What happened in week 1 of Lori Vallow Daybell’s murder conspiracy trial?

PHOENIX — The first week of Lori Vallow Daybell’s murder conspiracy trial has concluded and testimony, at times, was contentious. 

Vallow Daybell, who has already been convicted of killing her two children, Tylee and JJ, is defending herself against murder conspiracy charges related to her former husband, Charles Vallow’s death.  

Charles Vallow was shot dead by Vallow Daybell’s brother, Alex Cox. Originally, Cox told Chandler police officers he acted in self-defense. Now, investigators believe he conspired with Valley Daybell to have her husband killed.

Here’s what you need to know before the second week of the trial begins.

Vallow Daybell made national news in 2019 when her two children, Tylee and JJ, went missing and she refused to answer questions about where they were. Charles Vallow, her husband, had been shot and killed by Vallow Daybell’s brother, who later died of natural causes, in July 2019, months before Tylee and JJ went missing, 

While her children were missing, Vallow Daybell was spotted vacationing in Hawaii with doomsday author Chad Daybell, whom she married in December 2019. She got the name “doomsday mom” due to their religious beliefs. 

Investigators discovered Tylee and JJ’s bodies buried in Daybell’s backyard in June 2020. They believe the kids were killed in September 2019. 

In May 2021,  Daybell and Vallow Daybell were charged with murder and conspiracy in the death of her children.

After two delays for mental health checks, Vallow Daybell’s trial started in April 2023 and took about six weeks before a jury came back with a guilty verdict on all six counts she faced. Throughout the proceedings, prosecutors in Idaho accused Vallow Daybell, Chad Daybell and Cox of conspiring to kill people who were “obstacles” to Daybell and Vallow Daybell’s relationship.

She was given multiple life sentences in that case with no chance of parole.

Chad Daybell stood trial in Idaho in 2024, where he was convicted on all charges, including the murders of Tylee, JJ and his first wife Tammy Daybell. He was sentenced to death in Idaho.

Vallow Daybell is now on trial in Arizona for conspiracy to commit murder related to Charles Vallow’s 2019 shooting death. Investigators said Vallow Daybell conspired with her brother to kill Charles Vallow. Her brother, Alex Cox, can’t be charged in any of these cases because he died in December 2019, apparently of natural causes, according to the medical examiner. 

Vallow Daybell is representing herself in the trial. She doesn’t have to wear her county-issued orange jail clothes during her trial. The judge also granted her motion to wear civilian clothes. 

She doesn’t have to wear any handcuffs or leg restraints, but we do know from MCSO that she’s wearing a RACC belt, also known as a stun belt.

That means if she tries to flee, she could get stopped with a shock. You can watch the video below to see the belt in action on 12News’ Troy Hayden. 

Thirteen men and three women were selected for the jury.  Twelve will ultimately deliberate and four will be selected as alternates after each side finishes presenting their case.

Vallow Daybell’s first Arizona trial began on Monday, April 7. Prosecutor Treena Kay spent more than 40 minutes laying out the state’s case against Vallow Daybell. She started by reading texts between Cox and Vallow Daybell. She told the jury that Lori Vallow wanted to be Lori Daybell and that she wanted Charles’s money and that she could have all of that if Charles Vallow was dead.

Kay told the jury that Vallow Daybell said her husband Charles, was possessed by an evil spirit named Ned and asked people in her circle to help cast out the evil spirit.  She said Vallow Daybell and Cox wanted to be like the story of Nephi in the Book of Mormon.

She brought up Lori’s relationship with doomsday author 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 Vallow by crushing up their son JJ’s pills and putting them in protein drinks.  That was one month before Charles Vallow was killed.

The jury was told about Charles Vallow’s 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.  

Kay told the jury that Vallow Daybell and Cox created the situation that killed Charles Vallow.  She said Cox had stayed at Vallow Daybell’s house the night before Charles Vallow was killed and brought his gun with extra magazines. On the morning of July 11, 2024, Charles Vallow went to the home in Chandler where Vallow Daybell was staying to pick up JJ and take him to school.  To keep Charles inside, the prosecution said Lori took Charles Vallow’s phone before Cox ultimately shot 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 Vallow-Daybell left the house when this happened.  She took JJ to school, went to Burger King and Walgreens.  She and Cox talked on the phone twice, according to the state’s evidence.  The prosecutor said Cox 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.”  Vallow Daybell and Cox were both interviewed by police after Charles Vallow’s death. The prosecutor said Vallow Daybell still had Charles Vallow’s 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.” 

Vallow Daybell started 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 Vallow to have life insurance policies for each other.  She said that Charles Vallow was her fourth marriage and that 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 started with “The evidence will show…”  She said she and Charles Vallow had a happy marriage for 13 years, but that he and her daughter Tylee did not get along.  

She said that she and Charles Vallow temporarily separated and fighting between Charles Vallow and Tylee progressed.  Vallow Daybell said that Charles Vallow sent her threatening text messages.  Vallow Daybell explained that in 2019, Charles Vallow 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 autism support.

On July 11, 2019, the day Charles Vallow was killed, Vallow Daybell said that she, Tylee, JJ and Alex Cox were in the house. At the time, she was staying at a rental house in Chandler and Charles Vallow was staying primarily at a rental home in Houston. When Charles arrived to take JJ to school, Vallow Daybell said only she and JJ were awake. 

Vallow Daybell said Charles Vallow took JJ out and put him in the car and came back in to get his phone and began to scream at Vallow Daybell.  She told the jury that Tylee came out with a baseball bat to protect her mother and that Tylee and Charles Vallow started to fight over the bat.  She said Charles Vallow was about to hit Tylee with the bat when Cox intervened. 

“Self-defense is not a crime,” Vallow Daybell stated.  “A family tragedy is not a crime. It’s a tragedy.”

Full Day 1 recap can be found here

Sgt. Irwin Wierzbicki, Chandler PD

On day one of the trial, the prosecution’s first witness was 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.  Vallow Daybell then had her chance to cross-examine the witness.

Vallow Daybell cross-examined the witness for about 10 minutes.  

Robert Krautheim, Chandler PD

Robert Krautheim is also a Chandler PD officer who responded to the family’s home after Charles Vallow 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. 

Vallow Daybell asked if the scene was chaotic during her cross-examination and he said no.  She asked if the officers were calm and he said that they were.  She asked about the cut on her brother’s head and confirmed he didn’t ask for medical attention.  She continued asking about Krautheim’s definition of “nonchalant,” noting that that could be her brother’s normal behavior.

Scott Cowden, Chandler Fire Department

Cowden testified he performed CPR on Charles Vallow.  He said he felt the “crunch” when you first start CPR, which was weird because he thought CPR had been started before. Our prior reporting said that 911 asked Alex Cox to try and perform CPR when he called in. Cowden testifies that he believes Charles Vallow was dead when he entered the house and that no one performed CPR before him. 

Full Day 2 recap can be found here

Kent Keller, Chandler Fire Department

On day two of the trial, the state called their next witness, Kent Keller, who was a recently retired Captain with the Chandler Fire Department.  

He testified that he overheard Vallow Daybell talking with police officers about not getting invited to a pool party because of all the commotion at the house when first responders were on the scene.  The prosecutor continued to ask him about CPR and he said he didn’t think anyone performed CPR prior to them and that Charles Vallow was dead when they got to the scene.

Vallow Daybell asked Keller if he knew for a fact that CPR had not been given to Charles Vallow before he arrived.  He said no. 

Daniel Coons, Chandler Police Department

Coons testified to being one of the officers who responded to Lori Vallow Daybell’s home when Charles Vallow was shot. He talked about crime scene photos and using a tool called a LizardQ that helps with different angles.  The jury was shown some photos from the scene. 

Vallow Daybell objected to the photos being shown to the jury. She said they weren’t introduced into evidence.  The judge ultimately allowed all photos to be introduced.  They appeared to be crime scene photos from the home where the shooting occurred.

Kay asked Coons about the crime scene and he testified about a handgun investigators found and the scene.  

Coons testified about going through the rest of the house looking for blood and evidence.  He said he didn’t see blood in other rooms of the home, other than a smear of blood in the kitchen faucet and around where Charles Vallow’s body was. 

Coons testified that he believes Charles Vallow was lying on the floor when he was shot in the abdomen, according to the evidence.

Vallow Daybell asked if Coons observed her brother during a walkthrough of the home. The prosecution issued a slew of hearsay objections that the judge sustains.

“I’m trying to understand, your Honor,” Lori tells the judge. “What the witness said is not relevant?”

The judge cautioned Vallow Daybell to stop making comments after witness testimony. He said she has a habit of doing this, and it’s considered a form of testimony from her. 

Day three of testimony in convicted murderer Lori Vallow Daybell’s Arizona trial concluded with references to dark spirits and accounts of drugging her former husband with her child’s medicine.

The state calls Nancy Jo Hancock to the stand.  From opening statements, we understand this is a woman Charles Vallow went on a date with the night before he was shot.  Hancock said they met on an LDS dating site.

Hancock said that she and Charles Vallow talked a lot and that he shared the issues he was having with Lori with her.  They met for the first time for dinner the night before he died. She said he was like “a kid in a candy store” about seeing JJ in the morning and taking him to school.

You could feel the awkwardness in the room when Vallow Daybell began to cross-examine Hancock. She starts asking Hancock whether she knew Charles was still married.  Hancock testified that she understood Charles was in the process of getting a divorce.  When Lori asks if Hancock dates married men, the state calls objects and calls it harassment.

Lori asks about what they talked about on the date – if they talked about her a lot.

Hancock said, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

The state then called Christina Atwood, who had met Vallow Daybell through church.

Atwood testified that Vallow Daybell told her she thought Charles Vallow was possessed by dark spirits. She also testified that Vallow Daybell spoke about “casting,” which is casting away evil spirits. She said she was once in Vallow Daybell’s presence when she prayed like this for Charles Vallow. 

Atwood said she got a bad impression when she first met Cox. She said at a gathering she heard him state he wanted to kill Charles Vallow. This was in June 2019.  She said he said this more than once.

Atwood said that Vallow Daybell also told her she crushed up JJ’s medication to put in Charles Vallow’s drink. She said she was disturbed by this. She asked Vallow Daybell to talk about it and she played it off as a joke. Atwood said if something happened to Charles Vallow she would go to the police. She later learned Alex Cox had killed Charles.

Atwood said Vallow Daybell did not say she was joking about Charles Vallow being possessed.

Vallow Daybell said she has no questions for the witness. This is the first time she’s not cross-examined one of the state’s witnesses. This was also Lori’s first friend to testify and the first time being possessed and “evil spirits” came up. 

Adam Cox, Lori’s other brother

The state called Adam Cox to the stand on day four of the trial. Adam Cox is Vallow Daybell’s other brother.

Adam Cox said in the past year and a half before this all happened, Alex Cox and Vallow Daybell were “oddly close.”  He also said he knew that Vallow Daybell and Charles Vallow were having marital problems.

The prosecutor asked him if she had beliefs outside the LDS faith.  Adam Cox said Vallow Daybell told him she was in the process of “translating from a mortal human being to an immortal being – a celestial state.”

He said that when he tried to flag Lori’s beliefs with the family, they cut him off.  He said he was told she was in “delusion” and she’d come out of it.

Adam Cox said Charles Vallow talked to him about having an intervention on Vallow Daybell in July 2019.  Charles Vallow bought him a ticket to fly into Phoenix.  He said he was supposed to stay with his brother Alex Cox on July 10, 2019, but Alex Cox “ghosted him.” He later learned Alex Cox was staying at Vallow Daybell’s and said it was “off.”

Charles Vallow and Adam Cox were texting the morning of July 11, before Charles Vallow was killed.  

“They’re planning something,” Adam Cox texted to Charles Vallow. 

“Absolutely,” Charles Vallow texted to Adam Cox.

Vallow Daybell asks if he saw with his own eyes or heard with his own ears whether she and their brother Alex Cox conspired to kill Charles Vallow. He said no.  She ends her cross-examination.

On re-direct, the state asks him about this.  He said there was “no doubt” in his mind that Alex Cox and Vallow Daybell killed Charles Vallow.

Sharp said she met Lori through a Preparing A People Conference, a group focused on the second coming of the Lord.

Sharp said it was unusual that Vallow Daybell talked about casting evil spirits out of her husband. She said Vallow Daybell said her husband was possessed by an evil spirit. She named the evil spirit “Ned.”

Sharp is asked if Vallow Daybell used the term “zombie.” Sharp said yes, it stood out to her.  She said Vallow Daybell correlated the term “zombie” to an evil spirit inside of someone, like her husband.

Sharp said she was asked to be part of a group to cast the evil spirit out of Vallow Daybell’s husband during a March 2019 girls weekend.

Vallow Daybell started to cross-examine sharp and asked if her testimony is accountable to God.  The prosecution objected.

Vallow Daybell repeatedly asked Sharp when the word “zombies” came out of her mouth and if she could say the sentence verbatim.  A lot of objections from the prosecution, the judge overrules some. 

Vallow Daybell’s final question is the same she gave her brother: whether Sharp saw or heard her personally conspire with her brother to kill her husband Sharp said she didn’t.

The prosecutor asked whether Sharp took her oath seriously.  Sharp said she did.  She also testified that she didn’t make it up that Lori said her husband was possessed.

William McDonald, Chandler PD

William McDonald, a now-retired officer with Chandler PD, testified about data extraction from cell phones. 

His testimony is brief, walking the court through the process of extracting data from cell phones.

Vallow Daybell didn’t have any cross-examination, but the jury asked if it’s possible to retrieve browser data once it’s been deleted. 

McDonald said it is possible. If something was deleted more recently, like within a year, it can possibly be retrieved. It’s harder to retrieve something deleted further back.

Marrisa Francisco, forensic analyst with the City of Chandler

Francisco testified about processes for things like collecting DNA evidence and fingerprints.

Later, the prosecutor brought her the bat that Vallow Daybell said Charles Vallow was using the morning he was shot.

Francisco said they found two latent prints on the bat but could not match them to anybody. She was asked if she could exclude Charles Vallow. Francisco said the results were inconclusive, meaning she could not match to Charles Vallow or exclude him. 

Vallow Daybell asks a few questions on cross-examination, mostly asking whether the DNA collected had been tested. Francisco said that collected DNA goes to the state lab.

Kay Woodcock, Charles Vallow’s sister

Kay Woodcock started by talking about their family dynamics growing up and eventually talked about Charles Vallow’s relationship with Vallow Daybell and her own relationship with Vallow Daybell.  

She said Vallow Daybell was outgoing and that she loved her.

The prosecutor asked Woodcock if she believed Charles Vallow was ever concerned for his safety.

“Charles was absolutely concerned for his safety,” she testified.

Kay said Charles Vallow told her that Vallow Daybell didn’t want him, Tylee or JJ anymore. This was during a time when Woodcock said Lori disappeared for nearly 60 days after some struggles in early 2019.

Woodcock was emotional while talking about how she found out about Charles Vallow’s death. She said she was at a nail salon in her home state and one of Charles Vallow’s adult sons called her.  She had to tell her other siblings and she said that when she tried to reach Vallow Daybell, she was too busy.

Vallow Daybell asked if Woodcock was aware of the events on the morning of July 11, 2019, the day Charles Vallow died.

“‘Cause you didn’t tell me,” she added

Vallow Daybell then asked the same question she’s asked of two other witnesses today: whether Woodcock saw her conspire with Alex Cox to kill Charles Vallow.

Woodcock said she hadn’t, but she saw a lot of evidence that showed they did.

Court will resume on Monday at 10 a.m. local time.  Reporter Erica Stapleton will be in the courtroom and 12News will have full coverage of the trial on 12+. 

Erica Stapleton contributed to this report.