Disturbing Portrait Emerges at Guzek’s Fourth Trial

Disturbing details about convicted killer Randy Lee Guzek and his family emerged Wednesday in the third day of testimony at his fourth death-penalty trial.

Prosecutors say outwardly, Guzek was very polite, and an outstanding student. But witnesses say, even as a child, the real Randy Guzek was forceful, manipulative and violent.

It was a home life few can imagine. Randy’s father, Joel Guzek, was a criminal, sexual abuser and alcoholic – and prosecutors say Randy didn’t stray far.

A surrogate witness read testimony actually given by Guzek’s younger sister, Tammy, during the first two trials, in 1988 and 1991.

“What was it like growing up in the Guzek household?” she was asked.

“It was hard. … It wasn’t a family, and I ended up getting hurt a lot.”

She said she was sexually abused by her father and two of her three brothers, including Randy, who himself was roughly a middle-schooler.

She said Randy would often hit her – even once urinated on her – because she didn’t follow his orders.

“Usually if he didn’t get his way, he’d use force,” his sister said.

Prosecutors say Guzek began attending Jehovah’s Witnesses meetings – not because he’d found faith, but because he wanted to learn about people – learn where they live and when they’d be gone, so he could burglarize them.

Four burglary victims or their surrogate witnesses took the stand Wednesday, though prosecutors say there are more.

“There was things in disarray, there was dishes on the table that weren’t supposed to be on the table,” one said.

But it was a very different side of Randy Guzek than the one the public saw.

“Randy was always a gentleman, as far as his contact at work. … Very polite,” one witness said.

Meanwhile, a former neighbor of Guzek is speaking out about what it was like growing up down the street from a future murderer.

“He was more the bad boy,” Tammi Ford of Redmond said Wednesday,

Ford was only 7 years old when Guzek, then 18, murdered Rod and Lois Houser of Terrebonne nearly 23 years ago.

“He would constantly drive fast up and down the road, so we were always told to walk off the road so we wouldn’t get run over,” said Ford. “We were told to avoid the house and the property and not go up there.”

Prosecutors say Guzek was romantically involved with the Housers’ niece.

During the opening arguments of Guzek’s fourth death penalty trial, prosecutor Josh Marquis told jurors the couple’s niece had moved in with them to turn her life around.

But Marquis says Rod Houser had a funny feeling about Guzek, telling him to leave his niece alone. That, Marquis said, set Guzek off.

“Most everybody was scared of him,” said Ford, admitting she wasn’t surprised about the murders, “Ge came off as the really gruff, tough, ‘Beat you up, get out of my way’ person.”

Ford’s older sister went to school with Guzek, but her parents forbid them from going on the Guzek property.

“It’s just very frustrating that it has to come up every few years,” said Ford. “It should just be settled and done and we don’t have to read about him any more.”