Opinion ID: 889893
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Pre-Arrest Background

Text: ¶ 5 Douglas and Candace met in Boise, Idaho, on Christmas Eve 1972 and were married 12 days later. He was 20; she was 18. The couple followed an itinerant course during the 1970s and 1980s, living at various times in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and Oklahoma. Financially, as Candace described it, We never really got ahead. We'd make the bills, but that was just about it. They had their first child (Sarah) in 1984 and their second child (Jacob) two years later. In 1991, the family finally settled in Heron, Montana, where Douglas started a successful heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning business with help from Nicole's older brother, Rick Christensen. ¶ 6 Douglas had known Rick, at this point, for 15 years. They first met in 1976 when Candace got a job at a Boise drugstore managed by Rick and Nicole's father. Nicole was five or six years old at the time, and Rick was in high school. Douglas and Candace became friends with the Christensen family, and Douglas hired Rick to work for his painting business. Douglas and Candace left Boise in 1979 but returned six years later and reconnected with the Christensens. By this time, Nicole was in her mid-teens, and Rick was married and had three children. Rick soon divorced his wife, however, and joined the Guills when they moved to Wyoming and then to Heron. ¶ 7 Meanwhile, Douglas did not hold any strong religious views in the early years of his marriage to Candace, but in the early 1980s he claimed to have had some sort of religious epiphany. He told Candace that he had begun a communication with God and that God spoke to him. Over the ensuing years, he justified many of his decisions and actions as being God's will. Douglas became Lord of the house, and Candace became submissive to him. He told her that God's head of man, man's head of woman, and you're supposed to do what I tell you. Similarly, as Sarah got older, Douglas told her that God had given him an understanding [of] the Bible and that God had chosen him to be like his son, the son of God, Jesus, and that he was pure and holy. Douglas wrote an inscription on the inside of a Bible given to Sarah, You are mine now and forever, I love you, rejoice, and signed it Your Lord Jesus. He convinced her that he could decide who goes to heaven and who goes to hell. ¶ 8 When the Guills moved to Heron in 1991, Nicole was married and living in Idaho, working for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. She and her husband had met while in high school, and the two were married in 1990. In early July 1992, Nicole took a trip to Heron and stayed with the Guills for three to five days. This was the first time that she had significant interaction with Douglas. Shortly thereafter, Douglas called Nicole and the two of them agreed to meet in McCall, Idaho, where her parents owned a condominium. They spent nine days there in late July and began an intimate relationship. Douglas told Candace beforehand that God wanted him to go to McCall; and upon returning to Heron, he told her that a miraculous thing had happened between him, Nicole, and God. He announced to the family that he and Nicole were in love. ¶ 9 Nicole packed up her belongings in Idaho and moved to Heron. She was 21 years old at the time. Douglas explained to eight-year-old Sarah that he had brought Nicole to live with them because Candace wasn't good enough anymore for him and didn't really love him like Nicole loved him. At Douglas's insistence, Nicole divorced her husband and cut ties with her family in Idaho. Although Douglas remained legally married to Candace, he quit spending time with her and instead spent all of his time with Nicole, who essentially supplanted Candace as Douglas's wife. Nicole had her last name changed to Guill, began signing checks as Nicole Guill, and had a credit card issued to her under that name. Douglas instructed Sarah and Jacob to refer to Nicole as mom, and the public perception was that he and Nicole were married. ¶ 10 When Nicole moved in with the Guills, the family was living in a two-bedroom trailer house situated on two acres they had purchased on the outskirts of Heron (the Heron property). [1] Initially, for the first night or two, Nicole, Douglas, and Candace all slept in the same bed. However, Douglas ultimately exiled Candace to a detached storage building, which had electricity and a wood stove but no plumbing. For the next several years, Candace spent her nights in this outbuilding while Douglas and Nicole slept in the trailer's master bedroom and Sarah and Jacob shared the other bedroom. ¶ 11 Douglas eventually had a house built on the Heron property. The construction proceeded in two phases: half of the basement and two levels on top of that, followed by the other half of the basement and two levels on top of that. Essentially, as described at trial, half a house is built over one basement, and then when that's finished the other half is built over the other basement. The first phase was completed in 1998 or 1999, at which point Douglas, Nicole, and the children moved into the house. Candace, however, remained in the storage building until the second phase was completed a year or two later. She then moved to the second half-basement, which was separated by a concrete wall from the first half-basement where Sarah's and Jacob's rooms were. Thus, Candace had to go outside in order to access the rest of the housewhich she was not allowed to do, in any event, unless Douglas gave her permission to enter. There was a bathtub but no toilet in Candace's basement area, and she thus had to use a port-a-potty. ¶ 12 After Nicole's arrival, Candace was relegated to the status of an unseen domestic worker. She cooked, cleaned, and did other chores; she homeschooled Sarah and Jacob; and she assisted to a limited extent with Douglas's business. Nevertheless, Douglas repeatedly told her that she did nothing and didn't even deserve room and board. Unless Douglas said otherwise, Candace was required to go down to her half-basement when visitors came over, as he did not want people to see her or know that she was there. Terry Williams, one of Douglas's business acquaintances, testified that he had been to the Guills' home five or six times and never saw Candace. In fact, he was totally shocked when he learned of Candace's existence in 2006, as [m]y crew worked there for days right outside her door and I didn't know she existed. ¶ 13 Nicole, in contrast, was treated like royalty and given practically everything she asked for. If she wanted to take a trip, they went. Because she liked Cadillac Escalades, Douglas bought her six or seven of them over the 14 years they were together. Nicole was allowed to make household decisions and to control the home and business finances. Candace was told that whatever Nicole wanted or whatever she wanted me to do ... I was to do it. Douglas and Nicole were very affectionate with each other and spent literally 24 hours a day together every day. The two were never more than a couple feet away from each other. They ran errands together. They went to jobsites together. They ate their meals togetherfrom the same plate, sharing the same fork. By Nicole's own account, they even went to the bathroom together. ¶ 14 Although Candace did not agree with Nicole's moving in and becoming Douglas's partner, she had learned that You don't object to Douglas. Once, when they were living in Oklahoma, Candace tried to assert herself against Douglas and he reacted by pinning her against a wall and choking her. On another occasion, he got mad at her and flogged her hand with a wooden spoon, causing pain, swelling, and bruising. A similar incident occurred on a trip to Lake Koocanusa. Candace was in one vehicle towing a boat, and Douglas was in another vehicle ahead of her. He became enraged that she was following too far behind him, so he pulled off to the side of the road (as did Candace), yelled at her, and hit her thigh repeatedly, causing significant bruising on her leg and hip. Sarah and Jacob were in the pickup with Candace and witnessed this event. On still another occasion, Douglas, Nicole, Sarah, and Candace were in the hot tub on the Heron property in the middle of winter, and Douglas ordered Candace to get out and stand in the cold while wearing only her swimsuit. He also commanded her to lie in the snow and did not allow her to get a towel or get dressed. This went on for about an hour. When asked at trial why she did not go inside to get warm, Candace responded: Because I wasn't given permission to do so. When asked why she had remained with Douglas despite the way he treated her, Candace explained that she loved him, but also was extremely scared of him and thought he would be very angry if she left. In addition, she had asked Douglas about getting a divorce, but he would not allow it. Candace testified that she had not known that she could file for divorce herself; she only knew his rules. ¶ 15 As Sarah testified, Douglas also beat [Jacob] up quite a bit for different things. On one occasion, he saw Jacob talking to a youth who was working for a neighbor. When Jacob returned, Douglas asked him what the hell he was doing. Not realizing that Douglas had seen him, Jacob fibbed and said that he had been somewhere else. Douglas responded, No, I saw you over there, and he then picked Jacob up by the shirt, threw him on the ground, and kicked him a couple of times, calling him a lying little asshole. Sarah, who witnessed this event, testified that Douglas was mad about both the lying and the fact that Jacob had befriended the youth. ¶ 16 Douglas was not violent with Sarah, however. For one thing, she witnessed the violence perpetrated against Candace and Jacob, which caused her to be scared of Douglas and to do whatever he told her. Moreover, Douglas instilled in Sarah the belief that she would burn in hell if she went against him. ¶ 17 Douglas was not violent with Nicole either. Nor was he threatening to her. In fact, Nicole never exhibited any fear of Douglas at all. Rather, she was completely devoted to Doug through love and affection. She spent all of her time with him because, as she later explained, she liked him as a person, as a friend, and as a husband and just enjoy[ed] being with him. ¶ 18 Candace, Sarah, and Jacob were kept largely isolated from the outside world on the Heron property. There were some years when Candace was allowed to go to town once or twice, but other years when she never went at all. Likewise, Sarah did not travel off the property except once or twice a year to buy clothes. She had little or no access to newspapers, television, or the Internet and was not allowed to read books other than the homeschooling books and the Bible. When she expressed a desire to enroll in school, Douglas refused. He also did not allow her to have friends, to date boys, or to invite anyone over to the house. He told her that people are evil and that any friends she had would drag [her] to hell. These same restrictions applied to Jacob. ¶ 19 The homeschooling did not progress past an eighth grade level because Douglas kept Candace, Sarah, and Jacob busy doing work on the Heron property. He had them clear and burn trees, mow the lawn, maintain a greenhouse, and help with the house construction and landscaping. He also put them to work (without pay) for his business. As a result of their isolation, Sarah's and Jacob's knowledge of the outside world was severely limited, and their only acquaintances outside the family were the people they came in contact with through Douglas's business. ¶ 20 Ed Cain, a pastor from Spokane, Washington, knew Douglas and Candace in the 1980s. In 1997, he came to Heron for a brief visit. Cain later described the dinner he had with the Guills as the most bizarre meal I've ever eaten. Nicole sat beside Douglas and spoon-fed him; and when he wanted a drink, she held the cup to his mouth. Meanwhile, Candace was present but said nothing, and Sarah and Jacob appeared intimidated, afraid, and embarrassed. After dinner, while Cain and Douglas were conversing on the couch, Douglas began to shake as if he were having a seizure. Nicole, who had been sitting at Douglas's feet, got up and rubbed his chest, which evidently calmed him. Still later, Cain was subjected to another bizarre incident in which Douglas had Nicole model some negligee in front of Cain. Cain characterized these events as odd beyond extreme. ¶ 21 Cain also felt uncomfortable with Douglas's comments regarding religion. During their conversation, Douglas indicated that God spoke to him directly and that God had told him Nicole was to be his spiritual wife. The next morning, as Cain was preparing to go visit his children in a nearby town, Douglas confronted him and said that God had told him Cain was not to go visit his children but, instead, was to remain with the Guills. Cain rejected this proposition in no uncertain terms. ¶ 22 Clifford Phillips, a carpenter and general contractor, met Douglas during the construction of a house in the area. Douglas later hired Phillips to install a custom stairway in the Guills' new home. In the course of this project, Phillips had a dinner experience with the Guills that he later characterized as the strangest thing I'd ever seen. For one thing, he had been under the impression that Nicole was Douglas's wife or girlfriend, since the two were always connected at the hip in public. He had no idea that Candace even existed and, thus, was surprised when she was introduced as Douglas's wife. Then, during the meal, both of them, his two wives, fed him; very submissive. Never stopped looking at him. They would take a fork full of food and put it to his mouth. He never touched the fork, the plate or anything during the meal. They also would catch[ ] any crumb or morsel that fell. Phillips testified that at one point, [Douglas] told me that, you know, wouldn't it be great if I were treated that way. And I said my wife would never go for that. And he said, would you like one of these women to feed you. And I said no; I'm doing just fine on my own. ¶ 23 Meanwhile, Sarah and Jacob did not speak at all. As Phillips described it, [t]hey were very quiet and very well-behaved to the point that wasit was very uncomfortable to me. Because they didn't react and respond like normal children, chatting and talking or interacting with their mother or anything. It was as if they were living in fear. They didn't move out of line and the slightest glance from Douglas would stop any kind of activity during that meal. At some point, one of the children spilled some milk, which appeared to enrage Douglas. Douglas looked at [Candace], and that was it. Shethey were gone, whisked them away. He didn't have to say anything. ¶ 24 Douglas talked to Phillips about the Bible. He told Phillips that he (Douglas) was one of God's chosen people, chosen to be a leader. At the time, Phillips was going through a rough patch in his marriage, and Douglas advised him to leave his wife and move in with the Guills. Phillips felt like [i]t was as if he was trying to recruit me to some kind of a cult or something that he was trying to start. ¶ 25 His last day at the Heron property, Phillips saw Douglas outside on the gravel driveway smoking a cigarette. Nicole was standing right next to him, catching his ashes from his cigarette in her hand. It was quite cold, and she was wearing only a halter top and a pair of shorts. Phillips observed that Nicole was turning purpleI kid you notturning purple. He noted that she often was under dressed and scantly clad wearing skimpy clothing all the time, regardless of the weather, which in itself seemed odd. But seeing her out there turning purple, in order to catch the ashes from Douglas's cigarette in the palms of her hands, completely freaked [Phillips] out. When asked at trial whether he perceived Nicole's conduct to be the product of free will, Phillips said that he thought she was acting out of submission to Douglas's wishes. ¶ 26 Douglas's power and control over the family extended to Rick. As noted, Rick helped Douglas start a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning business in Heron. Whereas Douglas had little or no background in this field, Rick was a well-respected journeyman. Yet, Rick worked for next to nothing. He subsidized the company and received from Douglas and Nicole a very limited amount of money per week. He had no bank accounts and no share in the business. He had no home and instead lived in a trailer that the company rented as an office in downtown Heron. He had no vehicle except the use of the company van, for which he paid all travel expenses (including work-related travel). Meanwhile, as Rick was working to support them, Douglas and Nicole drove Cadillac Escalades, bought snowmobiles, and lived on the Heron property with the rest of the family as servants. ¶ 27 Douglas started molesting Sarah when she was six years old. At first, he would give her naked hugs and place his hands on the outside of her underwear. But within a year or so, he began touching her on the inside of her underwear and trying to insert his fingers inside her. Then, when she was eight, Douglas began to attempt penile intercourse. He initially was unable to accomplish full penetration, and his repeated attempts injured Sarah and caused her great pain. But Douglas persisted nevertheless and was able to engage in full intercourse when Sarah was 11 or 12. ¶ 28 Nicole began participating in the sexual abuse two or three weeks after moving to the Heron property. Sarah testified that there was a general routine to these encounters. Douglas would either whisper in her ear or give her this look, indicating that he wanted her to stay up with him and Nicole in the living room after Candace and Jacob went to bed. Nicole would start by messing with Douglas to get him aroused. Then he would have (or attempt to have) intercourse with Sarah, after which he would finish off with Nicole. [2] The encounters lasted anywhere from one to five hours and occurred three to six times per week, starting when Sarah was 8 and continuing until she was 22. At the time, it felt normal to her. It felt like life, that's the way it had to be. Meanwhile, Candace (who was always out in the storage building or down in the basement) and Jacob (who was always in his bedroom) were unaware that Sarah was being abused. ¶ 29 When she was 15 or 16, Douglas had Sarah start taking birth control pills. He told Candace that they were necessary to alleviate Sarah's menstrual cramps. When she was 18 or 19, Douglas had Sarah and Nicole start touching each other and sticking their fingers inside each other as part of the general routine. Sarah testified that she did not want to do this but was afraid to defy Douglas. She also stated that she and Nicole never spoke about the sex. For one thing, they were never alone to discuss it. Moreover, Sarah felt that Nicole didn't like her and never really wanted anything to do with her. ¶ 30 Douglas told Sarah multiple times that if she ever disclosed the sex to anyone, he would harm himself or cause harm to others, it would be her fault, and she would never be forgiven. Believing that Douglas knew what was right and that she would burn in hell if she disobeyed him, Sarah promised never to tell. Moreover, being isolated on the Heron property, she felt like she had no one to tell anywayincluding her mother, whom she feared Douglas might harm. Candace actually witnessed an instance of the abuse when Sarah was 20, but she did not report it because she was too scared. ¶ 31 With Candace's help, and without Douglas's or Nicole's foreknowledge, Sarah fled the Heron property in September 2006 on a day when she knew that Douglas and Nicole were going to be away for several hours. She took some personal belongings plus some cash that Candace had retrieved from Douglas's safe. When Douglas returned, he initially was in shock that Sarah had left. Later, however, he became angry and asserted that Candace and Sarah were trying to kill him and take his business and his money and his belongings. Nicole, in contrast, did not seem to care at all that Sarah had left. ¶ 32 Although he had refused for years to divorce Candace, Douglas suddenly decided to do so. He filed a petition for dissolution of marriage on October 10, 2006, and a final decree of dissolution was issued November 6. Douglas also compelled Candace to write several letters (which she later recanted at trial) apparently intended to exculpate him in the event he was charged with a crime. He told her exactly what words to use. One of the letters, dated October 7, 2006, related specifically to sexual abuse. It stated: Douglas, I just wanted to write this note to let you know that I know that Sarah has been pursuing your body for years and I want to thank you for resisting all of her advances and being such a good Dad. I also want you to know that she might try to accuse you of child molestation and I will be more than happy to defend you in a court of law even though we are in the middle of divorce. I thank you so much for loving all of us and wish you well. Candy Nicole kept these letters in her purse after they were written. ¶ 33 After leaving the Heron property, Sarah ended up at the home of Terry Williams, whom she had met through Douglas's business. Williams and his wife let her stay with them for a couple of months. Sarah eventually reported the sexual abuse to authorities in early November 2006, and Douglas and Nicole were arrested on November 24. Candace moved off the Heron property a day or two later. Jacob had already left in October.