Two dead children. Buried in defendant Chad Daybell's backyard in September of 2019. The next month, his wife is found dead in their marital bed. 17 days after the death of his wife, Tammy Daybell, this defendant is photographed laughing and dancing on a beach in Hawaii at his wedding to Lori Vallow, a woman who was his mistress and the mother of the children, buried in the graves on his property. Three dead bodies. This defendant believed he had a right beyond the ordinary. When he had a chance at what he considered his rightful destinies, he made sure that no person and now law would stand in his way. His desire for sex, money, and power led him to pursue those ambitions, and this pursuit led to the deaths of his wife and Lori's two innocent children. Chad Daybell is an author who wrote books about the apocalypse. During this trial, you will hear a story more troubling, and the story is real.
Chapter 1. The defendant was a seemingly ordinary man. You'll see that he craves significance. He worked in journalism, and he worked as a sexton and a graduate. He married his wife, Tammy, in 1990 after meeting at Brigham Young University, and they settled in Utah. As a full-time homemaker and mother, Tammy's love for her family was boundless. Together, Tammy and the defendant started a small publishing company which Tammy supported in many ways. They had five children together. They moved to Idaho, where Tammy became a beloved school librarian. She was devoted to service, her community, and her faith. But for this defendant, that ordinary existence was not enough.
Chapter 2. Lori Vallow was a homemaker from Arizona. She was married to her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, and she was the mother to Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow. Tylee was a normal, vibrant teenage girl. She loved her friends. You'll hear that she loved her Jeep. She loved Chipotle. She loved her little brother, JJ. JJ was a seven-year-old boy on the autism spectrum. He required extensive special care and he loved his sister. You'll hear about a pivotal date, that set in motion the deaths of Tammy, Tylee, and JJ. October 26th, 2002. That was the day when Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow met at a religious conference in St. George, Utah where they were introduced by a mutual acquaintance. At this time, both still married to other spouses. That introduction set in motion the reality you're going to hear about. We know what happened next through the defendant's own words you'll hear. Though both married, Chad and Lori began having an affair.
You will hear excerpts from the defendant's extended text messages to Lori that reveal his mindset and his motivations. With his thirst for sex, power, and money, Chad created an alternate reality where they called themselves James and Elena, names that Chad claimed were from past lives they had lived together. The defendant's text messages reveal their story of lust and their plan for a future together. Chad Daybell wrote that upon meeting Lori Vallow he experienced a happiness unmatched by anything else in his 50 years. He was captivated by her appearance, so much so that he said she was out of his league. You will hear evidence of his own words, how he was taken by her beauty and spoke about their sexual encounters on many occasions. More than anything else, Chad's obsession with Lori was rooted in her adoration for him. She was the mirror reflecting the grandeur he saw in himself. He called her an exalted goddess. He told her in writing that she had returned to Earth to perform a special mission. Part of that mission was being with him. They soon came together and turned their dreams into a plan for the future. One free from what they called obstacles, and those obstacles were Tylee, JJ, and Tammy.
Chapter three. You'll hear that in the world of Chad and Lori's planned for themselves, they identified those who stood in the way of their dreams as dark. Their spouses, Lori's own children, and any who opposed them were labeled, sometimes, as dark spirits or even zombies. This was more than an alleged belief of frightening labeling. The evidence will show that it was a convenient narrative that dehumanized people who stood in their way and were labeled as obstacles. This narrative gave them the pretext to remove people from this world for their own good. Chad and Lori preached that only through spiritual intervention, what they sometimes called casting, sometimes through burning, or even through death, would these dark spirits be cleansed. Enter Alex Cox, Lori's devoted brother. Chad and Lori manipulated Alex with promises of spiritual rewards. They wielded their influence over Alex, drawing him into their plotting and planning of their own future. After the deaths of Tylee, JJ, and Tammy, Chad Daybell gave Alex a blessing. This blessing reported by Lori who was present. And in that blessing, he said to Alex, you have earned the privilege to be a member of their exclusive religious group. They also said to him, you have already assisted us in ways that can never be repaid. But you will also see other text messages. Chad and Lori discussed more earthly concerns, that Alex could be the one to implicate them. Alex knew this as well. Shortly before he died, on December 12, 2019, he told his wife, Zulema Pastenes, who you will hear from. He was afraid he was going to be Chad and Lori's fall guy.
Chapter 4. Once their calculated plan was devised, it only took months to execute and remove perceived obstacles in Chad Daybell's path to a new life. Charles Vallow, Lori's husband, who was labeled as dark by the defendant, was shot and killed by Alex Cox in Arizona. Lori stood to gain $1 million, money that could fund Chad and Lori's future. Yet following Charles' death, Lori Vallow awaited a $1 million life insurance payout that never came. Only to learn that the beneficiary was no longer her. Upon learning she would not receive that insurance money, Lori would text Chad, I'll still get the $4,000 a month from SS, meaning Social Security. Chad replied to her in a text that read, "It will be interesting to see how it got changed after he had two bullets in his chest." Tylee Ryan, also branded dark and a zombie, was last seen on September 8, 2019. Subsequent investigations revealed the horrifying truth. Her remains, charred and dismembered, were found in a grave on Chad Daybell's property. Without Charles' $1 million in insurance money to support them, Lori Vallow continued to illegally receive Tylee's Social Security benefits, provided after the death of Tylee's biological father, who had been Lori's third husband.
According to this defendant, JJ Vallow, Lori's son, was also possessed. After he was labeled as a dark entity, his fate was no less tragic than his sister's. His young wife was also [?]. Later, his bound body was discovered buried in Chad's backyard, his death by suffocation. Yet while JJ was missing, Lori continued to illegally receive JJ's Social Security benefits, money provided by Charles Vallow's death. Tammy Daybell, a vivacious, healthy mother, was another individual labeled as a dark spirit to be removed. On October 9, 2019, she reported being shot at at night near her home by a man covered in black. She thought it was a paintball gun. On October 19, 10 days later, she died in her own home with her husband present. This was soon after an increase in the value of her life insurance to more than $400,000. This defendant rapidly cashed in that life insurance and began looking for condos in Hawaii with Lori. You'll see the rental application he submitted for a couple with no kids. Medical examiners would later determined that the only reasonable explanation for Tammy's death was not of natural causes, but rather a homicide. In fact, you will hear from multiple witnesses that Chad predicted multiple times that Tammy would die an early death.
Chapter 5. 17 days after his wife's death, Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow got married and celebrated on a beach with Hawaii Hawaii, symbolizing what he called their eternal union. Chad and Lori were preparing their wedding well before Tammy's death. Lori was shopping for wedding rings while Tammy was still alive. Now, without the earthly obstacles of spouses and young children, and with Tammy's insurance policy and the children's Social Security funds, they could live the life Chad and Lori wanted. Nothing was going to stand in their way.
Chapter 6. Unfortunately for this defendant, reality soon shattered their bliss. Two things led law enforcement to his and Lori's door. On October 2nd, 2019, Lori Vallow's nephew-in-law, a man named Brandon Boudreaux, was shot at in Arizona by someone from what he believed was Tylee's Jeep. Law enforcement in Arizona investigating Brandon's shooting contacted law enforcement in Fremont County, Idaho to look for Alex Cox and for Tylee's Jeep. And you'll hear that that Jeep was later found in Rexford, Idaho, in Madison County. Meanwhile, JJ Vallow's grandmother, concerned that she hadn't seen or heard from him in months, asked police for help. The police followed up and located Lori in Rexford, Idaho, where police did a welfare check at Lori's apartment. Law enforcement arrived at Lori's door on November 26, 2019. When asked about Lori, Chad first told law enforcement he didn't know her very well, despite the fact that they were married and had been in a relationship for over a year. Lies by Lori to police about JJ and Tylee's whereabouts and then a move to Hawaii and Lori's unwillingness to present her children to law enforcement to prove their well-being led to her arrest and extradition.
As Lori refused to produce her children, law enforcement continued their search for a Tylee and JJ. During that search, they located a unique text message that this defendant, Chad Daybell, had sent to his wife, Tammy, on September 9, 2019, which was one day after Tylee Ryan's last known appearance. You'll hear from the FBI agent who found that message, that this message seemed longer than his usual texts to Tammy, and it had a more conversational tone. In that text, Chad claimed he had an interesting morning, that he shot a raccoon, that he buried it in what they called the pet cemetery, and that he had a fire on the property where he burned some limb debris. When law enforcement finally went to the defendant's property the following the June, they didn't find a raccoon. They found Tylee's burnt remains were buried in that cemetery. And they found JJ nearby, buried under a tree near a pond. Ladies and gentlemen, you've been told this will be a lengthy trial. You will hear from many witnesses. You will hear a lot of evidence. You're going to hear a lot of dates. The following is just a timeline of major events to help understand when these things took place.
- October 26, 2018. Chad and Lori meet in St. George, Utah.
- July 11, 2018. Charles Vallow, Lori's husband, is shot and killed by Alex Cox.
- Between August 31st and September 1st, Lori, Alex Cox, and Tylee and JJ moved to Rexburg, Idaho, just a few miles south of the defendant's home.
- Tylee's last known sighting was September 8, 2019.
- The text I just spoke of, about the raccoon, was sent by the defendant to his wife, September 9th, 2019.
- JJ's last known sighting, you'll hear about it, September 22nd.
- The attempted homicide of Brandon Boudreaux, in Arizona, was October 2nd.
- The shooting I mentioned, of Tammy, the shooting at her, the unsuccessful shooting, October 9th, 2019.
- Tammy's death, October 19th, 2019.
- 17 days later, Chad and Lori marry in Hawaii.
- Law enforcement did a welfare check, looking for JJ November 26th, 2019 in Rexburg, Idaho.
- November 26th, 2019, Chad and Lori leave town.
- June 9th, 2020, Tylee and J.J.'s remains are found on Chad's property.
As I said, you're going to hear a lot of evidence, from a lot of witnesses. There's going to be different groups of evidence you're going to hear from. You'll hear from law enforcement. Some of them will give you a broad overview of the investigation and what they did. How the search for Tylee and JJ turned into a case of murder. You'll hear how it began by people who knew Lori and Chad. The James and Elena, you'll hear about the James and Elena story and about their relationship with each other and how they pursued their dream, their plan for life together. You'll hear, in the defendant's own words, people referred to as obstacles. How they need to be gotten rid of. You're going to hear financial evidence. You'll hear from an FBI forensic accountant, a detective, a social security administrator, an investigator. We'll talk about the finances involved in this case. You'll hear more from law enforcement, from multiple law enforcement agencies. The Rexburg Police, the Fremont County Sheriff's Department, the FBI, Social Security Administration. About the investigation into these crimes. You will see forensic evidence. You'll see DNA testing to identify the body of Tylee. You'll see DNA testing that showed DNA from Tylee was found on at least two tools in the defendant's shed. You'll hear digital evidence. You'll hear geolocation data tied to certain phones used in this case.
In this case, you'll hear from Hawaii law enforcement about searches they performed in Hawaii on the defendant and his wife. And finally, you will hear many of this defendant's own words. You will hear voice recordings of this defendant. You'll hear recorded phone calls between him and his wife, Lori Daybell. You will read multiple texts that he and Lori sent back and forth and other texts.
Chapter nine. What's Unwritten. The defendant stands before you today charged with multiple crimes. First degree murder for the death of Tammy Daybell. First degree murder for the death of Tylee Ryan. First degree murder for the death of JJ Vallow. Conspiracy to commit murder of Tammy Daybell. Conspiracy to commit murder and grand theft by deception for the death of Tylee Ryan. Conspiracy to commit murder and grand theft by deception for the death of JJ Vallow. And insurance fraud.
Two dead children buried in this defendant's backyard. The next month, his wife, dead, in their bed. 17 days later, this defendant marries Lori Vallow. Members of the jury, days or probably weeks from now, when the evidence in this trial is fully uncovered, we will have the opportunity to speak with you again. And at that time, we will ask you to end this horrible narrative. Your verdict will be the link that writes the final chapter of this tragic saga.
A chapter that delivers justice for Tammy, justice for JJ, and justice for Tylee. Thank you.
