Latest / Wicked and Grim: A True Crime Podcast / Candace Hiltz - Unsolved Murder

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Candace Hiltz - Unsolved Murder · Wicked and Grim: A True Crime Podcast

0:08
Speaker 1: There are typical scenarios found in many criminal cases. A
0:12
Speaker 1: crime is committed, it's discovered, investigation occurs, and it gets solved.
0:17
Speaker 1: From there, it goes to trial, where it's followed up
0:19
Speaker 1: by convictions and sentencing. But what if an individual who
0:24
Speaker 1: was involved in the investigation was responsible for the actual
0:29
Speaker 1: crime in the first place, could they get away with it? Well?
0:34
Speaker 1: In the case of Candace Hilts, it is highly theorized
0:38
Speaker 1: that a local deputy who investigated the case was pulling
0:42
Speaker 1: far more strings behind the scene than anybody could have
0:46
Speaker 1: ever guessed.
0:49
Speaker 2: My name's Ben, I'm Nicole, and you're listening to Wicked
0:52
Speaker 2: and Grim, a true crime podcast.
0:57
Speaker 1: The following audience listeners, It's Wicked and Grim Friday. How's
1:28
Speaker 1: it going.
1:29
Speaker 2: Yeah, we've been doing this for a few weeks now.
1:31
Speaker 1: We have been the two week episode releases. How you
1:34
Speaker 1: guys liking it? Enjoying it? Is it too much? Is
1:37
Speaker 1: it not enough? I'm curious, tell us tell us all
1:41
Speaker 1: it just perfect? Maybe it's just right. Maybe could you
1:44
Speaker 1: turn my head headphone volume up a little bit? It
1:46
Speaker 1: sounds weird and my headphones to me. Sorry, but yeah,
1:49
Speaker 1: the two week thing has been it's been good. For us.
1:51
Speaker 1: It's been keeping us busy, that's for sure. And as
1:54
Speaker 1: far as I can tell, everyone else likes it. So
1:56
Speaker 1: you didn't turn the volume up? What are you hear
1:58
Speaker 1: this volume control? I have no idea I turned you
2:01
Speaker 1: up over here. That's the audio gain for my mic.
2:03
Speaker 2: I don't know what the hell I'm doing here.
2:06
Speaker 1: All that's way better? Oh, little lower, little lower? There
2:09
Speaker 1: we go, perfect? Okay, God, I couldn't hear like anything
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Speaker 1: out of my headphones.
2:12
Speaker 2: Did you know I have gotten such minimal steps today?
2:16
Speaker 2: I just looked at my fit bit and it's actually
2:18
Speaker 2: quite embarrassing.
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Speaker 1: How many steps? Three thousand? Wow?
2:23
Speaker 2: I even like went out and shit, so is this
2:25
Speaker 2: thing broken? Maybe what's going on here?
2:28
Speaker 1: Maybe I got to reach over and turn the volume down.
2:30
Speaker 1: So I can't believe this three thousand. I definitely got
2:33
Speaker 1: more than three step three thousand steps? Huh. I was
2:36
Speaker 1: out working with Defense Electric today dropping some names, doing
2:40
Speaker 1: some video. So yeah, cool, Yeah, it was good. It
2:43
Speaker 1: was a good time.
2:43
Speaker 2: Maybe I shouldn't have skipped the gym today.
2:45
Speaker 1: Maybe you shouldn't, But do you want to know what
2:47
Speaker 1: else is a really good time? Gym? Of course? Is
2:50
Speaker 1: this is a really good time. Yeah, it is. Yeah,
2:55
Speaker 1: it was also another thing, it's a fantastic good time,
3:02
Speaker 1: is going to be on Saturday where we're doing a
3:04
Speaker 1: live stream over on Patreon for our month and case.
3:07
Speaker 1: The exclusive case is going to be a live stream
3:10
Speaker 1: PST noon Pacific Standard time. Yes, so that's happening this Saturday.
3:14
Speaker 1: If you want to be a part of that, you
3:15
Speaker 1: can go ahead and subscribe over on a Patreon page.
3:18
Speaker 1: Make sure you have the top tier. I think it's
3:20
Speaker 1: the all access tier right to get the access to
3:23
Speaker 1: the exclusive episodes. That's going to be exciting though, it
3:25
Speaker 1: should be should be a good time. Yeah. I got
3:28
Speaker 1: one more thing I want to touch on before we
3:30
Speaker 1: get into this case. Okay, let's do her Merch Merch, Merch,
3:35
Speaker 1: Wicked and Grim Merch. Right.
3:38
Speaker 2: You do have an update on that, don't you.
3:39
Speaker 1: Yes. So we've had many a merch released over the
3:46
Speaker 1: course of our podcast career. I'd say we probably got
3:51
Speaker 1: like ten different designs something like that released for us,
3:53
Speaker 1: all designed by us, and there's only been two that
3:57
Speaker 1: we've retired and they're technically the same design, just different versions.
4:02
Speaker 1: It's the exclusive Jacko ones from the patre Yeah, so
4:05
Speaker 1: those are the only retired ones. But soon, in the
4:07
Speaker 1: coming probably a month or so, we're gonna be retiring much,
4:11
Speaker 1: if not all, of our current merch to come out
4:15
Speaker 1: with all new ones and doing a little refresh. Ah. Yes,
4:18
Speaker 1: So if you guys are looking up and eyeing up
4:21
Speaker 1: our merch, make sure you go check it out. Maybe
4:24
Speaker 1: we'll even drop drop some price in the last week
4:27
Speaker 1: or so before we retire these ones. Who knows, we'll see,
4:31
Speaker 1: but yeah, go ahead and take it is. There are
4:34
Speaker 1: some good ones in there. I'm gonna have to order
4:36
Speaker 1: some shit, I will say. Some of these ones that
4:38
Speaker 1: are being retired, it doesn't mean that they won't eventually
4:41
Speaker 1: come back, but they're being retired for now. They're going
4:45
Speaker 1: to the vault. Okay, the Jacko ones, the exclusive ones,
4:47
Speaker 1: those ones are retired for good. But these ones, they
4:50
Speaker 1: may come back one day or maybe a different iteration
4:52
Speaker 1: of it, who knows.
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Speaker 2: My all time favorite one is the like skeleton hens
4:56
Speaker 2: cheers cheersing with like wine and Scotch.
5:00
Speaker 1: It's just it's perfect. See I'm kind of partial to
5:02
Speaker 1: just like our logo. Yeah, I like that one. You
5:05
Speaker 1: do like that one?
5:06
Speaker 2: I do too, But why did you stop and stare
5:10
Speaker 2: at me weird.
5:11
Speaker 1: Because it sounds like you're going to say something else.
5:13
Speaker 1: I do too. But and then but what.
5:17
Speaker 2: I I don't know.
5:19
Speaker 1: I wasn't going to you do too.
5:21
Speaker 2: Those we're really awkward, and I was off guard.
5:25
Speaker 1: I was awkward anyways, awkwardness aside, Are you ready for
5:30
Speaker 1: today's case of Candice Hilt? Have you heard of this one? No?
5:33
Speaker 1: You know what? I don't hear of shit? Apparently, What
5:37
Speaker 1: do you mean apparently? I just like, I don't know.
5:40
Speaker 2: I sometimes think I live in a bubble and I
5:41
Speaker 2: just I should know more true crime cases than I do.
5:45
Speaker 1: Well, we research two different cases a week. We hear
5:48
Speaker 1: about many cases. It's it's not a pastime for us
5:53
Speaker 1: much anymore to really dive into true crime. You know,
5:55
Speaker 1: it's a bit more work. So, I mean, in our pastime,
5:58
Speaker 1: in our in our downtime, in our extracurricular we don't
6:01
Speaker 1: watch a whole lot of like Netflix crime documentaries anymore. Yeah,
6:06
Speaker 1: I know, I do a bit, but not much. I
6:08
Speaker 1: think I've said this.
6:09
Speaker 2: I just like listen to audiobooks mostly in my pastime.
6:12
Speaker 1: Yeah, so I can't blame you for not keeping up
6:14
Speaker 1: on the latest and great Well, I won't say greatest
6:16
Speaker 1: but the latest of true crime, because I don't really either,
6:20
Speaker 1: and I honestly I rely heavily on listeners and Patreon
6:24
Speaker 1: to fill us in which they constantly thank Goodness for them,
6:28
Speaker 1: which I actually that reminds me. I got to get
6:30
Speaker 1: back to Larissa, who messaged me about a case and
6:33
Speaker 1: asking me my thoughts. Yeah, so I Larissa, if I
6:36
Speaker 1: still haven't answered you, if you're listening to this message
6:38
Speaker 1: me again and call me out because I saw your message.
6:40
Speaker 1: I just haven't got to it yet. My bad. Anyways,
6:44
Speaker 1: Let's get onto this. Ka, I've die, I digress. Let's
6:47
Speaker 1: do this. Let's do it, okay. So Candace Hilts. Candace
6:51
Speaker 1: was born on December twenty second, nineteen eighty eight, in
6:54
Speaker 1: Canyon City, Colorado. Now she lived here with her mother
6:59
Speaker 1: or Sibl and father until unfortunately, would of course be
7:04
Speaker 1: the subject of today's case. Now, her father would unfortunately
7:12
Speaker 1: pass away when she was only five years old. And
7:15
Speaker 1: despite this early loss, life must go on, as they say,
7:19
Speaker 1: and Candice would thrive. She was a star academically and
7:23
Speaker 1: quickly gained a reputation as an exceptionally gifted student. Her
7:27
Speaker 1: intelligence was so remarkable that by the age of eleven,
7:30
Speaker 1: she was already tackling calculus, earning the title of a
7:36
Speaker 1: child prodigy.
7:37
Speaker 2: Wow, that is hard. Like I've taken freaking calculus. I
7:41
Speaker 2: feel like I almost failed it, to be honest.
7:43
Speaker 1: And almost every single other true crime podcast or YouTube
7:49
Speaker 1: video that I saw regarding this case or doing my
7:52
Speaker 1: research and other people's opinions and stuff like that, everyone
7:55
Speaker 1: makes a joke here about how they couldn't even do
7:58
Speaker 1: calculus today if they tried. And I'm going to be
8:00
Speaker 1: one of them, because I still use my fingers and
8:02
Speaker 1: toes at times to do some math. So being eleven
8:05
Speaker 1: and calculus is impressive. That's very impressive.
8:08
Speaker 2: But I do feel like there's certain people that just
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Speaker 2: math comes or they like it, or it comes like
8:13
Speaker 2: a little bit more naturally to them, right, like they're
8:15
Speaker 2: just gifted with it.
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Speaker 1: I feel like, and she clearly is. Definitely it came
8:19
Speaker 1: natural to her. Whether she was gifted or just enjoyed it,
8:22
Speaker 1: I don't know. She was, like I said, a child prodigy. Yeah. Now.
8:26
Speaker 1: Growing up in a household with brothers, Candace was often
8:29
Speaker 1: described as a bit of a tomboy. She enjoyed many
8:31
Speaker 1: of the same activities as their brothers, like you know,
8:33
Speaker 1: working out for example, that kind of bodybuilding sort of stuff,
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Speaker 1: but also had a fondness for more traditionally feminine things
8:40
Speaker 1: such as jewelry, particularly beaded necklaces, which she loved to wear.
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Speaker 1: Not going to say that like bodybuilding is a dude's
8:47
Speaker 1: thing and not like woman's whatever, but it's just like,
8:49
Speaker 1: you know, like traditionally speaking, there's yeah, you guys know
8:52
Speaker 1: what I mean. So from an early age, Candace developed
8:55
Speaker 1: a strong sense of justice. She was known for standing
8:59
Speaker 1: up against bullies and always wanting to help that was
9:01
Speaker 1: in need. To put it simple, she didn't take nobody's
9:04
Speaker 1: shit like it. I like that a lot. Yeah, Her
9:07
Speaker 1: ambition in life was clear. She dreamed of attending Stanford
9:11
Speaker 1: Law School and aspired to one day serve as a
9:13
Speaker 1: Supreme Court justice. By the time she was only seventeen
9:18
Speaker 1: years old, she was already in her third year at
9:20
Speaker 1: Birmingham University. You're kidding me, seventeen, third year at university,
9:28
Speaker 1: and she had even at this point now been accepted
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Speaker 1: into Stanford Home. Accepted to Stanford at seventeen.
9:36
Speaker 2: That's wild, hey, yeah, like how wow, Yeah, she's she's
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Speaker 2: a genius.
9:42
Speaker 1: Well, yeah, that's incredible. Now. However, everything seemed to be
9:46
Speaker 1: going great for her, but her life took a little
9:48
Speaker 1: bit of a different turn than she expected when she
9:50
Speaker 1: became pregnant. It was a difficult choice for her, but
9:54
Speaker 1: at the time it was an easy one. She knew
9:57
Speaker 1: what she had to do. She chose to prioritize her
10:00
Speaker 1: a new role as a mother and care for her child.
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Speaker 1: So Candace decided to continue her education online so that
10:05
Speaker 1: she could stay at home and care for her new
10:08
Speaker 1: kid to come. Oh wow, Okay, now it may have
10:10
Speaker 1: actually set her back academically, but she was already so
10:13
Speaker 1: far ahead of her peers that if it were to
10:15
Speaker 1: take a few years off, by the time she went back,
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Speaker 1: everyone else who she was like going to high school
10:20
Speaker 1: with would now be caught up to her right and
10:22
Speaker 1: she'd be right back on track. So it's not like
10:24
Speaker 1: she's really actually losing at all. That's true. Yeah, that's
10:27
Speaker 1: totally true. Yeah, So to her it really wasn't much
10:30
Speaker 1: of a loss. She gets to, like, hey, raise her kid,
10:33
Speaker 1: be part of the kid's life, be present, and then
10:35
Speaker 1: go back to school and be right back on track
10:37
Speaker 1: with everyone else. That's a win win in all honesty, Yeah,
10:39
Speaker 1: it is so. In September of twenty fifteen, Candace would
10:43
Speaker 1: give birth to her daughter Page. Now tragically though, Paige
10:47
Speaker 1: was born with hydro cephalis, which is a condition that
10:51
Speaker 1: causes an abnormal buildup of cerebral spinal fluid in the
10:55
Speaker 1: brain's ventricles. Now, this is something we've actually talked about
10:58
Speaker 1: a bit on the show before. I've heard this. Now
11:00
Speaker 1: this condition can lead to severe complications, including brain damage,
11:04
Speaker 1: development delays, and in some cases, can be life threatening
11:07
Speaker 1: at young ages. Now, understanding the challenges that her daughter faced,
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Speaker 1: Candace dedicated herself to making every moment of Page's life
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Speaker 1: as joyful and as meaningful as possible. To Candace, each
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Speaker 1: day with Page was special, as if she was celebrating
11:23
Speaker 1: her birthday every day.
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Speaker 2: Oh my gosh, could this lady be any more perfect?
11:28
Speaker 1: Right? Could Candace get any more perfect? I don't think so.
11:31
Speaker 2: Yeah, it doesn't seem. Wow, I'm amazed by her.
11:35
Speaker 1: She's selfless, she wants to have a very fulfilling career.
11:41
Speaker 1: She is a genius, super kind.
11:43
Speaker 2: Like dedicated, medicated, Like yeah, we could go on here, yeah.
11:47
Speaker 1: Like I'm already put to shame like easy, no problem,
11:50
Speaker 1: She's just way better of a person all around. But now, Candace, though,
11:54
Speaker 1: her worst nightmare would become a reality as Page would
11:57
Speaker 1: pass away at the age of only seven years old.
12:00
Speaker 3: Oh no, now, Page though, did actually outlive her mother,
12:07
Speaker 3: as Candace would ultimately meet her end before her daughter did.
12:12
Speaker 1: Holy shit. Yes, okay, I wasn't expecting this, but either
12:16
Speaker 1: of these. We'll get to that soon though. For now,
12:19
Speaker 1: let's keep talking a little bit about who Candace.
12:21
Speaker 2: Was like she would have been in her twenties.
12:23
Speaker 1: Yes, ah. Candace also had an older brother named James. Now,
12:28
Speaker 1: James struggled with severe psychological issues. He had paranoia that
12:34
Speaker 1: was so intense that he isolated himself from society so
12:37
Speaker 1: much though, that he actually chose to live alone in
12:39
Speaker 1: a tent in the woods a few miles behind his parents.
12:44
Speaker 2: Okay, I mean sometimes that sounds kind of nice to
12:48
Speaker 2: just like, fuck off, get a grid.
12:50
Speaker 1: And blame me the fuck alone and I'm out. I
12:52
Speaker 1: can appreciate that. Through and through yea. His mental health
12:55
Speaker 1: challenges made it impossible, though, for him to hold a job,
12:59
Speaker 1: made it impossible for him to maintain friendships or even
13:01
Speaker 1: comfortably interact with his own family, but at the very
13:04
Speaker 1: least he was close to home, making it easy for
13:07
Speaker 1: his family to you know, somewhat kind of help care,
13:10
Speaker 1: keep an eye on him. On him, yeah, well, not
13:13
Speaker 1: so much check up on him, but it was easy
13:15
Speaker 1: for him to come home if he needed some Okay, Yeah,
13:19
Speaker 1: Now things with James only went downhill though, as his
13:21
Speaker 1: condition worsened to the point where he no longer believed
13:24
Speaker 1: that Dolores, which was his real mother. He never believed
13:28
Speaker 1: that she was actually his real mother. He was suspecting
13:31
Speaker 1: that she had been replaced by an impostor. Oh wow, Yeah,
13:35
Speaker 1: so his condition was degrading.
13:37
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's kind of sad.
13:39
Speaker 1: So because of his fears, he avoided entering the family
13:42
Speaker 1: home unless it was completely empty, and to accommodate him,
13:47
Speaker 1: Dolores would leave a butter knife under a door mat
13:50
Speaker 1: where he could like unlock a door or something like that.
13:52
Speaker 1: I'm not too sure how he would gain access, but
13:54
Speaker 1: she left a butter knife so he could gain access
13:56
Speaker 1: to the house when people are away, so he could
13:59
Speaker 1: like come in and you know, maybe shower, grab some
14:01
Speaker 1: food or something whatever he needed.
14:03
Speaker 2: Right, that would have to be quite tough for her.
14:05
Speaker 1: It would be yeah. Yeah, I think it'd be tough
14:08
Speaker 1: for the whole family, and I think particularly for her
14:10
Speaker 1: being the fact that, you know, her own son doesn't
14:13
Speaker 1: believe that he's that she's really his mother. Yeah, that's
14:17
Speaker 1: got to be hard. Yeah. Now, through all of what
14:20
Speaker 1: was going on in Candace's life, she remained fiercely protective
14:23
Speaker 1: of James, her brother, despite his struggles, she loved him.
14:27
Speaker 1: She stood by him, always ready to defend him again sorry,
14:30
Speaker 1: defend against those who might not understand his condition, being
14:35
Speaker 1: on his side, just like a family should. So now
14:40
Speaker 1: we know who Candace is, we know how she grew up,
14:43
Speaker 1: you know what's happening here in her life, a little
14:45
Speaker 1: bit about her family. So let's fast forward to August tenth,
14:48
Speaker 1: two thousand and six.
14:50
Speaker 2: Does she just have the one sibling then, just the
14:53
Speaker 2: one brother?
14:54
Speaker 1: No, She's got another brother, I believe. Yeah. So on
14:58
Speaker 1: this day, Robert daw, a deputy from Fremont County Sheriff's Office,
15:02
Speaker 1: came to the Hilts home and he knocked on their
15:05
Speaker 1: front door. It was an unexpected visit, but he was
15:11
Speaker 1: there to question James about some trespassing incidents in the area.
15:16
Speaker 1: There had been some recent reports of someone snooping around properties,
15:19
Speaker 1: and they suspected him of being the culprit. However, James
15:22
Speaker 1: wasn't home, as he no longer technically lived there. He
15:25
Speaker 1: was living a few miles out in the bush behind
15:27
Speaker 1: the house and didn't know exactly where. It's like, well,
15:30
Speaker 1: good luck, right, Yeah, so he wasn't home. So Deputy
15:34
Speaker 1: DoD ended up speaking with Dolores, his mother, and Candace instead,
15:38
Speaker 1: who were both home now. The conversation quickly grew tense
15:41
Speaker 1: as neither Dolores nor Candace appreciated the fact that James
15:44
Speaker 1: was an immediate suspect without any proof pointing towards him.
15:48
Speaker 1: It felt like the police were simply targeting him for
15:50
Speaker 1: who he was and what he was struggling with.
15:52
Speaker 2: Yeah, and it was kind of like an easy target exactly.
15:56
Speaker 1: So Candace in particular was extremely defensive of her, as
16:00
Speaker 1: I had already mentioned, and she immediately became angry with
16:03
Speaker 1: the way that Deputy DoD was approaching the situation and
16:07
Speaker 1: how he was acting towards specifically, even addressing Dolores when
16:11
Speaker 1: they were there. As a result, the whole situation began
16:15
Speaker 1: to escalate, and it did so to the point that
16:17
Speaker 1: Deputy DoD even threatened to arrest Candace if she didn't
16:20
Speaker 1: control her temper and calm the fuck down.
16:23
Speaker 2: Oh wow, Yeah, this is escalating.
16:27
Speaker 1: Which if there is one thing I've learned in marriage,
16:29
Speaker 1: it's never tell a woman to calm down in a
16:31
Speaker 1: situation like this because you well feel their wrath, which
16:35
Speaker 1: is exactly what happened in this case.
16:39
Speaker 2: She well to be fair, to be fair, to be fair,
16:42
Speaker 2: I told you to calm the fuck down. I don't
16:44
Speaker 2: think it would go very well for me either.
16:46
Speaker 1: I think I think it would go better for you
16:49
Speaker 1: than it would for me. I'm not saying this is
16:51
Speaker 1: a detriment or a bad thing, because in this case
16:54
Speaker 1: with Candace, like she was being a fucking badass. She
16:56
Speaker 1: didn't back down. He was like calmed down. She's like, fuck,
16:59
Speaker 1: excuse me. She doubles down. Okay, I'm not meaning it
17:02
Speaker 1: in a bad sense, don't get me wrong, because like
17:05
Speaker 1: with Candace, like I said, she doubled down, and she
17:07
Speaker 1: held out her wrists, and she fucking dared him to
17:11
Speaker 1: arrest her. Yeah, do it? Do it? Yeah? Bad? Now?
17:18
Speaker 1: Not only this, no picture this, So she's holding out
17:20
Speaker 1: her wrists, she's daring him to arrest her, and she
17:23
Speaker 1: also adds that if he does, she's going to be
17:26
Speaker 1: talking to the rest of the police and be telling
17:29
Speaker 1: them about how she's seen him accepting suspicious envelopes from
17:33
Speaker 1: known drug dealers on the streets. Oh shit, So not
17:39
Speaker 1: only is she like daring him to do, she's now
17:42
Speaker 1: threatening him. She's got the back into it. Really. Yeah.
17:45
Speaker 1: Now there is no evidence to back this claim though,
17:48
Speaker 1: but there is. But there was not an empty threat.
17:50
Speaker 1: Candace did claim she in fact has seen this happening,
17:54
Speaker 1: So she has a shady potentially what we may seem
17:59
Speaker 1: to have here. Yeah. So Deputy Dot at this point
18:02
Speaker 1: was was pissed and visibly shaken, like visibly pissed and
18:05
Speaker 1: angry by this whole confrontation. So he turned around and
18:08
Speaker 1: he left the house in a bit of a rage.
18:10
Speaker 1: Now the incident wasn't exactly the most pleasant, to say
18:12
Speaker 1: the least, and also not the most professional. Now, not
18:17
Speaker 1: too long after this had all occurred, the Hilt's family
18:21
Speaker 1: dog went missing. Now they didn't think too much of
18:25
Speaker 1: it at the time, you know, they it might have
18:28
Speaker 1: been a tragic possibility of something occurring to the dog.
18:30
Speaker 1: Like they lived a little bit like you know, out
18:32
Speaker 1: in the woods, a bit kind of thing. I don't
18:34
Speaker 1: know how much property they had or how far out
18:36
Speaker 1: like dirt road, I'm not certain, but they did think, well,
18:40
Speaker 1: it's a possibility, like a wild animal got the dog. Tragic,
18:43
Speaker 1: but like, there's no suspicious stuff going on the red flags,
18:47
Speaker 1: right except Candice was like, nah, something's fucking suspicious.
18:53
Speaker 2: Okay, she doesn't like I kind of like her, Yeah,
18:56
Speaker 2: Like she just like doesn't just I don't know, most
18:59
Speaker 2: people just make ex right, but she's like, she just
19:01
Speaker 2: seems like she trusts her gut and she's like, Nope,
19:04
Speaker 2: something fucking happened to my dog exactly.
19:07
Speaker 1: The timing to her was just like it's too coincidental. Yeah, right,
19:10
Speaker 1: And I think that's what I mean. It's easy to
19:14
Speaker 1: say in the position that we're in sitting here talking
19:16
Speaker 1: about it, but in the outsider perspective right now, yeah,
19:19
Speaker 1: it does seem fucking suspicious. Yeah it does.
19:21
Speaker 2: But I honestly would I'm one of those people that
19:23
Speaker 2: would probably just like justify it to like be absolutely heartbroken,
19:27
Speaker 2: but probably justify it.
19:31
Speaker 1: Now. Though I don't know the exact date that the
19:33
Speaker 1: dog went missing, but my judgment it was probably the
19:36
Speaker 1: next day after this occurred, Okay, Yeah, so if it's
19:41
Speaker 1: another day, it would be a maximum two days after.
19:44
Speaker 1: So it's either the next day or the day after.
19:46
Speaker 1: But yeah, so this is all after that whole incident,
19:51
Speaker 1: right the dog disappeared, and she's believing that this was
19:54
Speaker 1: an intentional act, possibly a message or a threat directly
19:58
Speaker 1: from her to the family. Right now, because of this
20:01
Speaker 1: whole situation, the family was a bit on edge, Dolores,
20:06
Speaker 1: you know, listening to her daughter talking about, you know,
20:08
Speaker 1: like someone could have done this, it could be a threat.
20:11
Speaker 1: She grew a little bit concerned about leaving Candace and
20:14
Speaker 1: her now eleven month old daughter Page at home alone
20:17
Speaker 1: in case something were to happen, you know, what if
20:19
Speaker 1: someone is threatening the family, right Yeah, So when she
20:22
Speaker 1: would go run errands, Dolores would ask a neighbor to
20:25
Speaker 1: keep an eye out on the house and check in
20:26
Speaker 1: on Candace while she was away. Now, there are a
20:29
Speaker 1: couple conflicting accounts about what happened on the day of
20:31
Speaker 1: August fifteenth, two thousand and six, but according to the
20:34
Speaker 1: neighbor who asked who was asked to check on Candace
20:37
Speaker 1: when Dolores was out he went over to the Hilts
20:39
Speaker 1: home and couldn't find Candace anywhere inside. The only sign
20:42
Speaker 1: of life was Paige, who was crying in her crip.
20:45
Speaker 1: Now concerned, the neighbor picked up Page and took her
20:48
Speaker 1: to his house to soothe her until Dolores returned at
20:50
Speaker 1: around three thirty pm. However, Dolores tells a bit of
20:55
Speaker 1: a different story, and this is the one that's most
20:57
Speaker 1: commonly talked about. So this is the one that I'm
21:00
Speaker 1: going to say is the proper account, Okay, but there
21:03
Speaker 1: are conflicting ones. Just want to point that out. So
21:06
Speaker 1: Dolores says, she arrived at home and she was met
21:08
Speaker 1: with a horrific scene. There was blood scattered throughout the home,
21:14
Speaker 1: but no immediate sign of Candace. She panicked. She rushed
21:17
Speaker 1: into the bedroom, where she found Paige still crying hysterically
21:21
Speaker 1: in her crib. It was then that she noticed the
21:24
Speaker 1: green comforter that was normally nicely made up on Candace's bed.
21:30
Speaker 1: It wasn't there anymore. Instead, it was tucked underneath the bed.
21:36
Speaker 1: She knew something wasn't right, and Dolores slowly began pulling
21:39
Speaker 1: the blanket out from under the bed, and something was
21:41
Speaker 1: wrapped up inside, and that's when she made the gruesome discovery.
21:45
Speaker 1: Candace's lifeless body was wrapped up in the blanket and
21:49
Speaker 1: stuffed under her own bed. What the shit? Yeah, she
21:54
Speaker 1: knew it was her daughter right away, but the problem
21:56
Speaker 1: was she couldn't recognize her by her face because she
22:00
Speaker 1: had been shot in the head so many times that
22:03
Speaker 1: authorities described her condition as quote severe decapitation. Whoah, holy shit.
22:13
Speaker 2: So Candace knew something was up. What the fuck is this? Actually,
22:17
Speaker 2: Like the police that did this.
22:20
Speaker 1: Well, we got a lot to talk about in regards
22:22
Speaker 1: to all that possibility.
22:25
Speaker 2: Well, if it is, like I'm freaking pissed because like
22:28
Speaker 2: just because oh my gosh, this is just gonna make
22:31
Speaker 2: me go on a rampage because you're in a position
22:33
Speaker 2: of authority and someone like Heaven forbid, questions your authority
22:38
Speaker 2: and then you just lose your shit on them, Like
22:39
Speaker 2: that's not okay, I know, right, Like that's not okay.
22:42
Speaker 1: It's just a little bit fucked up if you think
22:44
Speaker 1: about it, Yeah, a little bit. Yeah.
22:46
Speaker 2: So I'm really hoping that's not what happened, because I'll
22:48
Speaker 2: be pissed. Well, well, i mean, I'm pissed either way,
22:51
Speaker 2: Candace was like a little gem in the world.
22:53
Speaker 1: Yeah, you are gonna be pissed about what happens here
22:55
Speaker 1: next though, because you know, like when as I talked
22:58
Speaker 1: to the very beginning, there's steps to things that happened, right,
23:00
Speaker 1: and when a crime is discovered, what happens next?
23:04
Speaker 2: Investigation, investigation, We don't give a fuck.
23:06
Speaker 1: Well, the investigation did quickly begin and the case was
23:09
Speaker 1: assigned to two deputies, Deputy Fisker and Deputy Robert Dodd,
23:13
Speaker 1: the very same one who Candice had a confrontation with.
23:17
Speaker 2: Not okay, is it like a small town and that's
23:20
Speaker 2: all they have or what?
23:21
Speaker 1: Like, I you know, I never actually looked up the
23:23
Speaker 1: population of this place.
23:25
Speaker 2: No, I mean, that's the only reason that he should
23:28
Speaker 2: be allowed on there.
23:29
Speaker 1: I guess maybe, I don't know, it's hard to say, okay,
23:34
Speaker 1: but yeah, there was needless to say with this individual
23:39
Speaker 1: and the potential shadiness that we may suspect there was
23:43
Speaker 1: a considerable lack of proper police work that was taking
23:46
Speaker 1: place during this investigation.
23:47
Speaker 2: Well, yeah, you can say that he probably wasn't the
23:49
Speaker 2: best at his job.
23:51
Speaker 1: No, So, after this initial discovery of Candas's remains, the
23:54
Speaker 1: family was instructed to leave their house for the investigation
23:57
Speaker 1: so it could proceed. Now. When they were allowed to
23:59
Speaker 1: return back to home, they were shocked to find that
24:02
Speaker 1: the door of the house was just wide open. There's
24:04
Speaker 1: no sign of anything being taped off or any proper
24:07
Speaker 1: crime scene management, you know, no yellow police tape, no barriers,
24:10
Speaker 1: anything else like that, nothing to indicate that there was
24:13
Speaker 1: an active crime scene at the home. This meant that
24:15
Speaker 1: anyone could have just entered the house, potentially contaminating or
24:18
Speaker 1: tamperate with any remains of evidence or the whole crime
24:21
Speaker 1: scene whatsoever. Right now. Even more troubling was the fact
24:24
Speaker 1: that the deputies appeared to have missed a significant and
24:28
Speaker 1: I want to highlight that word significant amount of clear
24:31
Speaker 1: evidence that was still scattered throughout the home. There were
24:35
Speaker 1: shotgun shells visible left laying on the floor near the fireplace,
24:38
Speaker 1: and even one inside Page's crib. The bloody comforter that
24:43
Speaker 1: Candace body was wrapped up in, Yeah, that was left behind,
24:46
Speaker 1: just laying on the ground, along with bloody towels that
24:48
Speaker 1: seemed to have been handled by the attackers, potentially them
24:51
Speaker 1: wiping their hands off on and a blood soak shirt
24:54
Speaker 1: that Candace wearing at the time of her death, was
24:56
Speaker 1: also left at the scene. You don't say, yeah, this
24:59
Speaker 1: was all left body.
25:01
Speaker 2: That literally just shows that they gave absolute zero shit.
25:04
Speaker 1: Zero fucks given. Yeah. Wow, that is almost comical. Really,
25:11
Speaker 1: it's comical to the point of disbelief. If I'm being honest, Like,
25:14
Speaker 1: how the fuck, Like, I don't care how shitty of
25:20
Speaker 1: an investigator you are, wouldn't you just you know, at
25:24
Speaker 1: least like clean up the fucking bloody rags and shotgun
25:28
Speaker 1: shells and shit, Like what are you doing.
25:31
Speaker 2: Mm hmm to just leave it there? Like, ah, that
25:34
Speaker 2: stuff has to be bagged up. Yeah, yeah, it doesn't
25:37
Speaker 2: make any sense.
25:38
Speaker 1: Even if it's not I know that, even if it's
25:40
Speaker 1: not evidence, that's just Devil's advocate for a moment. I mean,
25:43
Speaker 1: it is evidence. But let's just pretend that these things
25:46
Speaker 1: that were left behind were not evidence. You still have
25:49
Speaker 1: to dispose of them. Yeah, you're like, okay, family, you
25:52
Speaker 1: can go back into the house where your daughter was murdered.
25:54
Speaker 1: By the way, here's the bloody blanket she was wrapped
25:56
Speaker 1: up in. Good luck washing it and maybe I don't know,
25:58
Speaker 1: sleeping with it tonight. Do what you want. With it.
26:00
Speaker 1: I don't know, well, I don't the fuck.
26:02
Speaker 2: I don't know though that they would like clean up
26:04
Speaker 2: the crime scene though.
26:05
Speaker 1: Well, no, but there's there's certain things that you would
26:08
Speaker 1: you need to take. Well, yeah, you need to take those.
26:10
Speaker 2: But like, I don't think they're they're worried about like
26:12
Speaker 2: cleaning up the scene whatsoever. It's just they need to
26:16
Speaker 2: be have taken the evidence though.
26:19
Speaker 1: But there are people who clean up crime scene crime
26:21
Speaker 1: scene afterwards.
26:22
Speaker 2: Yeah, but I'm pretty sure you have to like hire them.
26:24
Speaker 2: I'm not certain, but.
26:25
Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure a crime scene like I don't think that.
26:29
Speaker 2: I think it's kind of up to the family to
26:31
Speaker 2: have to like go about getting someone to clean up after.
26:35
Speaker 1: A bloody blanket left behind. From my previous knowledge, if
26:40
Speaker 1: there's a blood stain on the carpet, they're not like
26:43
Speaker 1: peeling up the carpet. Maybe they peeled up the carpet,
26:45
Speaker 1: there's still blood in the underlay or the hardwood. Sure
26:47
Speaker 1: I get that, but it's like, here's just the blanket
26:50
Speaker 1: laying there.
26:51
Speaker 2: Well, that's not right because they should have taken for evidence.
26:54
Speaker 1: But but and my my argument is at the very
26:57
Speaker 1: least throw it out. Yeah, if you're at least that
27:01
Speaker 1: shitty of a comp at least just fucking throw it out.
27:03
Speaker 1: That's my point.
27:03
Speaker 2: You know, if you're not going to take it for evidence,
27:05
Speaker 2: chuck it in the garbage can exactly because you're.
27:08
Speaker 1: Not putting any effort in. All you have to do
27:09
Speaker 1: is grab it on your way out the door. Anyways,
27:13
Speaker 1: we'd agress on that that was a bit of a roundabout.
27:16
Speaker 1: So the family was just probably more way more frustrated
27:20
Speaker 1: than us, but definitely frustrated as well by this whole
27:23
Speaker 1: clear mishandling of the case, and one of Candas's brothers,
27:25
Speaker 1: who was actually taking a forensic class at the time,
27:28
Speaker 1: decided to take matters into his own hands. He, along
27:32
Speaker 1: with his mother, Dolores, put on rubbert gloves, meticulously collected
27:35
Speaker 1: every piece of evidence left behind by the deputies, going
27:38
Speaker 1: full fucking CSI. They bagged, photographed, labeled everything, and then
27:43
Speaker 1: took it all down to the Sheriff's office, expecting it
27:46
Speaker 1: to be properly handled from there.
27:48
Speaker 2: Oh, I feel like they should have taken it somewhere else,
27:51
Speaker 2: like a private investigation.
27:53
Speaker 1: Of sorts maybe, But when they arrived to the Sheriff's office,
27:56
Speaker 1: Dolores demanded to speak with deputies Fisker and Dowed and
27:59
Speaker 1: asked why this stuff was neglected left behind, like basically
28:04
Speaker 1: the fuck right?
28:05
Speaker 2: Yeah, well now we know where Candace got her feistiness
28:08
Speaker 2: around it like this.
28:10
Speaker 1: However, she was told that both deputies were too busy
28:13
Speaker 1: to speak with her, and she eventually spoke with a
28:16
Speaker 1: different deputy, and that deputy was just like, uh, yeah,
28:21
Speaker 1: go away, just take all that stuff and go away.
28:25
Speaker 3: Oh my.
28:26
Speaker 1: But not long after Deputy Fisker learned that she was stopped,
28:31
Speaker 1: she had stopped by and showed up at her home
28:32
Speaker 1: with a search warrant, demanding the remainder evidence that was
28:36
Speaker 1: earlier refused.
28:37
Speaker 2: What the shit they were just willing to give it
28:39
Speaker 2: to them. Okay, this is some bullshit right here.
28:42
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's a mess. It's just a big mess.
28:45
Speaker 2: Yeah.
28:45
Speaker 1: I would be losing my mind. Yeah, and I can
28:48
Speaker 1: understand why. Yeah. So by the like the whole evidence
28:53
Speaker 1: thing aside, Like any investigation, the next step would be
28:56
Speaker 1: to establish a suspect, right, which they did once again
29:01
Speaker 1: seemed fixated on Candace's brother, James. I knew that was
29:05
Speaker 1: coming like two seconds before. He said it an easy scapegoat, Hey, yeah, wow, Yeah,
29:11
Speaker 1: he was the prime suspect in Candace's murder.
29:13
Speaker 2: Why don't they just make him the prime suspect in
29:15
Speaker 2: anything going on in that town?
29:17
Speaker 1: Right? But like before, though, even despite lack of concrete
29:20
Speaker 1: evidence in this crime linking him, they're just like, yeah,
29:24
Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure it's him, but no evidence but him yep. Okay. So,
29:30
Speaker 1: Dolores tried desperately to convince the deputies that James couldn't
29:34
Speaker 1: have been involved in Candas's death. She explained James had
29:37
Speaker 1: severe psychological issues and made it highly unlikely for him
29:40
Speaker 1: to commit such an act, especially considering his extreme adversion
29:43
Speaker 1: to even entering the home with anyone else being there.
29:46
Speaker 1: He would not have entered if Candace was there. You
29:49
Speaker 1: did mention that, Yeah, however, her conversation her please her facts,
29:56
Speaker 1: however you want to put it, fell and deaf ears
29:58
Speaker 1: and the department issued a public statement declaring that a
30:01
Speaker 1: man hunt was underway for James Hilt, describing him as
30:05
Speaker 1: potentially dangerous and possibly armed with either a rifle or
30:09
Speaker 1: a twenty two caliber handgun. Hmmm, that's so sad. Keep
30:15
Speaker 1: this in mind, this has all happened on the same day.
30:20
Speaker 1: This is still the same day Candice has been murdered. Jeeve, Yes,
30:27
Speaker 1: we're still on the same fucking clock. Oh no, The
30:32
Speaker 1: thing is, things are going so fast. The deputies quote
30:36
Speaker 1: unquote did their investigation, did not get all the evidence.
30:42
Speaker 1: Then the family collected it all, dropped it off the
30:44
Speaker 1: sheriff's office, were refused, went back home. Then they got
30:47
Speaker 1: a warrant to retrieve said evidence, which takes time, and
30:53
Speaker 1: then declared publicly that there is a man hunt out
30:56
Speaker 1: there for James in the same day. So that shows
31:02
Speaker 1: how much effort is being put into this.
31:05
Speaker 2: Yeah, I really really really don't like that. That's stressful
31:08
Speaker 2: and brutal.
31:10
Speaker 1: So now there is an official search for James out there,
31:14
Speaker 1: being you know, a murder suspect, and investigators bank began
31:18
Speaker 1: sweeping the forested area where he was said to be living.
31:20
Speaker 2: Okay, can I just say one thing here, I'm.
31:22
Speaker 1: Pissed about something. What are you pissed? Could they not
31:24
Speaker 1: have just gone and.
31:25
Speaker 2: Found try to find him first before they just like
31:27
Speaker 2: publicly announce all of this, well, cause that is kind
31:31
Speaker 2: of like if he because he probably didn't do it,
31:34
Speaker 2: and then they're just like throwing his name through the.
31:36
Speaker 1: Mutt I agree. I agree one and I'm going to
31:39
Speaker 1: play devil's advocate on this one. Not that I agree
31:42
Speaker 1: with what they did. I'm on your side, but there
31:45
Speaker 1: is strategy to sometimes you know, publicly announcing it, whether
31:48
Speaker 1: it's public safety or whether it's you know, public being
31:52
Speaker 1: on the lookout for him. Because they didn't know where
31:54
Speaker 1: he lived. He could be wandering, so maybe they're like
31:57
Speaker 1: hoping that the public could help, you know, low hate him.
32:00
Speaker 1: So there are reasons why they announce it. But I
32:05
Speaker 1: do think you have to have some pretty good evidence
32:07
Speaker 1: to be doing that well.
32:08
Speaker 2: And like I feel like you kind of, you know,
32:10
Speaker 2: explore trying to find them first, for like maybe five
32:14
Speaker 2: minutes before you did something like this, but.
32:17
Speaker 1: Maybe maybe they did for five minutes literally five minutes.
32:22
Speaker 1: But yeah, when they're out in this forested area, out
32:25
Speaker 1: in these woods looking for James, this is when they
32:26
Speaker 1: would come across another grizzly scene. Now James is dead.
32:33
Speaker 1: It wasn't James dog found. They found the family dog
32:36
Speaker 1: that had gone missing right after the altercation with Deputy
32:40
Speaker 1: DoD So. It was found in these woods, tied to
32:45
Speaker 1: a tree and butchered with what appeared to be a
32:48
Speaker 1: hatchet or some sort of axe. The investigators, of course
32:53
Speaker 1: pin this on James, painting him as a deranged killer
32:55
Speaker 1: on the loose, But to the Hills family, it was
32:59
Speaker 1: all far too convenient, almost like someone had laid out
33:03
Speaker 1: a trail, like a trail of crumbs, you know, just
33:08
Speaker 1: a frame.
33:08
Speaker 2: Wow, don't ever fuck with the dog like brutal.
33:12
Speaker 1: Yeah, Nicole will fucking come for you. Oh yeah, yeah,
33:15
Speaker 1: I know. I you know.
33:16
Speaker 2: The sad thing is like people are like, oh, it's
33:18
Speaker 2: just animals, it's just dogs. But I would like go
33:20
Speaker 2: to prison.
33:20
Speaker 1: Ye are dogs? I will. I will say this to
33:23
Speaker 1: everyone out there, and this is one hundred percent not
33:25
Speaker 1: a joke. The person Nicole most relates to I've ever
33:31
Speaker 1: seen is John Wick. Oh my gosh, whatever tell me
33:36
Speaker 1: I'm wrong. Well, I don't really know.
33:38
Speaker 2: If I've been having to put in that position though,
33:41
Speaker 2: but I would turn into a freaking psychotic motherfucker. Honestly
33:47
Speaker 2: if anyone ever like did anything to one of my animals, like,
33:50
Speaker 2: I don't even think I would give a shit what
33:52
Speaker 2: I ended.
33:53
Speaker 1: Up doing, respectably, I got you, I would be right
33:55
Speaker 1: there with you. Trust me. Touch her for babies, You're
33:59
Speaker 1: going down I'm sorry you are. John Wick is released. Yeah,
34:04
Speaker 1: so back to the case, it would be the same
34:06
Speaker 1: day that Candice was murdered. Still the same day, on
34:10
Speaker 1: August fifteenth, that authorities would locate James camping in Iron Mountain,
34:14
Speaker 1: about ten miles from the family home. Still the same day.
34:19
Speaker 2: Oh, that's like almost unbelievable. It doesn't seem real.
34:23
Speaker 1: No, it doesn't. I'm assuming they most likely already knew
34:26
Speaker 1: where he was, like you know, about where his encampment was.
34:32
Speaker 1: But even still, like, how do you do all this
34:34
Speaker 1: in the same day. It's because you are cutting so
34:38
Speaker 1: many fucking corners.
34:39
Speaker 2: Well, yeah, and it has to probably be like a
34:41
Speaker 2: slightly small town where no other nothing else ever happens
34:44
Speaker 2: or something I don't know.
34:46
Speaker 1: Still even still, so, he was found with no firearms,
34:50
Speaker 1: as per the previous public statement suggested he would be,
34:53
Speaker 1: and he was swiftly arrested and charged with first and
34:56
Speaker 1: second degree burglary, criminal trespassing, theft, criminal mischief as well.
35:03
Speaker 1: Deputies claimed that he had broken into another home and
35:06
Speaker 1: stolen some items like flashlights and hatchets. Notably, though, despite
35:10
Speaker 1: their earlier mentions as James being the prime suspect, he
35:13
Speaker 1: wasn't charged in connection with Candace's murder. He was not
35:17
Speaker 1: arrested for that.
35:19
Speaker 2: Well, did they find and he's stolen goods at his
35:21
Speaker 2: little campsite.
35:22
Speaker 1: Here as far as I can tell, that like a
35:24
Speaker 1: flashlights or something like a couple of little things that
35:26
Speaker 1: could have been stolen. Yes, okay, regardless whatever they did
35:30
Speaker 1: charge him with, though all of them would later be
35:32
Speaker 1: dropped on the grounds of insanity and he was sentenced
35:35
Speaker 1: to a Colorado mental health institute.
35:38
Speaker 2: Huh yeah, but I mean, someone like trespassing doesn't just
35:41
Speaker 2: necessarily mean that they're going to be like such a
35:43
Speaker 2: monster that they're also going to kill their family dog
35:46
Speaker 2: and sister.
35:47
Speaker 1: Right, That's why it seems like the dog being there
35:51
Speaker 1: was that the trail of breadcrumb, you know, Oh, we
35:54
Speaker 1: already suspect him, and on our search, what do we
35:56
Speaker 1: find the butchered family dog. Sure it must have been him, that,
36:01
Speaker 1: you know, super convenient. Yeah. Now, despite all this, the
36:05
Speaker 1: harassment didn't end for James. Every time he was released
36:08
Speaker 1: from the institution and returned to visit his family, deputies
36:12
Speaker 1: from the Sheriff's Department would intervene, openly opposing his release
36:16
Speaker 1: and reiterating that he remained a suspect in his sister's
36:19
Speaker 1: murderer with no evidence. Though, Like, leave the poor guy alone.
36:24
Speaker 2: If this is actually the share for whatever the fuck
36:27
Speaker 2: his name is that did this, God, yeah.
36:29
Speaker 1: Dot Dodd Dodd DoD d Deputy DoD Dodd. He's a
36:35
Speaker 1: you should call him deputy dud. He is a bit
36:38
Speaker 1: of a dud. But now onto Candice's autopsy. Now. The
36:44
Speaker 1: report was extensive. It spanned eleven pages and revealed the
36:48
Speaker 1: brutal nature of her death.
36:50
Speaker 2: Okay, so someone was doing their dark job.
36:52
Speaker 1: Yes, someone was. She was shot a total of seven times.
36:56
Speaker 1: Six of the shots were to her head and one
36:59
Speaker 1: hitting her in the chest. The report indicated that three
37:03
Speaker 1: different firearms were used in the attack. Oh, a shotgun,
37:08
Speaker 1: a medium caliber rifle, and a or sorry gun I
37:11
Speaker 1: should say firearm because I don't know if it's a
37:12
Speaker 1: rifle for sure, a medium caliber firearm, and a small
37:16
Speaker 1: caliber firearm. So Candice was shot both from the front
37:21
Speaker 1: and from the back. She was also and she also sorry,
37:26
Speaker 1: had between eight and ten twenty two caliber gunshot wounds
37:29
Speaker 1: on her side. Wow, it's okay.
37:33
Speaker 2: It seems unfathomable to me to be shooting towards someone's head, Like,
37:37
Speaker 2: what does that mean?
37:38
Speaker 1: Well, I want you to think about the situation for
37:40
Speaker 1: a second, because from different types of firearms or guns
37:45
Speaker 1: being used alone should be a bit of a red flag.
37:49
Speaker 1: But if that's not enough for you, the blood spatter
37:52
Speaker 1: analysis suggested that at least two, possibly three individuals were
37:57
Speaker 1: involved in her shooting. Yeah, which throws even the smallest
38:01
Speaker 1: notion of James being responsible out the fucking window. Yeah,
38:05
Speaker 1: because you have three firearms being used, her being shot
38:09
Speaker 1: from the front and the back, and blood bladder report
38:12
Speaker 1: showing potentially up to three different directions it was shown
38:17
Speaker 1: from Okay, and to put the cherry on top the
38:23
Speaker 1: towels found where the perpetrator, you know, like wipe their
38:25
Speaker 1: hand off. That eventually did. They were tested for DNA
38:29
Speaker 1: and the results showed that the presence of an unknown
38:33
Speaker 1: male DNA was present that did not match any of
38:37
Speaker 1: Candace's family members, including James.
38:40
Speaker 2: Okay, and this has I feel like this has to
38:43
Speaker 2: kind of be targeted too, because they didn't they didn't
38:45
Speaker 2: do anything to little Page.
38:47
Speaker 1: Yeah, they didn't. Yeah, just her. Yeah, The combination of
38:51
Speaker 1: multiple firearms, the involvement of more than one person. In
38:53
Speaker 1: the presence of the unknown male's DNA and straight up
38:56
Speaker 1: lack of any possible evidence should have shifted the investigation
38:59
Speaker 1: away from James. However, the authorities continued to view him
39:03
Speaker 1: as the primary suspect. Of course, Frustrated by the lack
39:07
Speaker 1: of process a progress, and convinced that some fuckery was
39:10
Speaker 1: taking place, Dolores took matters into her own hands. Like
39:14
Speaker 1: the badass she is, she filed a formal complaint against
39:18
Speaker 1: the Fremont County Sheriff's Department, with Attorney General even suggesting
39:22
Speaker 1: that one of the deputies might be a crooked cop
39:25
Speaker 1: who could be involved in her daughter's murder. I wonder
39:29
Speaker 1: who that could be. Despite her efforts, though, Candas's case
39:35
Speaker 1: went cold, with little to no investigation or new leads
39:39
Speaker 1: for the next decade.
39:40
Speaker 2: Oh my gosh, you're kidding me.
39:42
Speaker 1: The next decade, which means that all changed on December seventeenth,
39:47
Speaker 1: in twenty sixteen. Okay, do you ever see that show
39:52
Speaker 1: Storage Wars? Uh?
39:54
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, yeah, Actually.
39:56
Speaker 1: Tell me about it? What is Storage Wars? What happens? Sorry?
39:59
Speaker 2: Rip?
40:00
Speaker 1: Isn't that the one? Okay?
40:02
Speaker 2: I hopefully am not getting mixed up, but is that
40:04
Speaker 2: where people like go into storage containers or whatever or.
40:08
Speaker 1: Like storage lockers orge units and.
40:11
Speaker 2: That have been abandoned, and then they get to go
40:13
Speaker 2: in there and like rubbage through and like auction things
40:15
Speaker 2: off and shit.
40:16
Speaker 1: Yes, usually they don't get to go into the locker.
40:19
Speaker 2: Oh right there, they bid on the whole locker itself.
40:22
Speaker 1: You get like a one or two minute look inside
40:25
Speaker 1: from the outside. I actually thought that show was fascinating.
40:29
Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure that show is one hundred percent staged.
40:33
Speaker 1: Pretty sure. I'm not doubting that there are many people
40:36
Speaker 1: out there who do that like it is a real thing,
40:38
Speaker 1: and I'm sure that many of the people on that
40:40
Speaker 1: show do that for real. But I'm pretty sure that
40:43
Speaker 1: show in itself is staged. But in this situation, on
40:46
Speaker 1: December seventeenth, twenty sixteen, that's exactly what we're looking at.
40:50
Speaker 1: A facility in Dawson, Ranch was conducting auctions for units
40:53
Speaker 1: whose owners had either fallen behind the payments or abandoned them.
40:58
Speaker 1: Among these attending the auction was a man by the
41:00
Speaker 1: name of Rick Ratsloff, who was a former streetcar racer
41:04
Speaker 1: known for his run ins with law enforcement. Now, during
41:07
Speaker 1: this auction, of course, as mentioned Betters, it'll take a
41:10
Speaker 1: bit of a look inside, right without going in and
41:12
Speaker 1: rubbishing around, so you kind of like it's like opening
41:14
Speaker 1: the door. You don't don't get step in, you're just
41:16
Speaker 1: peeking outside. And Rick had a bit of an eye for,
41:19
Speaker 1: you know, being a bit of a racer, knowing a
41:22
Speaker 1: bit of about motor cars and motorsports, right yep. So
41:26
Speaker 1: in one particular unit, Rick saw something that appeared to
41:29
Speaker 1: be a motorcycle light inside. He decided it might be
41:33
Speaker 1: an interesting locker for him, and so he decided to
41:36
Speaker 1: bid on it, and he actually won the unit for
41:37
Speaker 1: fifty bucks.
41:38
Speaker 2: Oh wow, the units for like that kind of Oh man,
41:42
Speaker 2: I would do that.
41:42
Speaker 1: That's kind of cool. Yeah. So what Rick found inside, though,
41:46
Speaker 1: was far more than he anticipated. As it began sorting
41:50
Speaker 1: through all the contents, he discovered a disturbing collection of
41:52
Speaker 1: items envelopes labeled as evidence boxes containing shell casings, bloody clothing,
42:00
Speaker 1: a bloody rope, blood stained socks, and even a bloody
42:03
Speaker 1: chrome acts. These were clearly items that should be secured
42:08
Speaker 1: in police custody, not left in a storage unit.
42:12
Speaker 2: Who's fucking storage unit is this, dude?
42:15
Speaker 1: We'll get to that of course we will. The discovery
42:19
Speaker 1: didn't end there. Rick also found Fremont County Sheriff Department gear,
42:23
Speaker 1: including uniforms, sirens, and lights from their vehicles. Rick immediately
42:28
Speaker 1: contacted the sheriff department and spoke directly with the head sheriff,
42:31
Speaker 1: Jim Baker. However, the response he received was far from reassuring.
42:37
Speaker 1: Instead of hearing some concern from Sheriff Baker about oh,
42:40
Speaker 1: you found what, like, oh, that's not good, let's talk
42:43
Speaker 1: us out, figure it out right, Rick was in fact
42:45
Speaker 1: given a stern warning that because of what he just found,
42:48
Speaker 1: his life could be in danger. What the shit? Yeah,
42:52
Speaker 1: And things took an even more suspicious turn when Deputy
42:56
Speaker 1: Robert Dodd, the very same deputy involved from the very beginning,
43:00
Speaker 1: reached out to Rick about the storage unit. Turns out
43:03
Speaker 1: the locker belonged to him.
43:07
Speaker 2: Oh man, oh man, my fucking blood is boiling.
43:14
Speaker 1: Yeah, Now, I can't blame you on that one.
43:16
Speaker 2: So the whole freaking police station is just corrupt. How
43:20
Speaker 2: the fuck do you phone that in? And they just
43:22
Speaker 2: don't give.
43:22
Speaker 1: A shit, right wow. So Dodd didn't acknowledge the evidence
43:28
Speaker 1: inside the locker, but instead tried to downplay it all,
43:30
Speaker 1: saying it was just filled with childhood memories and other
43:33
Speaker 1: personal items, and he actually offered to buy it back
43:35
Speaker 1: from Rick, to which Rick refused. As Rick held his ground,
43:40
Speaker 1: both Deputy DoD and the Sheriff's office began harassing him
43:44
Speaker 1: despite the threats, though Rick eventually he did cave a
43:50
Speaker 1: bit here and he allowed Sheriff Baker to examine the
43:53
Speaker 1: evidence that he had actually found. But given the previous
43:57
Speaker 1: threats and harassment, Rick and his wife secretly recorded the
44:00
Speaker 1: interaction with with with with them in this in the situation.
44:04
Speaker 1: That's smart, Yeah, just just in case something went bad now,
44:09
Speaker 1: as I haven't seen anything of this recording, not that
44:11
Speaker 1: I've been aware of. But it's not like anything did
44:14
Speaker 1: go to sour as far as I can see. But
44:17
Speaker 1: Sheriff Baker claimed that after reviewing the items, he handed
44:20
Speaker 1: all the evidence over to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation,
44:23
Speaker 1: stating that he had taken photos of everything before doing
44:26
Speaker 1: so as well. He also maintained that Deputy DoD had
44:28
Speaker 1: been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
44:33
Speaker 1: So it seems like things are actually going a little
44:35
Speaker 1: bit good here, Okay, So who turned it in. Sorry,
44:38
Speaker 1: Sheriff Baker. Okay, Yeah, so the sheriff is like, okay,
44:41
Speaker 1: let's actually look at this, let's take it, and he
44:44
Speaker 1: said that he turned it in to the Colorado Bureau
44:46
Speaker 1: of Investigation.
44:47
Speaker 2: Yeah. Sorry, my brain just shut off from five seconds.
44:51
Speaker 1: No, it's all good, it's all good. As the investigation progressed,
44:55
Speaker 1: it was confirmed, and I want to highlight that word
44:59
Speaker 1: confirm that the rope and axe found in the locker
45:03
Speaker 1: were used to kill the family dog. Confirmed. Additionally, the
45:12
Speaker 1: bloody socks were identified to belong to Candace and they
45:15
Speaker 1: were the very ones that she was wearing on the
45:17
Speaker 1: day of her murder.
45:19
Speaker 2: This nasty, nasty man.
45:22
Speaker 1: Yeah.
45:24
Speaker 2: I fucking hate cases where it's like they're an authority
45:26
Speaker 2: and they're doing.
45:27
Speaker 1: Stuff like it's it's like the fucking worst in all honesty,
45:31
Speaker 1: Like why are you in thatsit? Why are you doing that?
45:34
Speaker 1: You got some sort of fucking complex.
45:36
Speaker 2: Clearly, you wonder if they were always like that or
45:38
Speaker 2: if it's just that it's gone to their head a bit.
45:40
Speaker 1: You know, I don't know, I really don't think seriously. Yeah. Now,
45:46
Speaker 1: in February of twenty seventeen, Deputy Fisker, who was also
45:51
Speaker 1: involved in the investigation. He was the other deputy alongside Dodd.
45:55
Speaker 1: He was also placed on a ministrative leave, but not
45:58
Speaker 1: for his role in the investigation. Oh, just to show
46:01
Speaker 1: exactly what kind of people these deputies are. I wanted
46:04
Speaker 1: to ensure I mention this.
46:06
Speaker 3: So.
46:06
Speaker 1: The Colorado Bureau of Investigation had uncovered that Deputy Fisker
46:10
Speaker 1: had engaged in an inappropriate relationship with an underage girl
46:13
Speaker 1: while serving as a drug abuse resistance officer back in
46:17
Speaker 1: nineteen ninety nine. Though facts of it occurring were found,
46:22
Speaker 1: the woman involved decided not to press charges against him,
46:25
Speaker 1: leading to him being reinstated into his position at the
46:28
Speaker 1: sheriff's department, where he continues to work.
46:33
Speaker 2: Okay, I don't even know what to say, Like, I
46:36
Speaker 2: am just like pissed. Oh my gosh, this is like
46:40
Speaker 2: what is that? It's like the Old what are they
46:42
Speaker 2: kind of the nickname like the Old Boys Club or
46:45
Speaker 2: whatever when it was we've done cases for that, and
46:48
Speaker 2: it's like sheriff departments and like, and they're just all
46:52
Speaker 2: terrible people.
46:53
Speaker 1: I have no idea what I don't know. I don't know.
46:57
Speaker 1: Douche Canoes, that's my best guess I don't know. It's
47:00
Speaker 1: a gaggle of douche canoes.
47:02
Speaker 2: Yeah, this is so disgusting, really shit, Okay.
47:07
Speaker 1: Now, Meanwhile, on April twenty third, twenty seventeen, did deputy
47:12
Speaker 1: you know he's not fucking Robert Dodd. We're just gonna
47:15
Speaker 1: call him Dodd. Dodd opted to retire, relocating to Texas. However,
47:20
Speaker 1: less than a month later, on May fourth, he was
47:22
Speaker 1: charged with two counts of second degree misconduct and abuse
47:26
Speaker 1: of public records. These charges stem from not only the
47:30
Speaker 1: evidence discovered in the storage locker, but also from the
47:32
Speaker 1: case from a case or another case in which he
47:36
Speaker 1: altered public records without proper authorization. Also, on May seventeenth,
47:42
Speaker 1: twenty seventeen, more incriminating evidence related to Dodd's surface at
47:46
Speaker 1: the Phantom Landfill in Penrose, when an employee at landfill
47:50
Speaker 1: discovered some concerning material from Dodd's private residence.
47:55
Speaker 2: They need to check his DNA, just putting that out there.
47:58
Speaker 1: Yeah. So, due to safety proto calls, the landfill is
48:01
Speaker 1: required to inspect all incoming dumpsters, and in doing so
48:06
Speaker 1: they discovered a large envelope containing criminal investigation paperwork from him.
48:10
Speaker 1: They also discovered a video related to a sexual offense investigation,
48:14
Speaker 1: a computer, a DVD, and a videotape linked to sexual
48:18
Speaker 1: assault cases, as well as a box labeled FCSO Crime
48:23
Speaker 1: Scene Unit Forensic Lights.
48:26
Speaker 2: Okay, and this guy just gives zero shits where he
48:28
Speaker 2: just like just like throws us in the garbage and
48:31
Speaker 2: doesn't even try.
48:32
Speaker 1: To dispose of it like in a proper manner to hide. Yeah,
48:37
Speaker 1: thing like he just doesn't care. I don't know if
48:39
Speaker 1: he doesn't care. I think he's just that dumb. He's like, yeah,
48:41
Speaker 1: I'll just throw it out, no one will fuckings like,
48:43
Speaker 1: you know, I think he thinks he's invincible. Yeah, potentially.
48:46
Speaker 1: I think a lot of these these corrupt type officers are. Yeah,
48:51
Speaker 1: which is funny because I think it's the complete opposite.
48:53
Speaker 1: You get like a good comp they know their their mortality,
48:57
Speaker 1: but they're risking it for the fucking and they're out
49:01
Speaker 1: there in the front lines doing what they need to do,
49:03
Speaker 1: risking their mortality for the better. Where you have these
49:07
Speaker 1: assholes like I'm fucking invincible, fuck you, you can't touch
49:10
Speaker 1: me and just lought it. I'm a douchebag, I know.
49:12
Speaker 2: And then it's people like this too that gives the
49:16
Speaker 2: force and stuff bad names at times.
49:18
Speaker 1: Right now, honestly, there is far too much information regarding
49:23
Speaker 1: this dirt bag and things that were uncovered about him,
49:25
Speaker 1: minuscule things well I don't mean miniscule things, but like
49:28
Speaker 1: little pieces of evidence all piling up in a bunch
49:30
Speaker 1: of things. Right, and it's clear that Candice was right.
49:34
Speaker 1: He was doing some fucking shady shit. So deputy Nope,
49:38
Speaker 1: not deputy just Dodd. Dodd was charged with two accounts
49:41
Speaker 1: of second degree official misconduct and abuse of public records. However,
49:46
Speaker 1: he did not serve jail time for these charges. He
49:48
Speaker 1: eventually accepted a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty
49:51
Speaker 1: to the charges of official misconduct, and it's part of
49:53
Speaker 1: the plea agreement he received a deferred sentence, meaning that
49:57
Speaker 1: as long as he complied with the terms of the agreement,
50:00
Speaker 1: such as probation, the charges would not result in criminal
50:03
Speaker 1: conviction on his record. Cool. Yeah, It basically allowed him
50:10
Speaker 1: to avoid being a criminal on paper and no jail time.
50:17
Speaker 1: There are some theories out there that range in the
50:19
Speaker 1: case for Candace is that it is that it.
50:26
Speaker 2: Can I finish my God, Okay, sorry, I'm like still
50:29
Speaker 2: expecting that okay, never mind.
50:31
Speaker 1: Sorry. There are some theories out there that range in
50:33
Speaker 1: the you know, in the aspect of Candace's case, from
50:37
Speaker 1: her brother James being the murderer, to a burglary gone wrong,
50:41
Speaker 1: or even Page's father coming back and being the one responsible,
50:45
Speaker 1: but none of them have any evidence to back any
50:48
Speaker 1: of the speculation. The only one that has any semblance
50:52
Speaker 1: of weight is the theory of Dodd. He didn't do
50:57
Speaker 1: the killings by himself. In my opinion, he probably used
51:00
Speaker 1: ties to local gang organizations. As it was Candace had
51:03
Speaker 1: witnessed him being paid off, right, I feel he either
51:07
Speaker 1: paid them or maybe had a favor by them, And
51:10
Speaker 1: because of him doing so much evidence, because of all
51:13
Speaker 1: this evidence storage in his locker, I do believe he
51:15
Speaker 1: was physically involved in the killing of the family dog
51:18
Speaker 1: for sure, but perhaps maybe even Candace himself most.
51:22
Speaker 2: Likely, and probably all the other evidence, like the cases
51:26
Speaker 2: of evidence that he was holding.
51:28
Speaker 1: Yeah. Unfortunately, to this day, Candace's story is still unsolved
51:34
Speaker 1: and will most likely never be solved. That is the
51:39
Speaker 1: story of Candace Hilt Hilts. Sorry, I'm like, is that
51:43
Speaker 1: it is that it? And that is it? That is it.
51:47
Speaker 1: It's been a while since I threw a mystery one
51:49
Speaker 1: at you, So I threw a mystery one at you
51:50
Speaker 1: without even telling you.
51:51
Speaker 2: I know, I can tell I am because that is
51:54
Speaker 2: some bullshit. But also it's like, what if he didn't
51:58
Speaker 2: do this, you know who did? Yeah, and they need
52:06
Speaker 2: to like test his blood because if what if it
52:09
Speaker 2: matched whatever was on that towel or whatever that was,
52:12
Speaker 2: you know, someone wiped their hands and shit.
52:14
Speaker 1: Could be him, It could be, but there was at
52:16
Speaker 1: least there was potentially three perpetrators. Yeah, so you have
52:20
Speaker 1: a thirty three percent chance that it was him, a
52:23
Speaker 1: sixty six percent chance that was another one else, another person,
52:26
Speaker 1: assuming it was in fact a perpetrator's DNA. There is
52:30
Speaker 1: a chance that it was maybe a visitor that stopped
52:32
Speaker 1: by or who knows, or maybe it was a second
52:34
Speaker 1: hand towel or I don't know.
52:36
Speaker 2: Yeah, this poor family though, hey, like they lose the
52:39
Speaker 2: father and now they they lose Candace to like horrific crime,
52:47
Speaker 2: like horrific really.
52:48
Speaker 1: Then six years later and the page.
52:52
Speaker 2: And then also the brother is like you know struggling
52:55
Speaker 2: to Oh, that's that's just that's too much for one family.
52:59
Speaker 1: I feel like too much. That's not fair. But I
53:02
Speaker 1: want to go back to you saying, what if it's
53:04
Speaker 1: not him? If that's okay? Yeah, So everyone we've all
53:08
Speaker 1: heard follow the evidence, right, What does the evidence tell
53:12
Speaker 1: us in this case that is him? Sorry? Okay, I'm sorry, Okay,
53:19
Speaker 1: what does the evidence say? I don't even know. He
53:27
Speaker 1: has every not every right, but every reason to be
53:32
Speaker 1: attached to that crime scene because he was the investigator, right,
53:36
Speaker 1: that towel could have contained his DNA because he investigated it.
53:39
Speaker 1: So even if they test it, all I was of
53:42
Speaker 1: course I was there. I handled it probably, you know.
53:45
Speaker 2: Right, and he was all like also to going back,
53:48
Speaker 2: he was the one that had, like, you know, an
53:50
Speaker 2: issue there, there was an issue.
53:52
Speaker 1: Yeah. So the thing that tells me it was him
53:58
Speaker 1: is the fact that they tied the dog to his
54:02
Speaker 1: storage locker. They have the bloody axe and bloody rope
54:06
Speaker 1: from the fucking dog in his locker because they never
54:10
Speaker 1: found the hatchet when they found the dog, but yet
54:14
Speaker 1: he has it in his storage locker. Oh shit, Yeah,
54:18
Speaker 1: which means he is tied to this case somehow.
54:21
Speaker 2: Because why would he do that to the dog? And
54:24
Speaker 2: then and I feel like it just yeah, it goes
54:26
Speaker 2: hand in hand whoever did that to the dog also
54:29
Speaker 2: did that to Candace.
54:30
Speaker 1: Yeah, definitely. I mean it's not one hundred percent, but
54:34
Speaker 1: you're at least on the trail. They're at least involved somehow.
54:38
Speaker 2: Well, yeah, it just makes sense. He's the one that
54:40
Speaker 2: got in an argument with her. You know, Candace had
54:43
Speaker 2: a bad feeling about him. Yeah, he has. He killed
54:47
Speaker 2: the dog clearly, and then the next day or whatever.
54:50
Speaker 1: Yes, Also she's gone like, yeah, so assuming any any
54:54
Speaker 1: shady he's a shady police officer, exactly so, assuming any
54:58
Speaker 1: of the Candace crime scene evidence cannot be used against him,
55:02
Speaker 1: anything that was found in the stores lock, or anything
55:04
Speaker 1: that lies on his DNA being there, assume it's none
55:07
Speaker 1: of It's good. The dog is the fucking key here.
55:12
Speaker 1: Why did he have the murder weapon for the dog? Yeah?
55:18
Speaker 1: That tells me everything.
55:19
Speaker 2: It's too bad they can't Well maybe they are right,
55:22
Speaker 2: but like, open this up again and do a deep dive.
55:25
Speaker 2: They could, because they might be they might be surprised.
55:28
Speaker 2: They could find something.
55:29
Speaker 1: I think they could. I honestly think they could. Yeah.
55:34
Speaker 2: But then also, I mean, this is so disgusting to
55:37
Speaker 2: think or even say, but there there could be people
55:40
Speaker 2: that you know, they don't want to because they don't
55:44
Speaker 2: want to find that it was a corrupt police officer.
55:47
Speaker 1: Right, that's true. Well, like because the sheriff, for example,
55:51
Speaker 1: he's like, you're you're in danger, right because what you
55:53
Speaker 1: just found. What if the sheriff was like he didn't
55:57
Speaker 1: have a choice, Like what if these individuals that Dodd
56:02
Speaker 1: was involved with were manipulating the police office force? But
56:06
Speaker 1: if they were being threatened because he did do the
56:08
Speaker 1: right thing and he did handle that evidence to pass
56:11
Speaker 1: it off to the right people. He did take Dodd
56:14
Speaker 1: off the force, he did get this criminal investigation going
56:18
Speaker 1: on him. He did all those things, but he was
56:21
Speaker 1: just like, dude, you you're in trouble.
56:24
Speaker 2: Yeah, Like he didn't want to have to do this.
56:26
Speaker 1: It's a can of worms. That's almost like it's better
56:29
Speaker 1: off being left alone. So I don't know what situation
56:32
Speaker 1: they're in, but hm.
56:34
Speaker 2: What a shitty case to not be like solved.
56:37
Speaker 1: Yeah. Wow. Anyways, hopefully you guys enjoyed that one. Hopefully
56:42
Speaker 1: you're going to be coming back for the next one.
56:45
Speaker 1: Hopefully I can to see you on the Patreon live
56:47
Speaker 1: in a couple of days. Ben didn't piss you off
56:49
Speaker 1: too much. There's a good chance I did, and I'm
56:52
Speaker 1: sorry for that. But you can always give us a
56:54
Speaker 1: rating and let us know your feelings. You can give
56:56
Speaker 1: us a comment and message us, shoot us an email.
56:58
Speaker 1: Find all our links in the description now below. We
57:00
Speaker 1: appreciate you guys being here. It means the world to us.
57:03
Speaker 1: Does I like how.
57:04
Speaker 2: I'm just I just stated that you pissed everyone off.
57:06
Speaker 2: Oh you can give us a rating? Well, yeah, like
57:10
Speaker 2: a good rating, not a bad we pissed you off rating.
57:13
Speaker 1: I mean, technically they can write whatever they want, but
57:18
Speaker 1: five star, excuse me, it would be great. It would
57:22
Speaker 1: be thank you very much.
57:23
Speaker 2: Okay, Well, anyway, thank you for being here. And you
57:26
Speaker 2: know what, there's just so much more to.
57:28
Speaker 1: Come next time. Until next time, stay wicked.