went back to his house as if nothing had happened, leaving Gore’s newborn in the crib upstairs.
Candy Montgomery was acquitted of mu*rdering her best friend with an axe at trial.
Meanwhile, Allan Gore became concerned when he couldn’t reach his wife. He called his neighbor Richard Parker, as well as Jerry McMahan and Lester Gayler, to check in on her. He also called Montgomery, who stated that she had seen Gore earlier but that everything was fine.
Gayler remembered “thick, congealed reddish-brown oceans of blood glistening on the tile” that led to Gore’s body in the utility room. Allan called Montgomery again at 11:30 p.m. to inform her that Gore had died.
Montgomery agreed to keep an eye on Alisa before collapsing in her husband’s arms.
The Sensational Trial Of Candy Montgomery
When police arrived, they noticed a bloody shoe print. There was also blood on the bathroom wall and drain, indicating that the ki*ller had washed before fleeing. According to Collin County investigator Steven Deffibaugh, the print led them to focus on female or underage suspects.
Montgomery used garden shears to cut up her sandals when this was reported in the news, while police were unaware. Montgomery was questioned because he was the last person seen with Gore. She claimed she went to the house early in the morning to get Alisa’s swimsuit and then left to teach Bible class.
Alisa’s five-year-old friend, on the other hand, had come by to play with her and witnessed Montgomery leave the house at 11 a.m. Allan Gore had informed police of his affair with Montgomery by June 17, and because Montgomery refused to take a polygraph, she was arrested on June 27 and charged with mu*rder.
As she changed into her prison uniform, jailers noticed cuts on her toe and bruises on her head. Montgomery’s trial began in October at the Collin County courthouse and lasted eight days. Montgomery ki*lled Gore in self-defense, according to defense attorney Dan Crowder, after Gore hit her with the axe after learning of the affair.
Meanwhile, Dr. Fred Fason of Houston claimed Montgomery blacked out during the mu*rder and was triggered by childhood trauma. He had hypnotized Montgomery prior to the trial, leading her to recall her mother shushing her as a child — something she remembered doing to Gore as she died.
“I smacked her. I smacked her. “I hit her,” Montgomery admitted on the stand.
On Oct. 30, 1989, a jury of nine women and three men deliberated for three hours before acquitting her of mur*der.
Three months later, the Montgomerys moved far away, only to divorce. Candy Montgomery is said to be a free woman living in Georgia and working as a certified therapist and family counselor.
