Chad Daybell, convicted in the murders of his first wife, Tammy Daybell, and his second wife’s two youngest children, Joshua “JJ” Vallow and Tylee Ryan, is now in custody at the maximum security prison in Kuna, Idaho. This development follows a jury's decision to sentence Daybell to death, marking a significant chapter in a case that has captivated the nation.
Chad Daybell sits at the defense table after the jury’s verdict in his murder trial was read at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, on Thursday, May 30, 2024.
The Verdict and Sentencing
On June 1, 2024, an Idaho jury sentenced Chad Daybell to death for the 2019 murders of his first wife and his second wife’s two youngest children. The sentencing came two days after Daybell was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 2019 death of his former wife, Tammy Daybell, 49. He was also found guilty of conspiracy charges in the deaths of his second wife, Lori Vallow Daybell's two youngest children, Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow.
As the judge handed down the death penalty, Daybell stayed still and showed no emotion. The jury found him guilty on all counts last Thursday.
Daybell is the Gem State’s ninth inmate on death row. Idaho law allows for execution by lethal injection or firing squad, though firing squad executions have never been used in the state.
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Lindsey Blake, the Fremont County, Idaho prosecutor, told reporters she was hopeful the verdict would allow the victims' families and friends a chance to heal. "We are pleased with the outcome and justice has been served for the victims in this case," she said at a news conference later Saturday.
Prosecutors said Daybell concocted wild, religion-tinged fantasies about people becoming zombies to justify grisly crimes - with the goal, they said, of starting a new life with his second wife, Vallow Daybell, after having an affair with her. They also accused Daybell of insurance fraud in his former wife's death.
The Murders and the "Doomsday Cult"
The Vallow-Daybell doomsday murders consist of a series of killings-including child murder, filicide, and spousal murder-committed by an American couple, Lori Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell. Chad and Lori led a Mormon religious sect described in the media as a "doomsday cult."
Here's a chronological overview of the key events:
- July 11, 2019: Charles Vallow, Lori's estranged husband, was shot dead by her brother Alex Cox in Chandler, Arizona.
- September 2019: Lori's daughter, Tylee Ryan (16), and adopted son, Joshua Jaxon "J. J." Vallow (7), disappeared from their home in Rexburg, Idaho.
- October 2, 2019: Lori's nephew-in-law Brandon Boudreaux survived a murder attempt in Gilbert, Arizona.
- October 19, 2019: Tammy Daybell was found dead in her home. Initially, a heart attack was cited as the cause of death, but it was later changed to homicide: asphyxiation by suffocation.
The children's bodies were found in June 2020 and buried on property in Rexburg owned by Daybell. Months earlier, Vallow's brother had shot and killed her husband, Charles.
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Prosecutors said texts show Tammy was "in the way". Fremont County Prosecutor Lindsey Blake said Chad Daybell influenced the coroner's initial ruling by fabricating details about Tammy's medical condition. It was all part of a plan, Blake said, for Chad to eliminate his wife so he could be with Lori Vallow.
Blake also described how Vallow began asking Daybell about possible plans involving Tylee and JJ. "About a month after Charles' passing, Lori's asking Chad, 'Do you think there is a perfectly orchestrated plan to take the children?'" Blake said, displaying an image of Vallow's text message to Daybell in court. "There is a plan being orchestrated for the children," Daybell replied in the exchange of messages. "I was shown last night how it fit together again."
Lori Vallow, Chad Daybell Case Documentary | Crime Nation | Full Episode | The CW
Chad Daybell's Background and Beliefs
Chad Guy Daybell was born on August 11, 1968, in Provo, Utah, to a Mormon family and grew up in the neighboring city of Springville. He graduated from BYU with a B.A.
Chad's novels often depicted apocalyptic situations and dystopian futures, and featured characters based on his own family. In a memoir called Living on the Edge of Heaven, he claimed to have had two near-death experiences that allowed him to receive supernatural visions from "beyond the veil." A recurring theme in Chad's writings was a supernatural voice giving instructions and advice to him or to his characters.
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Over time, Chad's religious beliefs became increasingly extreme. Jason Gwilliam, the husband of Tammy's sister, later recalled that Chad's views had started changing around 2006 and 2007, as he became "hyper-focused on preparing for end of times." In 2010 or 2011, Chad started claiming he had visions about how the end of the world would occur.
Chad Daybell's mugshot.
Lori Vallow Daybell's Involvement
Lori Norene Ryan Daybell, also referred to as Lori Vallow Daybell, was born Lori Norene Cox on June 26, 1973, in Loma Linda, California. In October 2018, together with Melanie Gibb and Zulema Pastenes whom she had recently befriended, Lori attended a "Preparing a People" event where she met Chad for the first time.
Reincarnation - a concept which is not accepted by the LDS Church - played a key part in Chad's religious views. He claimed to have lived thirty-one previous lives on different planets and that Lori had lived twenty-one separate lives, five of which coincided with his own experiences on Earth.
The criminal indictment cites text messages between the pair "regarding death percentages for Tammy" Daybell, as well as messages about her being in limbo, and Tammy "being possessed by a spirit named Viola."
Lori Vallow was sentenced to three life imprisonments by District Judge Steven Boyce in July 2023. She remains in Maricopa County, Arizona awaiting trial on two counts of conspiracy to commit murder in relation to her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, and former nephew-in-law, Brandon Boudreaux. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Legal and Ethical Considerations
During the final days of Mr. Daybell’s trial, media reported that the Idaho Department of Corrections (IDOC) had purchased three doses of pentobarbital, the drug used in lethal injections, for $100,000. This purchase price is double what IDOC spent in October 2023 for the same kind and quantity of drugs.
In 1976, the United States Supreme Court held that juries must consider the character and record of individual defendants before imposing a death sentence. The Court noted that “the fundamental respect for humanity” underlying the Eighth Amendment required such considerations.
Following their release from jury duty, two jurors spoke with local news and discussed Mr. Daybell’s decision not to present mitigating evidence. One of the jurors, Tracie Bradley, said when it came to determining the sentence, “it’s like there was no mitigating circumstances to not justify the death penalty after what he did.” Ms. Bradley added that “it was very shocking that [Mr. Daybell] wouldn’t say anything.”
The case continues to unfold, with ongoing legal proceedings and ethical considerations surrounding the death penalty in Idaho.
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