Jury deliberations enter second day in "doomsday mom" Lori Vallow Daybell's murder trial
The jury in the trial of Lori Vallow Daybell, charged with murder in the deaths of her two children and conspiracy to commit murder in the death of her husband's first wife, continued deliberations Friday as her weekslong trial in Boise, Idaho, draws to a close. The jury began weighing Vallow Daybell's fate Thursday, following closing arguments in the case.
Vallow Daybell, who did not take the stand in her own defense, is accused of murdering two of her children, 16-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua "JJ" Vallow, who were last seen in September 2019. Vallow Daybell married her current husband, Chad Daybell, in November of that year, just two weeks after the death of Daybell's first wife, Tammy.
Prosecutors say the couple used "doomsday" beliefs involving zombies to justify murdering the children and Tammy Daybell.
Months later, the children's remains were found buried on Daybell's property.
Lori Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell were each arrested in 2020 and ultimately charged in 2021. In addition to being charged with murder in her children's deaths, Vallow Daybell has also been charged with conspiracy to commit murder in their deaths and death of Tammy Daybell, and grand theft for allegedly collecting Social Security payments on behalf of her children. Both Vallow Daybell and Daybell have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Prosecutors, who called nearly 60 witnesses, have framed their case around what they said was Vallow Daybell's drive for money, power and sex. The couple's fringe religious beliefs were at the center of the case, as witnesses testified to their beliefs in light and dark spirits, their ability to "cast out" spirits and cause spiritual pain and their marriage in a past life. Prosecutor Rob Wood invoked those three threads in the state's closing Thursday, telling jurors she and Chad Daybell were driven to remove the obstacles that prevented them to be together.
Their religious beliefs don't matter — but they used them to manipulate their friends, he argued, and Vallow Daybell manipulated Chad Daybell through what he called emotional and sexual control.
And she learned her lesson from the death of her husband Charles Vallow, who had changed the beneficiary of his life insurance to his sister rather than his wife, hiding the deaths of Tylee and JJ so she could keep collecting their checks, Wood said.
The defense, which did not call any witnesses, has argued that Vallow Daybell has the freedom to choose and practice her religion and that there is not enough evidence to connect Vallow Daybell herself to the alleged crimes.
Defense attorney Jim Archibald, in his closing argument Thursday, cast Vallow Daybell as a dedicated mom who was in love with Chad Daybell — whom he characterized as an author going bankrupt who wasn't very successful in attracting religious followers, undercutting the prosecution's argument the murders were motivated by money or power.
He argued that she wanted to be with Daybell, who was telling her she was a goddess and that they were married in a past life, but did not plan to kill her kids.
He pointed to Daybell and Alex Cox, Vallow Daybell's brother, as he argued the evidence does not prove Vallow Daybell was involved in the murders.
Of the 15,000 texts in evidence, he argued, none of them are from Vallow Daybell, asking about when they are killing the children.
While the couple was charged together, their trials have since been severed and Chad Daybell is expected to face trial at a later date. He faces the death penalty, but Judge Steven Boyce took capital punishment off the table in Vallow Daybell's case.
The day began with Boyce giving instructions to the 10 men and eight women selected for the jury who have listened to the weeks of testimony in the trial, walking them through the questions they will have to consider to come to a verdict. After closing arguments, Boyce selected 12 jurors by random draw to deliberate, while the rest are alternates.
Boyce, who did not allow cameras in the courtroom or live video or audio of the trial, ruled earlier this week that the court would livestream the verdict in the case.
Anam Siddiq and Gabriella Demirdjian contributed to this report.