Who is Lori Vallow Daybell? Prosecutors seek death penalty for 'cult' mom who allegedly killed her kids

Lori Vallow Vallow and her husband Chad Daybell were both indicted on conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder in connection to the death of their children (Image Cathy Russon/Twitter and Julie Grant/Twitter)
Lori Vallow Vallow and her husband Chad Daybell were both indicted on conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder in connection to the death of their children (Image Cathy Russon/Twitter and Julie Grant/Twitter)

Lori Vallow Daybell, the "cult mom" who has been accused of allegedly killing her two children, might get the death penalty if found guilty of the charges.

According to sources, Fremont County Prosecuting Attorney Lindsay Blake and Madison County Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood filed a Notice of Intent seeking the death penalty against Vallow if she is convicted.

Vallow and her husband Chad Daybell were indicted on conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder in connection to the death of their children.

Local news channels reported that prosecutors said Vallow killed her children for "remuneration" and showed "an utter disregard for human life." They mentioned that her actions were "especially heinous, atrocious, cruel, or manifesting exceptional depravity."

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The prosecutors also claimed that Vallow showed "a propensity to commit murder" and will continue to be a threat to society. They even requested to push back her trial from October 2022 to January 2023 to be in line with Daybell's trial due to the similarities in the facts and details of both cases.


Everything about Lori Vallow Daybell

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Lori Vallow Daybell was born as Lori Norene Cox to Barry Lynn and Janice Lee Cox in San Bernardino, California. She grew up with her brothers Alexander and Adam and sisters Stacey and Summer.

Vallow reportedly married five times between 1992 and 2019. She first tied the knot with her high-school sweetheart Nelson Yanes in 1992, only to divorce him shortly after.

She then married William Lagioia in Travis County, Texas, in 1995. The duo welcomed their son Colby Lagioia in 1996 but divorced in 1998.

Vallow married Joseph Anthony Ryan Jr. in 2001, and the couple welcomed their daughter Tylee Ryan the following year. Her third husband also legally adopted her son Colby, who she shares with ex-husband William.

Joseph filed for divorce from Vallow in 2004, and it was finalized in 2005. Nearly two years later, Vallow's brother Alex attacked Joseph with a taser and threatened to murder him.

He later pled guilty and spent 90 days in a Texas prison. Meanwhile, Joseph reportedly died from a myocardial infarction in 2018.

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Lori Vallow married her fourth husband, Leland Anthony "Charles" Vallow, in 2006. The couple adopted the latter's nephew Todd Trahan and his girlfriend Mandy Leger's son Canaan Todd Trahan in 2014.

The pair also changed the child's name to Joshua Jaxon "J.J." Vallow. That same year, Vallow moved to Kauai, Hawaii, with Charles, Tylee, and J.J. The family of four then moved to Arizona in 2017.

Meanwhile, Vallow reportedly started reading Doomsday author Chad Daybell's book The Celestial City (Standing in Holy Places) in 2015 and later joined him in an episode of Preparing a People podcast titled Time to Warrior Up.

In January 2019, Vallow allegedly transferred $10,000 from Charles' business account into an unknown account. She also added 2,000 Enterprise points to her personal account when he was on a business trip.

She then transferred an additional $25,000 out of his business account to an unknown account. Shortly after, Vallow told Charles that she did not care about him and J.J. anymore.

Lori claimed that she was the reincarnated wife of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement founder Joseph Smith.

The woman also vanished from February 10, 2019, to April 9, 2019, before revealing she had tied the knot with Chad Daybell. Reports suggest that Vallow and Daybell shared beliefs about doomsday and believed people could become "zombies" if evil spirits possessed them.

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In addition to the ongoing case related to her children's death, Lori Vallow has been accused of conspiring in the fatal shooting of her fourth husband, Charles. Meanwhile, Daybell is already facing a charge for involvement in the murder of his ex-wife Tammy.

In June 2021, Vallow was admitted to a psychiatric ward, and her case was postponed after a judge called her "mentally incompetent" to attend the trial. However, Judge Boyce said the woman was "restored to competency and fit to proceed" with it.


What happened to Lori Vallow Daybell's children?

Lori Vallow's children was found dead at her fifth husband's property (Image via MarcoOnTheRadio/Twitter)
Lori Vallow's children was found dead at her fifth husband's property (Image via MarcoOnTheRadio/Twitter)

Lori Vallow's children, J.J. and Tylee, were reported missing in November 2019. The former was last seen on September 23, 2019, at the Rexburg School, shortly before Vallow withdrew him by telling authorities she was considering home-schooling instead.

Meanwhile, Tylee was last spotted in a photograph on September 8, 2019, during a day trip to Yellowstone National Park with her mother, brother, and Vallow's brother Alex.

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When investigators opened a search investigation for the children, Vallow and Daybell disappeared and were found in Hawaii several months later.

Meanwhile, J.J. and Tylee's remains were found on Daybell's property in Idaho in 2020. No immediate cause of death has been revealed, but court documents obtained by sources noted that Tylee's body was partially burned.

Both Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell have pled not guilty to the charges so far.

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Edited by Ravi Iyer