A jury has determined that Lori Vallow Daybell committed the murders of two of her kids and planned the murder of a lover. Soon after 3 p.m. ET, the verdict was read out in court, and the jury members were then excused.
It may take several months before a sentence hearing can be convened, according to Judge Steven Boyce. 49-year-old Vallow Daybell might receive a life sentence. Although they were both charged with several offenses two years ago, she and her 54-year-old husband Chad Daybell are being prosecuted separately.
Weeks were spent by the prosecution presenting their evidence against Vallow Daybell to the jury, which included grisly photos taken at the spot where her children’s bodies were discovered. Over the course of the trial, which lasted more than a month, Vallow Daybell’s defense team stunned everyone by choosing not to call a single witness and resting its case shortly after the prosecution ended its case.
On a case that has received a lot of attention, the jury started deliberations Thursday afternoon. Vallow Daybell is accused of killing her two youngest children and her husband’s prior wife, according to the prosecution, in part because of her religious views on zombies and the impending end of the world.
The murder trial and Vallow Daybell’s history are briefly summarized below:
What crime is Vallow Daybell charged with?
In May 2021, nine criminal counts against Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell were brought against them, including three counts of murder and/or conspiracy.
Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon “JJ” Vallow, the two youngest children of Vallow Daybell, are allegedly dead. When Tylee and JJ, who was 7 years old, vanished in September 2019, Tylee was almost 17. The children’s bodies were discovered in June 2020, buried on Chad Daybell’s ranch in Rexburg, Idaho.
Vallow Daybell was charged with criminal obstruction and abandonment of a child even before the remains were discovered. She is accused by the prosecution of failing to declare her children missing so she could continue to get benefits.
She is also accused of planning the murder of Chad’s ex-wife Tammy Daybell, who was discovered dead in her house in October 2019—less than one month before he married Vallow in Hawaii. He is the fifth husband of Vallow Daybell.
In another case in Arizona, Vallow Daybell was also charged with conspiring to murder Charles Vallow, her fourth husband, by having her brother, Alex Cox, allegedly shoot and kill him in July 2019. In December 2019, Alex Cox passed away from what were found to be natural causes.
What transpired throughout the trial?
Numerous witnesses were questioned by the state, and it frequently shown terrible pictures of Tylee and JJ’s bodies to the jury. JJ’s body was wrapped in plastic and had his hands and ankles bound, while Tylee’s body had been burned and dismembered. Over his head, a plastic bag was duct taped.
Numerous text messages from Vallow Daybell’s phone are among the numerous circumstantial pieces of evidence that have been presented during the trial. However, a DNA analyst also stated that a hair recovered on JJ’s body that was attached to a piece of duct tape was determined to match his mother.
On Tuesday, defense lawyer James Archibald announced, “Your honor, we don’t believe the state has proved its case, so the defense will rest.” Boyce, though, decided that there was enough proof to move on.
According to the prosecution, Chad Daybell and Vallow Daybell’s whole relationship is intertwined in a murderous criminal conspiracy that they attempted to defend through implausible assumptions. Prosecutors claim that after the pair first met in October 2018, they planned to murder their closest family members in order to profit from the deaths through insurance claims and Social Security benefits.
Archibald said in his closing remarks that his client was enslaved by a man whom she views as a savior and her enduring soulmate. He said that the prosecution failed to link Vallow Daybell directly to the deaths of her children. According to Archibald, DNA evidence like hair on a piece of tape might have come from a mother acting normally.