Current:Home > reviewsLori Vallow Daybell to be sentenced for murders of her 2 youngest children -WealthTrail Solutions
Lori Vallow Daybell to be sentenced for murders of her 2 youngest children
View
Date:2025-04-17 09:10:45
An Idaho mother is set to learn her fate after being convicted in the murders of her two youngest children.
Lori Vallow Daybell will return to court in eastern Idaho's Fremont County on Monday for a sentencing hearing, according to Boise ABC affiliate KIVI-TV. She faces up to life in prison without parole. In March, before the trial began, a judge granted the defense's motion to dismiss the death penalty in her case.
Lori and her husband, Chad Daybell, were both charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the 2019 deaths of her two youngest children, 16-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua "J.J." Vallow. The children were last seen alive in September 2019 and were reported missing by extended family members that November. Their remains were found on Chad's property in Fremont County in June 2020, according to authorities.
MORE: Juror in murder trial of Lori Vallow Daybell breaks silence
The couple were also charged with conspiracy to commit murder in the death of Chad's ex-wife, 49-year-old Tamara Daybell, who died of asphyxiation of in October 2019, less than a month before Lori and Chad married. Chad was also charged with his former wife's murder.
Both Lori and Chad pleaded not guilty to their charges. In April, a Fremont County judge allowed their cases to be tried separately, with Lori's first and Chad's expected to start at a later date.
Lori was deemed fit to stand trial last year following a 10-month stint at an Idaho mental health facility. Her defense attorneys had said they did not plan to raise a mental health defense at the guilt-phase portion of the trial.
MORE: Lori Vallow Daybell found guilty in murder of her 2 children
During Lori's six-week trial, prosecutors argued that she and her husband thought the children were zombies and murdered them. Chad has authored many religious fiction books and is Lori's fifth husband. The couple both reportedly adhered to a doomsday ideology, with Lori at one point claiming she was "a god assigned to carry out the work of the 144,000 at Christ's second coming in July 2020" and didn't want anything to do with her family "because she had a more important mission to carry out," according to court documents obtained by ABC News.
The defense characterized Lori as a devoted mother who loved her children and Jesus, but that all changed near the end of 2018 when she met Chad.
Prosecutors argued that Lori set a plan for the children's murder in motion in October 2018 "using money, power and sex," and that she and her husband "used religion to manipulate others." Lori was additionally charged with grand theft related to Social Security survivor benefits allocated for the care of her children that prosecutors said were appropriated after they were reported missing and ultimately found dead. Meanwhile, Chad was additionally charged with two counts of insurance fraud related to life insurance policies he had on Tamara for which prosecutors said he was the beneficiary.
MORE: A string of family deaths surround tragedy of Lori Vallow’s children
Prosecutors also shared photographs of Lori and Chad dancing on a beach during their wedding in Hawaii when her children's bodies were buried in his backyard.
In May, a 12-member jury reached a verdict after two days of deliberations, finding Lori guilty on all charges. The defense declined to comment on the verdict at the time.
ABC News' John Capell and Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.
veryGood! (27888)
Related
- DoorDash steps up driver ID checks after traffic safety complaints
- Amari Cooper pushes through frustrations, trade rumors as Browns continue to slide
- North Carolina residents impacted by Helene likely to see some voting changes
- AP Top 25: Texas returns to No. 1, Alabama drops to No. 7 after upsets force reshuffling of rankings
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- The Tropicana was once 'the Tiffany of the Strip.' For former showgirls, it was home.
- NASA, SpaceX delay launch to study Jupiter’s moon Europa as Hurricane Milton approaches
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's crossword puzzle, Cross My Heart (Freestyle)
- Pressure on a veteran and senator shows what’s next for those who oppose Trump
- Billie Eilish setlist: See the songs she's playing on her flashy Hit Me Hard and Soft tour
Ranking
- Tony Hawk drops in on Paris skateboarding and pushes for more styles of sport in LA 2028
- Weekend wildfires lead to 1 death, large areas burned in western North Dakota
- 'SNL' skewers vice presidential debate, mocks JD Vance and Tim Walz in cold open
- Coco Gauff coasts past Karolina Muchova to win China Open final
- A steeplechase record at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Then a proposal. (He said yes.)
- Aaron Rodgers injury update: Jets QB suffers low-ankle sprain vs. Vikings
- Minnesota man arrested after allegedly threatening to ‘shoot up’ synagogue
- Olivia Munn Details Journey to Welcome Daughter Méi Amid Cancer Battle
Recommendation
The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
Madonna’s brother, Christopher Ciccone, has died at 63
Awaiting Promised Support From the West, Indonesia Proceeds With Its Ambitious Energy Transition
US disaster relief chief blasts false claims about Helene response as a ‘truly dangerous narrative’
EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
Riley Keough Shares Rare Pics of Twin Sisters Finley & Harper Lockwood
The Chilling Truth Behind Anna Kendrick's Woman of the Hour Trailer
Bruins free-agent goaltender Jeremy Swayman signs 8-year, $66 million deal