The Big Picture

• True crime fad survives backlash with new series like Love and Death, exploring Candy Montgomery murder case.
• Candy Montgomery confessed to killing Betty Gore with an ax, but was surprisingly acquitted at trial.
• After acquittal, Candy Montgomery became the subject of three true crime adaptations, including Love and Death.

Years come and go, and the true crime fad gives no sign of dying down. From Under the Bridge to The Synanon Fix, numerous docuseries and fictionalized renditions of real life murders, grifts, and cults just keep popping up on our streaming platforms, even with all the backlash that these stories have been getting. And for those that just can't get enough of the genre, catalogs are filled up to the brim with grim stories that have their basis in real life. It all depends on what your jam is. For those that prefer a more domestic approach, Max has got them covered with Love and Death, a true crime drama that has it all from lust to betrayal to, of course, death.

Starring Elizabeth Olsen, Love and Death focuses on Fairview, Texas, housewife Candy Montgomery, accused of murdering her friend Betty Gore with 41 ax blows. Not only that, Candy confessed to the crime. However, by the end of her trial, Montgomery was found not guilty, even though there was enough evidence to convict her. What exactly happened there? Who is the real Candy Montgomery, and what impact did she have in our current true crime landscape?

Who Were Candy Montgomery and Betty Gore?

Candace Lynn Montgomery, known to her friends as Candy, was 29 years old in 1978, when she began an affair with Allan Gore, husband to one of her closest friends, Betty. Living in Fairview, Texas, with her husband and her two kids, Candy spent about a year sleeping with Allan, whose wife was also expecting the couple’s second child. After the baby was born, in 1979, Allan decided it was time to put an end to the relationship. Candy was distraught, but didn’t do anything drastic about it. Betty never confronted her about sleeping with her husband, and, as far as anyone knew, the affair remained Candy and Allan’s secret. About a year later, this all changed.

According to The Dallas Morning News, it was a Friday the 13th, in June 1980, that Betty Gore decided to ask her dear friend Candy if she was having an affair with Allan. Candy had knocked on Betty’s door to pick up a bathing suit for the Gores’ eldest daughter, Alisa, who had spent the night at her place. The two chit-chatted for a while until Betty dropped the question. Though there is some debate as to what exactly happened next, what is known is that Montgomery picked up an ax and killed Gore with it. Betty received a total of 41 blows. Forensic experts later noted that most of the wounds were inflicted after she was already unconscious. However, her heart was still beating for 40 of the blows.

By her own admission, Candy took a shower in Betty's bathroom after the murder and proceeded to go about her daily business. She went out for lunch with friends and later picked up her children, alongside Alisa, from church. Meanwhile, Allan, who was out of town on a business trip, tried to get in contact with his wife. He called home numerous times, but nobody answered. Sensing that there was something wrong, he called a few neighbors and asked them to check in on Betty. Three of them went up to the house and found Betty’s body in the utility room. Upstairs, Betty and Allan’s one-year-old daughter was alone in her crib.

It didn’t take long for the police to start suspecting Candy of the crime, especially after she confessed to having an affair with Allan. Eventually, Candy admitted that she killed Betty, but claimed to have done so in self-defense. According to her version of events, Betty confronted her about the affair and subsequently attacked her with an ax. During the altercation, Candy somehow managed to disarm Betty and charged at her with the weapon, striking her until she was undoubtedly dead.

What Happened During Candy Montgomery’s Trial?

Candy Montgomery took her self-defense allegation to trial. In order to explain how a person can hit another 41 times with an ax in self-defense, her lawyer, Don Crowder, brought in a psychiatrist that testified that Candy had a dissociative reaction during her debate with Betty. Something Betty did — apparently, she told Candy to shush — triggered a deep emotional reaction in Montgomery, activating a buried childhood trauma. Under hypnosis, Candy recounted the events of that fateful Friday the 13th and stated that she lost track of how many times she had beaten Betty. She also claimed that she had no intention of killing her friend and refused to look at the ax when it was brought into the courtroom as evidence.

On October 29, 1980, a jury of three men and nine women acquitted Candy Montgomery of the murder of Betty Gore. Though one juror claimed that the prosecution never had a case against Candy to begin with, another revealed that it took them six secret ballots to arrive at a final verdict. Many spectators were shocked as Montgomery walked freely out of the courtroom. Some shouted “Murderer!” as she passed. Allan Gore shook his head sadly but refused to give a statement to the press. Betty’s father, Bob Pomeroy, on the other hand, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that justice would be done eventually. “We don’t know what happened. Yes, I was very surprised”, he concluded.

Following the trial, Candy Montgomery moved alongside her husband and their two children to Georgia. However, the couple divorced four years later. She now works as a mental health counselor. She still lives in Georgia, where she goes by her maiden name, Wheeler.

Candy Montgomery Has Been the Subject of Not Just One, But Three True Crime Adaptations

Based on the book Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs, by John Bloom and Jim Atkinson, Love and Death isn’t the only TV adaptation of the story of Candy Montgomery. Back in 2022, less than a year prior to the Max drama, Hulu released its own take on the case. Five episodes long, Candy stars Jessica Biel as Montgomery, and Melanie Lynskey as her friend and victim, Betty Gore.

Decades earlier, Atkinson and Bloom’s book inspired a TV movie that told Candy’s story with somewhat different names. Directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal, 1990’s A Killing in a Small Town stars Barbara Hershey as Candy Morrison, a Texas housewife accused of the murder of her dear friend Peggy Blankenship (Lee Garlington). The movie earned Hershey a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie.

Love & Death is streaming on Max in the U.S.

Watch on Max