PHOENIX — Opening statements have been delivered in Lori Vallow Daybell’s first murder conspiracy trial in Arizona.
She’s accused of conspiring with her brother to kill her former husband, Charles Vallow. She pleaded not guilty and is representing herself at trial.
Her brother, Alex Cox, can’t be charged in this case because he died in December 2019 before charges were brought in court.
Vallow Daybell was already convicted in Idaho for murdering her children, Tylee and JJ. She was also convicted for her role in the death of Tammy Daybell, her current husband Chad Daybell’s first wife.
Chad Daybell was also convicted in Idaho for murdering Lori’s children and his first wife, Tammy. He was sentenced to death in that state.
Opening statements for Lori Vallow Daybell’s current trial are set to begin at 10:30 AM local time. We will be providing live updates throughout the day.
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2:26 PM – The state’s next witness is Robert Krautheim, also a Chandler PD officer. He also responded to the family’s home after Charles was shot. He testified that Lori’s brother, Alex Cox, never asked for medical attention. He also said Lori’s demeanor was “calm, nonchalant” when she returned to the scene. He said Lori never asked how her brother Alex was doing.
2:10 PM – Lori Vallow Daybell cross examines the witness for about 10 minutes. She asks how many times he talked with the case agent about this case among other questions about police procedure. Prosecution follows up on re-direct and the witness is dismissed.
1:49 PM – The prosecution calls its first witness: Sgt. Irwin Wierzbicki with Chandler police. He was one of the officers who responded to the shooting of Charles Vallow on July 11, 2019. The jury sees his body camera footage where he walks through the home and the state asks questions about his response. Lori Vallow Daybell gets up to cross-examine witness.
1:41 PM – Lori pauses her statement to grab a tissue. She appears to be crying.
Lori said she brought Tylee outside and Alex shot Charles in self-defense. She said she left with Tylee and JJ to head toward JJ’s school. She said they stopped at Burger King because that’s what Charles promised JJ. She said she stopped at Walgreens to get flip flops for her and Tylee because they left the home so quickly without shoes.
Lori told the jury that she returned to the home and that she, Alex and Tylee were questioned by police and that she was introduced to a victim’s advocate. She said Chandler PD handled the case as self-defense and the prosecution objects. The judge said the jury should disregard the self-defense statement.
Lori told the jury that her brother, Alex, passed away in December 2019 from a blood clot. The state also objects to this. She states she’s the only person being charged with a crime.
Lori Vallow Daybell closes by telling the jury that the state will say insurance and Social Security money were motives. She said those are not crimes.
“Self-defense is not a crime,” Vallow Daybell stated. “A family tragedy is not a crime. It’s a tragedy.”
1:30 PM – Lori Vallow Daybell’s starts her opening statements by telling the jury that there has to be an agreement or a plan for a conspiracy. She told the jury that it was normal for her and Charles to have life insurance policies for each other. She said Charles was her fourth marriage and she was his third. They each had two kids from other relationships and they adopted JJ Vallow together, for a total of five children.
Most of Vallow Daybell’s sentences start with “The evidence will show…” She said she and Charles had a happy marriage for 13 years, but that he and her daughter Tylee did not get along.
She said that she and Charles temporarily separated and fighting between Charles and Tylee progressed. Lori said Charles sent her threatening text messages. Lori explained that in 2019 Charles went to Houston and that they moved JJ back and forth for school. They ultimately decided to put him in a school in Gilbert where he could have support for autism.
On July 11, 2019, the day Charles was killed, Lori said that she, Tylee, JJ and Alex were in the house. At the time, she was staying at a rental house in Chandler and Charles was staying primarily at a rental home in Houston. When Charles arrived to take JJ to school, Lori said only she and JJ were awake.
Lori said Charles took JJ out and put him in the car and came back in to get his phone and began to scream at Lori. She told the jury that Tylee came out with a baseball bat to protect her mother and that Tylee and Charles started to fight over the bat. She said Charles was about to hit Tylee with the bat when Alex intervened.
1:27 PM – Court is back in session. Lori Vallow Daybell came in wearing a black blazer, black pants and a white blouse. The jury is brought in. Vallow Daybell is starting her opening statements.
12:05 PM – A juror is excused after telling the court about an issue with his employer. Court is in recess and will resume at 1:30 local time. We are expecting to start with Lori Vallow Daybell’s opening statement.
12:01 PM – Prosecutor Treena Kay finishes closing statements. She spent more than 40 minutes laying out their case that Lori conspired with her brother Alex Cox to kill Charles Vallow. She started by reading texts between Alex and Lori. She tells the jury that Lori Vallow wanted to be Lori Daybell and that she wanted Charles’ money. That she could have all of that if Charles is dead.
Kay told the jury that Lori said her husband Charles was possessed by an evil spirit named Ned and asked people in her circle to help caste out the evil spirit. She said Lori and Alex wanted to be like the story of Nephi, who killed his brother in the Book of Mormon.
She brought up Lori’s relationship to Chad Daybell and how some of the people in her life were growing concerned. Kay said the jury would hear from one of Lori’s friends who said Lori bragged about drugging Charles by crushing up their son JJ’s pills and putting them in protein drinks. That was one month before Charles was killed.
The jury was told about Charles’ growing concerns with Lori’s dark religious beliefs and that Charles found out about Lori’s affair with Chad. Kay said the jury would hear from Lori’s other brother, Adam, who planned to meet with Charles in Phoenix to try and help. She said Lori and Alex found out about this plan for an “intervention.”
Kay told the jury that Lori and Alex created the situation that killed Charles. She said Lori asked Alex to stay close. Alex stayed at Lori’s house the night before Charles was killed and brought his gun with extra magazines. On the morning of July 11, 2024 Charles went to the home in Chandler where Lori was staying to pick up JJ and take him to school. To keep Charles inside, the prosecution said Lori took Charles’ phone before Alex would ultimately shoot Charles. At the time, Alex Cox said he was acting in self-defense and that Charles hit him with a bat.
The state pointed out that Lori left the house when this happened. She took JJ to school, went to Burger King and Walgreens. She and Alex talked on the phone twice, according to the state’s evidence. The prosecutor said Alex didn’t call 911 until 47 minutes after he shot Charles Vallow.
The state poked holes in Cox’s claim of self-defense, calling it a “staged murder scene.” Lori and Alex were both interviewed by police after Charles death. The prosecutor said Lori still had Charles’ phone and eventually turned it over to investigators after she’d had a chance to go through it.
“Lori Vallow is why Alex Cox was able to shoot Charles,” Kay told the jury. “Lori Vallow is why Charles is dead.”
The state said that Lori waited to tell Charles’ family that he was dead and some had to find out from the news how it happened. Kay said that Charles Vallow had a date the night before he was killed and that he disclosed to her the issues with his estranged wife Lori. The state said this date will testify about these concerns and that she had to learn from the news Charles had ultimately been killed. When she didn’t hear from him again.
The jury is also told about Charles’ change to his life insurance policy. How Lori was upset when she learned she wasn’t the beneficiary and that she and Chad Daybell discussed how she could still get money from Social Security.
Prosecutor Treena Kay closes by saying Lori and Alex twisted religion to justify murder and asks the jury to find Lori Vallow Daybell guilty of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
11:17 – Prosecutor Treena Kay begins the state’s opening statments.
11:16 AM – Jury is led into the room. Judge is reading some additional instruction before opening statements.
11:13 AM – Judge decided to strike Brandon Boudreaux Lori Vallow Daybell’s witness list without prejudice. This means he can be called as a witness if the defense is able to prove he has relevant information to the case, which Vallow Daybell hasn’t done yet. He can remain in the courtroom.
10:30 AM – Court is in session. Judge is relaying some concerns regarding jurors. One juror told the court his employer has an issue with serving jury duty. One juror isn’t here yet. There is also discussion about whether Brandon Boudreaux can be in the courtroom. Lori said she plans to call him as a witness. The state wants him to stay in the courtroom. Boudreaux is Vallow Daybell’s niece’s ex-husband and the victim in her second murder conspiracy charge in Arizona.
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10:14 AM – Media and the public are let into the courtroom. Lori Vallow Daybell’s advisory council is at her table. The prosecution team is also at their table. Some members of the public are being turned away because the courtroom is at capacity.
8:57 AM – Media and members of the public are lined up outside the courtroom in Phoenix. Judge Justin Beresky, who is overseeing this case, was moved to a larger courtroom to accommodate the interest in the case. One couple told me they came from Australia and based their trip on this case. They said they were able to see some of Chad Daybell’s trial in Idaho last year.
7:00 AM – A line is already forming outside the courthouse. A mix of media and members of the public are waiting to get inside. Some people traveled from Idaho.
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