Lori Daybell (adoptive mother) Charles Vallow (adoptive father; deceased) Todd Trahan (biological father) Mandy Leger (biological mother; deceased)
Tylee Ashlyn Ryan (September 24, 2002 – c. September 9, 2019)[a] and Joshua Jaxon "J. J." Vallow (May 25, 2012 – c. September 23, 2019)[b] were two American children from Chandler, Arizona, who disappeared in September 2019, later being found buried in shallow graves in Rexburg, Idaho, on June 9, 2020. Their remains were located in the backyard of Chad Daybell, who was their mother's lover at the time of their death and had become her husband by the time their bodies were found. Tylee was last seen alive at Yellowstone National Park on September 8, 2019, while her younger adopted brother J.J. was last seen alive on September 22, 2019.
In November 2019, police questioned the children's mother, Lori Vallow Daybell,[c] about the children's whereabouts and welfare. Lori and her husband, Chad Guy Daybell, claimed that J.J. was staying with family friend Melanie Gibb in Arizona, their previous residence before moving to Idaho in early September 2019. However, Gibb later denied this claim. As police searched for J.J., they discovered that Tylee was also missing.[3]
Amid the disappearances was a string of suspicious deaths. Lori's estranged fourth husband, Charles Vallow, was shot and killed in July 2019 by Lori's brother, Alexander Cox, who claimed self-defense; Cox later died in December 2019 due to a blood clot.[d] In October 2019, Brandon Boudreaux, the then-estranged husband of Lori's niece, was shot at from a vehicle registered to Charles Vallow. That same month, Tammy Daybell, Chad's wife, was attacked in her driveway and died 10 days later on October 19 under what was initially recorded as 'natural causes'. After Chad and Lori's marriage, Tammy's body was exhumed by law enforcement officials,[5][6][7] revealing that she had been asphyxiated.[8]
On February 20, 2020, Lori was arrested in Kauai, Hawaii, and charged with desertion and non-support of her children. She was extradited to Idaho and transported there on March 5, 2020.[9][10][11] On June 9, 2020, police discovered the remains of Tylee and J.J. during a search at Chad's home.[12][13][14] Chad was arrested later that day on charges of destruction or concealment of evidence.[15][16] On May 25, 2021, Lori and Chad were charged with the first-degree murders of Tylee, J.J., and Tammy.
On May 12, 2023, Lori was found guilty of all charges related to the killing of her children.[17] On July 31, 2023, Lori was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole. She has also been charged in Arizona related to the death of Charles Vallow and the shooting of Brandon Boudreaux.
Chad Guy Daybell (born August 11, 1968, Provo, Utah)[18] married Tamara "Tammy" Douglas (May 4, 1970 – October 19, 2019) in Manti, Utah, on March 9, 1990. He graduated from Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1992 with a B.A. in journalism[18] and worked for a time as a copy editor for a daily newspaper.[19] At various times during and after his studies, he supported himself by working as a cemetery sexton, or gravedigger.[20] His first religious-themed fiction book, An Errand for Emma, was published in 1999.[21] Chad eventually left his job at the cemetery to focus on his writing. In 2001, he published One foot in the grave, a non-fiction book which chronicled his experiences working in cemeteries.[19]
In 2004, Chad founded Spring Creek Book Company, which he used to self-publish his beliefs regarding end times and other religious books. His partner in this venture was a man identified in media only by the name Douglas, a graphic artist and manager.[22]
Chad published dozens of fiction and non-fiction books, aimed at a Latter Day Saint audience. His novels often depicted apocalyptic situations and dystopian futures, and featured characters based on his own family.[23] Chad claimed that he had had two near-death experiences, which allowed him to receive supernatural visions. He commented: "I don't fictionalize any of the events portrayed [in my books]. I'm really not that creative… My torn veil allows information to be downloaded into my brain from the other side. The scenes I am shown are real events that will happen."[24]
Chad and Tammy had five children: Garth, Emma, Seth, Leah, and Mark.[18] By the end of the 2000s, the Daybells faced financial problems. At that time, Chad's publishing business guaranteed an annual income of approximately $2,000. Both spouses had to work part-time to supplement that income,[25] with Chad being employed again as a cemetery sexton.[20] Eventually, Chad salvaged his company and found an audience among people concerned by the Second Coming of Christ. He published several other authors,[26] notably end-of-days clairvoyant Julie Rowe.[27]
Suzanne Freeman, another author published by Chad Daybell, later said that his religious views had radicalized during the 2010s, that his books had become less focused on Latter Day Saint teachings, and that she had stopped working with him after becoming convinced that his beliefs about the coming Apocalypse were dangerous.[26]
In 2015, Chad claimed he heard a voice telling him to relocate to Rexburg, Idaho. He and Tammy moved there from Springville that June.[28]
Lori Norene Lagioia Lori Norene Ryan Lori Norene Vallow Lori Ryan Vallow Lori Vallow Daybell Lori Ryan Daybell
Spouses
Nelson Yanes
(m. 1992, divorced)
William Lagioia
(m. 1995; div. 1998)
Joseph Anthony Ryan Jr.
(m. 2001; div. 2005)
Leland Charles Anthony Vallow
(m. 2006; died 2019)
Chad Daybell
(m. 2019)
Children
Colby Ryan
Tylee Ryan
Joshua Jaxon "J.J." Vallow
Lori Ryan Daybell,[c] also referred to as Lori Vallow Daybell, was born Lori Norene Cox on June 26, 1973, in Loma Linda, California.[29]
Past marriages
In 1992, at the age of 19, Lori married her high school boyfriend Nelson Yanes, but the marriage ended in divorce shortly afterwards.[36]
In October 1995, Lori married William Lagioia when she was 22 years old.[37] They had a son named Colby in 1996, before divorcing in 1998.[28]
In 2001, Lori married Joseph Anthony Ryan Jr., who legally adopted Colby.[28] The couple's biological daughter, Tylee, was born in 2002. They divorced in 2005.[28] In 2007, Lori’s brother, Alex Cox, attacked Ryan, claiming he had been abusive to Lori and the children.[38] Cox was sentenced to jail for the incident. Ryan was later found dead in his apartment in 2018 from a heart attack. Lori, listed as his next of kin, was notified, but his family was not informed until five weeks later when no one had claimed his body.
In February 2006, Lori married Leland Anthony Vallow, commonly going by the name Charles, in Las Vegas, Nevada.[28] Charles, who was a lifelong Catholic, converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) for Lori. Charles had two sons from a previous marriage,[39] and in 2013, they adopted his grandnephew, Joshua Jaxon "J.J." Vallow.[40] The couple later moved to Kauai, Hawaii in late 2014.[28]
Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell meet
Around 2015, Lori became interested in Chad Daybell's Standing in Holy Places series of books. The Vallow family moved back to Arizona in 2016, and in the fall of 2018 Lori met Chad for the first time at a "Preparing a People"[e] event. Chad claimed to Lori that they had been married in seven previous lifetimes. They started communicating privately afterwards.
After their initial meeting, Lori's husband went on a business trip, giving her the opportunity to hold a small overnight gathering at her home. Chad and Gibb were among the attendees, with Chad captivating Lori and the group by sharing his unique religious beliefs. He claimed to have lived 31 different lives on different planets and categorized people as “light” or "dark," based on their affiliation with Jesus Christ or Satan. Chad referred to Lori as an "eternal being" of 21 separate lives, five of which coincided with his own experiences on Earth. This belief system fascinated Lori, leading her to develop a strong attachment to Chad and his teachings.[42]
On December 5, 2018, Chad and Lori appeared together on the Preparing a People[43]podcast episode "Time to Warrior Up". Chad later stayed at the Vallow residence in Arizona.[28]
Chad and Lori shared a well-documented obsession with certain Mormon-influenced[44]apocalyptic beliefs,[45] which Chad discussed in numerous books and podcasts.[46] Melani Boudreaux, Lori's niece, reportedly shares these beliefs.[47] According to a 2020 affidavit, Vallow's beliefs extended to a belief in zombies.[48] Vallow and Daybell reportedly told close friend Melanie Gibb that they belong to the Church of the Firstborn, a fundamentalist Mormon group that is often identified as a doomsday cult.[49]
Killing of Charles Vallow
By February 2019, according to Charles Vallow, Lori informed him that "she no longer cared about him or J.J.". She claimed to be the reincarnated wife of Joseph Smith and vanished for 58 days.[40] The same month, Charles filed for divorce, citing threats to his life, as well as the theft of US$35,000 from their joint bank accounts and his truck. He sought a protective order against Lori at the advice of his attorney.[50]
On July 11, 2019, Charles was shot and killed in Chandler, Arizona, by Lori's brother Alex Cox,[51][52] who claimed self-defense. Cox alleged that he confronted Charles about abusing his sister and retrieved his gun in response to being struck with a bat.[53] Police did not pursue the matter further, and Tylee and J.J. witnessed the incident.[54] In June 2021, Lori was indicted for conspiracy to murder Charles.[55]
Before Charles' death, his attorneys stated he had been primarily concerned for J.J.'s safety and well-being, as he needed a consistent routine due to his special needs.[50] Charles was also concerned for Tylee, but he was unable to include her in the filings as she was not his biological daughter, nor had he filed to legally adopt her, and thus he had no legal standing. He withdrew the petition one month later, saying he "wanted to try to make the marriage work."[28]
Murder of Tammy Daybell
On October 9, 2019, Tammy reported being shot at in her driveway by a masked man with a supposed defective paintball marker. The perpetrator was not identified. Ten days later, Tammy was found dead in her home, apparently from natural causes. Chad claimed that she had retired the previous night "with a terrible cough" and died in her sleep.[56]
Tammy's body was not autopsied initially due to Chad’s refusal and the coroner’s acceptance of his decision. However, two months later, Tammy's body was exhumed and examined. The autopsy results, completed by February 2021, were publicly revealed in April 2023 during Lori Vallow Daybell’s trial. It was determined that Tammy Daybell had been asphyxiated by someone else.[8][28]
Shortly after, the Fremont County prosecutor's office announced they would be handling the case going forward. In a subsequent interview, one of Tammy and Chad's children, Emma, said that her family had not been contacted regarding the results of her mother's autopsy.[57]
According to police reports, Chad Daybell received $430,000 in life insurance payouts after Tammy's death.[25]
Death of Alexander Cox
Alex Cox[d] died on December 12, 2019.[58] His death was attributed to blood clots and high blood pressure.[59]
Disappearance of Tylee and J.J.
Tylee was last seen on September 8, 2019, at Yellowstone National Park with her brother J.J., her mother Lori, and her uncle Alex Cox.[d][28]
On September 23, 2019, a doorbell video captured J.J. playing with a friend, the last known footage of him. His final confirmed sighting was at Rexburg's Kennedy Elementary School.[40] The next day, on September 24, Lori contacted the school to inform them that she was withdrawing J.J. from classes to homeschool him.
In October 2019, two Venmo payments were made from Tylee's account to her older half-brother, Colby Ryan, with love-expressing messages attached,[28] which was the last time Colby had heard from Tylee. When he expressed concern towards Tylee via text, he received responses from her cell phone indicating she was safe but too busy to talk.[28] After repeated calls to Tylee went unanswered, Colby became more worried.[60]
Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow's marriage and flight
Chad and Lori were married in Hawaii on November 5, 2019, two weeks after the death (not yet known by others to be a killing) of Chad's first wife, Tammy Daybell,[61] and two months after Tylee and J.J. were murdered (a fact also not yet known by others, who did not know that the children were even missing). The couple resided in a gated community in Kauai and reportedly lived off the money Chad Daybell had received from his wife's life insurance.[25] During this time, they falsely told others that Tylee had died in 2017 and/or that Lori had no minor children. On November 26, police visited Lori's townhouse in Rexburg for a welfare check on J.J. at the request of his grandmother – Charles Vallow's sister, Kay Vallow Woodcock. Lori claimed that J.J. was in Arizona with a family friend, Melanie Gibb, who co-hosted a radical religious podcast with Lori.[28] However, when contacted by police, Gibb stated that J.J. had not been with her for several months.[3] That night, a neighbor observed Lori and Alex Cox packing a truck outside her home.[62] The following day, when the police and FBI arrived to search the house, it was abandoned. Chad's home was also searched by investigators.[62]
Gibb eventually contacted the police, revealing that both Lori and Chad had asked her to lie about J.J.'s location, but she had refused. Police efforts to locate J.J. led to the discovery that Tylee was also missing,[3] finally announcing on December 21 that the children are officially missing.[28] From December 2019 to January 2020, law enforcement agencies intensified their investigation into the disappearances of the children, as well as Tammy's death and Chad and Lori’s departure from Idaho. Evidence was collected, and Tammy's body was exhumed for an autopsy. Colby, along with J.J.'s grandparents (the Woodcocks) pleaded with the Daybells to return the children, even offering a $20,000 reward. Investigators expressed concern for the children’s safety, asserting that they were not with Chad and Lori and that Lori had refused to cooperate with the investigation, opting to leave the state with Chad instead.
The Daybells’ lawyer issued statements diverting attention from their crimes, stating that "Chad Daybell was a loving husband and he has the support of his children in this matter”, adding that Lori was a “devoted mother” who “resents assertions to the contrary”. The lawyer further misdirected by expressing the intention of “addressing the allegations once they have moved beyond speculation and rumor".[28]
Storage locker
Authorities focused on a storage locker in Rexburg that was rented by Lori in October 2019. They discovered belongings linked to Tylee and J.J., including clothing, bikes, and photographs. These items had been left behind when Lori abruptly left Rexburg in late November 2019. Video footage captured Lori and her brother, Alex Cox,[d] moving items to and from the locker before her departure.[63]
Arrests and criminal charges
2020
On February 20, 2020, Lori was arrested in Hawaii by the Kauai Police Department. She faced charges in Madison County, Idaho, including two felony counts of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children, as well as three misdemeanors. Her bail was initially set at $5 million,[64] but was later lowered to $1 million after being extradited back to Idaho. In May, Lori appeared in court in Rexburg to request a further reduction of her bail, which was denied.[65] Multiple local bond companies were reportedly unwilling to work with her.[66]
On March 24, NBC News reported on documents showing that Chad and Lori became convinced that Tylee and J.J. were "possessed" and had become "zombies".[48]
On June 9, police found human remains buried in what was believed to be a pet cemetery at Chad’s home during a search of the premises. Chad was arrested later that day for obstruction or concealment of evidence, and later charged with felony murder. His bail was set at $1 million the next day.[15][16] On June 10, the Woodcock and Ryan families confirmed that the human remains found on Chad's property were those of Tylee and J.J. This finding was officially confirmed by Rexburg police on June 13.[67][14][68] On July 2, prosecutors dropped two charges against Lori related to desertion and nonsupport of dependent children, and instead charged her with obstruction or concealment of evidence regarding her children's remains.[69]
On July 17, in light of the two felony counts against Lori having been dropped, her bond was lowered by Madison County judge Michelle Mallard. The bond was set at $50,000 for each charge, totaling $150,000. It was further noted that Chad would still need to post $1 million in Fremont County to be released from jail.
2021
A jury trial for the Madison County charges against Lori was set for January 25–29, 2021.[69]
On May 25, 2021, Chad and Lori were indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and grand theft by deception for the deaths of Tylee, J.J. and Tammy. Lori was also charged with grand theft related to "Social Security Survivor benefits.” Chad faced an insurance fraud charge "related to a life insurance policy he had on Tammy Daybell for which he was the beneficiary and received funds after her death".[70]
On May 27, 2021, Lori was found incompetent and unfit to stand trial, and her case was stayed.[71]
In 2021 Lori was indicted by a grand jury in Arizona on one count of first-degree murder for the death of Charles Vallow.[72]
2022
Lori was deemed competent to stand trial after mental health treatment, then deemed incompetent, and again competent.[73]
In 2022 Lori was indicted by a grand jury on one count of first-degree premeditated murder related to claims that she conspired with her brother to kill Brandon Boudreaux, who was a former husband of one of Lori's nieces.[72]
2023
On March 21, 2023, the judge removed the death penalty from Lori Vallow due to newly uncovered DNA evidence, discovered too close to the trial to be tested and admitted into court.[74]
On May 12, 2023, Lori Vallow Daybell was found guilty of all criminal charges in a Boise, Idaho, courtroom.[75] On July 31, 2023, she was sentenced to consecutive life sentences for, respectively, the murder of Tylee, the murder of J.J., and the conspiracy to commit murder charge of Tammy, in addition to fines and restitution for the grand theft charges.[76]
In November 2023, Lori was extradited to Arizona to face her murder charges there.[72][77]
In 2022, Netflix released the three-episode documentary series entitled Sins of Our Mother, mostly centered from the perspective of her surviving child and Tylee's older brother, Colby.[79]
In 2021, Lifetime Movie Network released a dramatization of the Lori Vallow story as a made-for-TV movie titled Doomsday Mom, also marketed as Doomsday Mom: The Lori Vallow Story starring Lauren Lee Smith as Lori Vallow, Marc Blucas as Chad Daybell, Patrick Duffy as Larry Woodcock, Linda Purl as Kay Woodcock, Emily Tennant as Lanie Boudreaux, Astrid Trueman as Tylee Ryan, Aisa Dalman as J.J. Vallow. The film received mixed reviews and also explored the dynamics of J.J. Vallow being autistic, Lori failing to receive adequate sleep at night, and other factors of stress leading up to the murders of the children.[80][81]
^ abTylee was last seen September 8, 2019, at Yellowstone National Park. Authorities believe Tylee died around September 9, 2019, in Rexburg, based on location data on the cell phone of her uncle Alex Cox.[2]
^ abJ.J. was last seen on the evening of September 22, 2019, at his mother Lori Daybell's Rexburg apartment. His uncle Alex Cox later went to take J.J. to his apartment. Authorities believe J.J. died around that time frame based on location data on the cell phone of his uncle.[2]
^ abDaybell has been known by a variety of different legal names. She was born Lori Norene Cox in Loma Linda, California. She was known as Lori Norene Lagioia when she was married to her second husband William Lagioia from 1995–1998.[30] She was also known as Lori Norene Ryan when she was married to her third husband Joseph Ryan from 2001–2005 and was announced as such when she competed in the Mrs. Texas beauty pageant in 2004.[31] After marrying Charles Vallow, Daybell took the name Lori Norene Vallow and has been known as such since the investigation into the disappearance and deaths of her children. Since marrying Chad Daybell, she has informed a Madison County, Idaho court that she prefers the name Lori Norene Daybell.[32] She is referred to as both Lori Norene Vallow and Lori Norene Daybell in court filings.[33] She has commonly been referred to as Lori Vallow Daybell in the media during the investigation.[34][35] Daybell's attorney submitted a court motion in March 2021 that her legal name is Lori Norene Ryan Vallow Daybell. Included in the motion was Lori and Chad Daybell's marriage certificate from Hawaii, which states her new legal name as Lori Ryan Daybell.[29]
^ abcdCox was born Alexander Lamar Cox and was known by the diminutive "Alex". In late 2019, he married Zulema Pastenes in Clark County, Nevada, and according to their marriage certificate changed his legal name upon marriage to Alexander Lamar Pastenes.[4]
^Preparing a People is a doomsday preparation-focused series of events, the stated goal of which is to "prepare the people of this earth for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ". Chad Daybell, a keynote speaker for the event, gave lectures for the group on several occasions[41]
^VanHoose, Benjamin; Truesdell, Jeff (March 2, 2020). "Husband of Idaho Mom Lori Vallow Claims Her 2 Children Are 'Safe' as They Remain Missing". People Magazine. Archived from the original on June 7, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020. Vallow and Daybell got married on Nov. 5, 2019, four months after the shooting death of Vallow's estranged husband Charles, and two weeks after the mysterious death of Daybell's wife Tammy.
