Jury selection is scheduled to commence on Monday for the trial of Chad Daybell, who faces charges in connection with the deaths of his wife, Tammy Daybell, and his then-girlfriend Lori Vallow's two youngest children, 7-year-old Joshua "JJ" Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan.
The peculiar case garnered national attention after JJ's grandparents reported the disappearance of the children in 2019, several weeks after they were last seen, and shortly following the passing of Tammy Daybell, which was initially deemed to be from natural causes. The remains of the children were discovered burned and buried in the Daybells' backyard in eastern Idaho in 2020.
Chad Daybell's trial is anticipated to span approximately 10 weeks. The 55-year-old, who is a self-published author, is facing three charges of first-degree murder.
The children's mother, Lori Vallow Daybell, who wed Chad Daybell just a few weeks after his wife's death, was found guilty last year by an Idaho jury and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole in connection with the case, during a trial that exposed the couple's unusual, doomsday-focused convictions.
The couple claimed they could tell if people had been possessed by dark spirits that could turn them into "zombies," former friend Melanie Gibb testified in court. They believed the only way to get rid of a zombie was to destroy the possessed person's body by killing them.
Chad Daybell also is charged with insurance fraud in connection with Tammy Daybell's death and two counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and grand theft by deception in the children's deaths.
If convicted, he could face the death penalty.
Daybell has pleaded not guilty. Last week, his attorney John Prior told KIVI-TV in Boise that Daybell is ready to go forward with the case and "wants to tell his story."
Two days later, 7th District Judge Steven Boyce issued a gag order barring any of the attorneys or parties in the case from talking about it until after jury selection and opening statements.
Chad and Lori Daybell originally were scheduled to stand trial together, but in 2022 Prior asked the court to split the cases, saying the co-defendants will have "mutually antagonistic defenses." The legal term generally means a jury would have to disbelieve one defendant in order to believe the other.
"Our version of the facts of this case will differ greatly from what Ms. Vallow and her legal counsel are going to be presenting," Prior told the judge, who later agreed to split the cases.
In the autumn of 2019, concerns arose among extended family members as Lori Vallow's two youngest children appeared to have vanished, prompting law enforcement to initiate a search. The ensuing investigation, spanning multiple states, took a dark and unexpected turn.
It was uncovered that Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell were engaged in an affair when both of their spouses met untimely deaths. Vallow's husband was fatally shot by her brother, Alexander Cox, in Arizona in July 2019, with the brother claiming self-defense. Vallow was extradited to Arizona post her conviction in Idaho, where she now faces charges of conspiracy to commit murder in relation to her husband's death and the attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux, her niece's ex-husband, allegedly carried out by Cox. Cox passed away suddenly in December 2019.
Tammy Daybell passed away in her sleep in November 2019, initially believed to be from natural causes but later determined to be due to asphyxiation as per an autopsy report. Surprising many, Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell tied the knot just two weeks after Tammy Daybell's demise.
Subsequently, acquaintances of the couple revealed to investigators that Vallow and Daybell held unconventional religious beliefs, including claims of being reincarnated individuals tasked with gathering people before an impending biblical apocalypse.
During her trial, a friend testified that Lori Vallow Daybell referred to her two youngest children as zombies prior to their disappearance in September 2019.
Allegations have been made by prosecutors against Lori and Chad Daybell, claiming that they used their doomsday beliefs as a justification for the deaths of her children and his wife. However, it is believed that this was all part of a plan to remove any obstacles in their relationship and to profit from survivor benefits and life insurance policies.
