Candy Mossler
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Candace "Candy" Mossler nee Candace Weatherby (1920-1976) was a socialite at the center of a sensational, highly-publicized murder trial in the 1960s. Candace Mossler and her nephew Melvin Powers, with whom she was having an incestuous affair, were charged with the killing of Candy's millionaire husband, Jacques Mossler. Candace Mossler and her husband were separated at the time of his murder. Jacques Mossler had considered suing Powers and divorcing his wife but, upon consultation with his lawyer, had decided against doing so in order to avoid the negative publicity and losing half of his fortune to Candace.[1] At the time of her husband's murder, she was on a $5,000 a week stipend allocated for household upkeep.
During initial interviews with police officers, Candace Mossler asserted that she believed her husband's death was a result of a burglary gone wrong.[1] However, when the officers stated they believed the murder was a crime of passion, stating the fact that Jacques Mossler had been stabbed over thirty times before being bludgeoned over the head with a glass bowl, Candace changed her story, saying that she believed that her husband had been a closet homosexual, and had been cheating on her with another man who could have possibly committed the crime. As her husband had been found wearing only a bath robe, officers pursued this lead until they found Jacques' diary, which cast suspicion directly upon his wife and his nephew.[1]
America's newspapers and magazines took note of the salacious case, and a drumbeat began to build for indictment of Candace Mossler. It finally came on July 20, 1965. Candy Mossler and Melvin Powers were defended by lawyer Percy Foreman, a high-profile attorney who later defended James Earl Ray, the man convicted of killing Martin Luther King, Jr.. As her assets--the assets she inherited via Jacques Mossler-- were frozen at the time of her arrest pending the investigation of Jacques' death, Candace paid Foreman's retainer with jewelry, diamonds, and furs that had been bought for her by her late husband before their separation.[1]
Candy Mossler had flown to Rochester prior to her arrest in order to undergo treatment at the Mayo Clinic for migraines, but agreed to fly to Miami to surrender, rather than risk the indignity of a surprise arrest. Accompanied by a private nurse and wearing a Mayo Clinic wrist identification band, she flew from Minnesota to Miami International Airport, where she was treated to a genteel arrest by a state police commander. A mighty press contingent had gathered at the airport, and Candy gave them plenty of her toothpaste-model smiles. When reporters confronted her with allegations of adultery, incest, and murder, she simply replied, "Well, nobody's perfect."[1]
Candy, a bouncy, former-model with platinum blond hair and a southern accent was notable for her on-camera charm. While jail inmates shouted obscenities at her she would smile and blow kisses at the cameras.
She rented two adjoining apartments named the White Hall Apartments (http://www.whitehallapartments.net/index.php) on the North West side of town, and her children joined her. Meanwhile, investigators in Texas and Florida continued working for months to string together evidence. Each thread seemed to lead to Mel Powers, Candy Mossler, or both.
Police officers turned up four witnesses who claimed the lovers solicited a hit on "the old mooch." The investigators lined up a long list of witnesses - neighbors, employees, hotel clerks - who said they saw Mel and Candy share affectionate moments. Cops found a photographic record of Candy and Mel's travels - souvenir snapshots from nightclubs, ski slopes, concerts.
The court room was filled to maximum capacity with spectators every day of the murder trial, people bringing their lunches with them and eating during court processions in order to retain their seats all day.[1] The subject matter was considered illicit enough that people under the age of 21 were turned away.[1] During the course of their trial, lawyer Percy Foreman declined to call any witnesses to the stand--, in direct contrast to the district attorney, who called a number of questionably relevant witnesses--and only gave a closing statement which, by many accounts, was extremely compelling.[1]
Both Mossler and Powers were acquitted. Police officers and the district attorney's office declined to continue the search for Jacques' murderers afterwards, as they continued to stand by their initial conclusion that Candace and her lover had committed the crime.[1] Eventually, Powers and Mossler drifted apart.
Mossler died of an accidental overdose of migraine medication in 1976.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Candy Scandal." Narr. Dominick Dunne. Power, Privilege and Justice. Tru TV. 29 Dec. 2007.
