The Cause Sweet Montgomery Allegedly Killed Betty Gore—The Motive Revealed

There have been two items of dramatic TV based mostly on the occasions of June 13, 1980, inside a 12 months of one another—Hulu’s 2022 collection Sweet starring Jessica Biel, and HBO’s 2023 restricted collection Love & Dying starring Elizabeth Olsen. You may be questioning why Sweet Montgomery allegedly killed Betty Gore, her greatest buddy.

Sweet is predicated on the 2018 true-crime e book, Proof of Love, which investigates the real-life case of Sweet Montgomery, a housewife who was accused of murdering her shut buddy, Betty Gore, in Wylie, Texas, on June 13, 1980, after having an extramarital affair with Betty’s husband, Allan Gore. Sweet—who lived by the Gores together with her husband, Pat Montgomery, and their two kids—was accused of assaulting Betty 41 occasions with a three-foot ax. On October 30, 1980, a jury of 9 girls and three males discovered Sweet Montgomery not responsible of Betty’s homicide. She was acquitted and by no means served jail time.

In an interview with Pop Tradition, Biel, who stars as Sweet and in addition government produces the collection, revealed why she needed to play the character. “[Candy is] such a captivating individual and the story is simply too loopy to be actual virtually, is what it feels wish to me,” Biel mentioned. “However I simply love the pathology of a personality like that. And I’m simply taken with people, and why they do the issues that they do. I at all times assume like, ‘Wow, we’re all able to something.’” She continued, “I wish to put myself proper on the edge there and look over and [ask], ‘Am I able to this?’ These are the questions that I’m at all times asking myself particularly with a venture like this.”

In the meantime, Olsen informed ET a 12 months later that there was no use in evaluating her portrayal with Biel’s and that the HBO collection presents a distinct perspective on Sweet’s life. “There’s no must have competitors. Tales which might be attention-grabbing need to be informed and each means you’re going to inform it, it’s gonna be totally different. It’s inconceivable for it to be the identical,” she mentioned, even revealing that Love & Dying had been in manufacturing for 2 months earlier than Sweet was introduced and Biel reached out to Olsen personally. “I believe it was extra simply sort of like, ‘Oh, nice. That is good that we’re each acknowledging this factor as a result of we had been filming concurrently,” Olsen defined. “That was a giant shock to all of us that there was one other present being made after we had been already filming. However there’s nothing you are able to do about it.”

So…why did Sweet Montgomery kill Betty Gore and what was making her alleged homicide? Learn on for the motive that was revealed within the trial for why Sweet Montgomery killed Betty Gore and whether or not Sweet went to jail for her greatest buddy’s demise.

How did Sweet Montgomery kill Betty Gore?

How did Sweet Montgomery kill Betty Gore? Sweet, whose full identify is Candice Wheeler, killed Betty, her shut buddy, of their hometown of Wylie, Texas, on June 13, 1980. On the day of the alleged homicide, Sweet visited Betty’s dwelling to select up a swimsuit for Betty’s daughter, Alisa, who was staying with Sweet and her husband, Pat, for the night time, Sweet claimed in a hypnosis session with psychiatrist Dr. Fred Fason, in line with Texas Month-to-month. Whereas at Betty’s dwelling, Betty accused Sweet of getting an affair together with her husband, Allan, which Sweet confessed to and informed Betty that the infidelity occurred a “very long time in the past.” In accordance with Sweet, Betty then left the room and got here again with an ax, which she used to threaten Sweet with, and ordered Sweet by no means to see Allan once more, which she agreed to.

As she picked up Alisa’s swimsuit to depart, Sweet apologized, which brought about Betty to develop into offended and shove her right into a utility room. A battle ensued between Sweet and Betty that brought about cuts on Sweet’s toe and head. Sweet additionally claimed that Betty informed her she needed to “kill” her. Throughout their combat, Sweet was capable of take the ax away from Betty and used the blade on Betty in self-defense earlier than her buddy might assault her once more. In terror that she had killed Betty, Sweet tried to depart the room, however earlier than she might achieve this, Betty stopped her by slamming her physique in opposition to the door.

In accordance with Texas Month-to-month, through the combat, Betty informed Sweet to “shush,” which set Sweet off and brought about her to hit her with the ax to the “level of utter exhaustion.” Throughout her hypnosis session, Sweet claimed that she suffered from childhood trauma that was triggered when she was informed to “shush.”  On the day of Betty’s alleged homicide, Allan was out of city. When he couldn’t attain his spouse by phone, he requested the neighbors to verify on her. After they compelled their means into the house, they found Betty’s useless physique, as Betty and Allan’s 1-year-old child daughter, Bethany, who had been sleeping in her crib in one other room on the time of the incident, was crying and awake. Just a few ft away from Betty was a three-foot-long ax, which authorities claimed that Sweet used to slash Betty 41 occasions, together with 28 occasions on her head and face.

Why did Sweet Montgomery kill Betty Gore?

What occurred to Sweet Montgomery? Sweet, a housewife, met Betty, a center faculty trainer, at a service on the United Methodist Church of Lucas in Collin County, Texas, they usually turned shut associates. Betty and her husband, Allan, additionally lived near Sweet, her husband, Pat, and her two kids. Sweet and Allan’s affair began in the summertime of 1978 when Sweet and Allan had been taking part in in a church volleyball sport and Sweet appreciated the best way Allan smelled after the 2 by chance ran into one another, in line with Texas Month-to-month, which additionally reported that Sweet had informed her associates that she needed to shake up her “very boring” life with Pat and needed “fireworks.”

Weeks later, Sweet, who had recognized Allan for 9 months at that time, requested Allan to speak in his automobile after choir follow. “I need to discuss to you someday, about one thing that has been bothering me,” Sweet requested Allan, in line with Texas Month-to-month as she obtained into the passenger seat of his automobile. “I’ve been eager about you a large number and it’s actually bothering me and I don’t know whether or not I need you to do something about it or not. I’m very interested in you and I’m bored with eager about it and so I needed to let you know.” Sweet then exited Allan’s automobile earlier than he might say something.

Courtesy of WarnerMedia

Every week later, Sweet and Allan noticed one another once more at choir follow, and Allan walked Sweet to her automobile, the place Sweet requested if he needed to have an affair. Allan informed her that he wasn’t certain as a result of Betty was pregnant with their second little one. Sweet informed him that each one she needed was to sleep with him as soon as. Allan then kissed Sweet for the primary time in her automobile earlier than he left. Sweet and Allan continued to remain in contact, as Allan warmed as much as the concept of an affair and agreed to sleep with Sweet. That they had intercourse with one another for the primary time on December 12, 1978, at a Continental Inn three minutes away from Allan’s dwelling. Allan and Sweet went on to sleep with one another virtually each different week all through the top of 1978 and the beginning of 1979. In June 1979, Allan and Sweet agreed to pause their affair as a result of Betty was seven months pregnant and virtually prepared to offer start. After Allan and Betty’s child, Bethany, was born in July 1979, Allan and Sweet resumed their affair, with Allan realizing that Sweet was extra reserved than earlier than. Just a few months later, Allan informed Sweet that he needed to finish their affair after he and Betty accomplished a Marriage Encounter program, a faith-based program to enhance {couples}’ relationships.

Seven months after Sweet and Allan’s breakup, Sweet killed Betty. Weeks after Betty’s demise, Allan revealed to the police that he and Sweet had an affair, which gave authorities a motive for Betty’s demise. The police arrested Sweet, who was the final individual to see Betty alive and charged her with homicide. To characterize her within the case, Sweet employed Don Crowder, a lawyer she knew from church, who discovered Dr. Fred Fason, a psychiatrist, to assist Sweet unlock the recollections she couldn’t recall. Throughout a hypnosis session with Dr. Fason, Sweet revealed that she hated Betty. “I hate her. She’s tousled my complete life. Take a look at this. I hate her. I hate her,” she mentioned. Dr. Fason then requested Sweet to recall the primary time she remembers feeling offended, which was when she was 4 years outdated and misplaced a race to a boy named Johnny, which brought about her to interrupt a jar. The incident led Sweet’s mom to take her to the hospital, the place her mom informed her to “shhh.” Within the subsequent few classes, Dr. Fason decided that Sweet’s childhood trauma and the reminiscence of her mom telling her to “shhh” in a painful second was what triggered Sweet’s rage to kill Betty, who informed additionally informed her to “shhh” earlier than Sweet killed her.

The place is Sweet Montgomery now?

Picture: Tina Rowden / ©Hulu / Courtesy Everett Assortment.

The place is Sweet Montgomery now? After an eight-day trial—the place the protection argued that Sweet acted in self-defense and the prosecution argued that Betty was acutely aware when a lot of the stabs occurred and that her demise was intentional—Sweet was discovered not responsible and acquitted of homicide in October 1980. She by no means served time behind bars. Psychiatrists testified on the trial and claimed that Sweet had a “dissociative response” that led her to stab Betty repeatedly. The violent demise was additionally protected beneath Texas’ “Stand Your Floor” legislation which allows using lethal pressure if crucial to forestall a violent crime, corresponding to Betty’s violent threats in opposition to Sweet.

In accordance with Texas Month-to-month, Sweet and her husband, Pat, left Texas quickly after the trial in 1980 and moved to Georgia. They divorced 4 years later. In accordance with Leisure Weekly, Sweet modified her identify again to Candace Wheeler (her maiden identify) and nonetheless lives in Georgia, the place she works as a psychological well being counselor together with her daughter, Jenny.

In an interview with Leisure Weekly in 2022, Biel revealed that she tried to contact a consultant for Sweet to see if “she was taken with having any dialog in anyway.” “She was not ,” Biel mentioned. To play Sweet, Biel talked to Sweet’s legal professional, Robert Udashen, certainly one of her two attorneys who defended her in her case, whom Biel known as a “big useful resource of data” for the collection.

Biel additionally defined why she was drawn to Sweet and Betty’s case for Sweet. “For 90 p.c of their lives, they lived these very regular, suburban lives, after which increase, this loopy factor occurs,” she mentioned. “She needed to be beloved and likable and good and sort and somebody which you can actually get behind, after which after this loopy factor occurs, I nonetheless need you to weirdly be behind her,” she says. Lynskey added of Betty, “I simply felt like I knew her, and elements of me had been elements of her.” She continued, “You’re residing on this feeling and it might probably generally really feel barely repetitive, however that’s what despair additionally looks like.”

For her half, Olsen appeared again to the ladies overlaying magazines within the late ’70s and early ’80s to see who Sweet would possibly look as much as, per an interview with Vainness Truthful. “We tried to grasp the kind of stress and perfectionism that would lead her to [the killing],” explains Olsen. “Sweet was at all times attempting to create one thing extra for herself.”

She continued: “It’s laborious not to consider Hillary Clinton at that second in time, particularly for a girl who had hopes and desires of being one thing greater than a spouse and a mom and a caretaker…. I additionally thought of Hillary when it got here to coiffure as a result of there’s this [mugshot of Candy with a perm]. However we all know individuals don’t essentially have perms for 2 years straight as a result of their hair would fall out. We needed to invent some [hair] historical past main up-to-the-minute.”

Love & Dying is offered to stream on HBOMax. Sweet is offered to stream on Hulu.

Picture: Courtesy of Open Highway Media.

For extra about Sweet Montgomery, learn John Bloom and Jim Atkinson’s 2018 e book, Proof of Love: A True Story of Ardour and Dying within the Suburbs. The true-crime bestseller—which was the idea for Hulu’s Sweet collection—dives deeper into the case of Betty Gore, a center faculty trainer from Wylie, Texas, who was killed by her greatest buddy, Sweet Montgomery, on June 13, 1980. “Sweet Montgomery and Betty Gore had so much in frequent: They sang collectively within the Methodist church choir, their daughters had been greatest associates, and their husbands had good jobs working for expertise corporations within the north Dallas suburbs often called Silicon Prairie. However beneath the placid floor of their seemingly excellent lives, each girls simmered with unstated frustrations and unanswered wishes,” the writer’s description reads. The e book consists of unique interviews with Gore and Montgomery’s households, in addition to a gripping account of Montgomery’s homicide trial. The e book is described as a nail-biting story that’s certain to “fascinate true crime aficionados,” in line with Kirkus Opinions.

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