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“Cult mom” Lori Vallow will now spend the rest of her life behind bars for the murders of her two youngest children and conspiracy to kill her new husband Chad Daybell’s first wife, bringing some sort of conclusion to the disturbing case that shook America to its core.
The 50-year-old convicted killer – who was once seen to be a loving mother – was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole in Fremont County Courthouse in Idaho on Monday after her victims’ devastated family members gave heartwrenching victim impact statements to the court and Vallow herself gave a bizarre statement claiming that her victims were “happy” in heaven.
Vallow was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and grand theft over the deaths of her daughter Tylee Ryan, 16, and son Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7, back in May.
She was also found guilty of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in the death of Mr Daybell’s first wife Tammy, 49.
Judge Steven Boyce handed down five sentences of life without the possibility of parole for each of the five murder charges.
She was sentenced to 10 years for one count of grand theft.
This marks the harshest possible sentence after the death penalty was taken off the table ahead of trial.
JJ and Tylee vanished without a trace back in September 2019, with their mother refusing to reveal their whereabouts to both authorities and the children’s desperate family members.
One month later, Tammy – an otherwise healthy 49-year-old – also died suddenly. Her death was initially ruled natural causes.
This bizarre spate of disappearances and death came just months after Vallow’s fourth husband Charles Vallow was shot dead by Vallow’s brother Alex Cox in Arizona in July 2019.
With Vallow’s children and both of their spouses then out of the way, she and Mr Daybell embarked on a new life together – flying to Hawaii to get married in a fairytale wedding on the beach.
But, with months passing since the last signs of life of Vallow’s children, concerns continued to grow, prompting authorities to exhume Tammy’s body. A subsequent autopsy revealed that she had died by asphyxiation.
In June 2020 – nine months after they were last seen alive – Tylee and JJ’s remains were found buried on the grounds of Mr Daybell’s property in Rexburg, Idaho.
Tylee Ryan and Joshua ‘JJ’ Vallow
(Family handout)
JJ, who had autism, had been smothered with a plastic bag taped over his face, his little body still dressed in a pair of red pyjamas. Tylee’s cause of death meanwhile has been impossible to establish as the teenager’s dismembered, charred bones and body parts were found scattered in the ground on Mr Daybell’s pet cemetery.
Jurors in Ada County Court in Boise, Idaho, took almost seven hours to find Vallow guilty on all charges over the three murders after a grueling six-week trial where the panel heard harrowing details about the doomsday cult mom’s path of deadly destruction and were shown graphic images of the murdered children’s remains.
The state called over 60 witnesses to lay out its case that Vallow was motivated by both her cult beliefs but also lust for Mr Daybell and financial greed when she conspired with him and her brother Cox to kill the three victims.
Vallow declined to present any defence and also didn’t take the stand to testify in her own defence.
At Monday’s sentencing, she then shocked the court by breaking her silence for the first time over the horrific murders.
In the bizarre statement, the doomsday “cult mom” shockingly claimed that “no one was murdered”, read out a Bible quote, continued to channel her doomsday cult beliefs while claiming “I have had many communications with Jesus Christ”.
While her victims’ loved ones were forced to listen in horrorr, she claimed that she had communicated with her murdered children Tylee and JJ as well as “her friend” Tammy from beyond the grave – and that they are “very happy”.
“Jesus Christ knows the truth. Jesus Christ knows no one was murdered in this case. Accidental deaths happened. Suicides happened. Fatal side effects of medications happened,” she said.
Lori Vallow gives bizarre statement to the court
(Reuters)
She claimed that she has had “many communications” from people in heaven and that “because of these communications I know for a fact that my children are happy” and busy in heaven.
Her bizarre statement came after she was confronted by her victims’ sobbing family members who branded her a “monster” and described her 1,841-day “cruel campaign of terror” in heartwrenching victim impact statements.
JJ’s grandmother Kay Woodcock broke down in tears as she said she will “never understand” how Vallow – who once appeared to be a caring, loving mother – could have murdered the son she “chose” to adopt.
“The deplorable woman that chose to be his mother, the woman who five years earlier made the conscious decision to stand in front of a judge and swore to provide for, care, love and protect him,” she sobbed.
“Lori always showed her deepest appreciation that we gave her the greatest gift ever, being JJ,” she said.
“That same mother murdered [her son]… and I will never understand it.”
Ms Woodcock is JJ’s biological grandmother and the sister of Vallow’s fourth husband Charles Vallow.
Lori Vallow in mugshot
(Madison County Sheriff’s Office)
Ms Woodcock began her statement by describing that: “Today marks 1,481 days that have been filled with terror,” she said.
“One was the day that my brother was murdered.”
In July 2019, Charles Vallow was shot dead by Vallow’s brother Alex Cox at her home in Arizona. Vallow is currently awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to murder for Charles’ killing in Arizona.
“This was the beginning of her cruel campaign of terror,” said Ms Woodcock of his death.
Following Charles Vallow’s murder, Ms Woodcock said that she was fearful for JJ and Tylee’s safety.
When JJ and Tylee then went missing, she described “319 days” of “pure hell” where she feared the worst – only for it to be realised when their remains were found in Mr Daybell’s backyard.
“Nothing can describe the pure hell of not knowing where the children were,” she said.
“319 days from the last day we were allowed to be able to Facetime with JJ and the day we knew the children had been found, in Chad Daybell’s backyard, buried like animals.”
Tammy’s sister Samantha Gwilliam also took the stand to deliver an emotional victim impact statement where she dismissed Vallow’s doomsday cult beliefs that she and Mr Daybell are “exalted” beings and that their victims were “zombies” or “dark spirits”.
“Everyone knows what liars you are. They now know what horrible things you have done,” she said.
“You are not an exalted being. There is no huge event that is going to save you. No angels are coming to rescue you.”
Instead, she said that Vallow will now spend her life behind bars.
Ms Gwilliam also read out a statement from her father Ronald Douglas who spoke of “the eternal ramifications” of Vallow’s actions on their family.
As well as taking away Tammy, Vallow’s actions had also torn apart the family that they still have left.
Listen: Family give emotional impact statements as Lori Vallow sentenced
Following Tammy’s murder and the chilling revelations that came out over the past three years, Tammy’s mother’s health deteriorated significantly and she passed away.
Beyond that, Mr Douglas said that the family had also lost their relationship with Tammy and Mr Daybell’s five children – who he said have believed their father’s lies.
Sitting slouched cross-legged at the defence table, Vallow kept her head down and refused to look her victims’ devastated family members in the eyes as they gave their emotional impact statements.
Prosecutors asked the judge to give Vallow the maximum sentence of life in prison on each of the five murder charges, after the death penalty was taken off the table ahead of trial.
Meanwhile, Vallow’s attorney asked the judge to give her “hope” that the “most hated woman in America” could one day be free from prison.
Judge Boyce sided with the state, ordering her to spend the rest of her life behind bars.
While Vallow will now spend the rest of her life behind bars, her legal troubles are far from over.
Chad and Tammy Daybell before her death in October 2019
(Facebook)
Following her sentencing, she is expected to be extradited to Arizona where she is awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to murder her fourth husband Charles Vallow and the attempted murder of her niece’s husband Brandon Boudreaux.
Meanwhile, Mr Daybell is still awaiting trial for the murders of JJ, Tylee and Tammy – with a scheduled trial start date set for 1 April 2024.
But, the third person accused of being a co-conspirator in the case won’t ever have his day in court.
On 11 December 2019 – hours after Tammy’s body was exhumed – Cox died suddenly at the age of 51. His death was ruled natural causes, with indications of a blood clot wedged in the arteries of his lungs. However the overdose drug Narcan was also found in his system.
