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Friday, April 28, 2023

Lori Daybell Trial Day Four Part 1 Melanie Gibb's Phone Call With Chad and Lori

Melanie Gibb was called to the stand with prosecutor Lindsey Blake doing the questioning.

When Lindsey asked Melanie G where she met Lori, Melanie G said that she met Lori at a church event in Arizona, in 2018 and they struck up a friendship. She was then asked where she met Chad. She said that she had met him at different events she had attended a year or two before she met Lori. She said that her relationship with Chad as casual and they periodically saw each other but were not close friends. Not like with Lori, whom she had been in constant contact.

Melanie G then was asked about when she met Tylee Ryan. She said she met Tylee within a week of meeting Lori. Melanie said that Tylee seemed upset and frustrated with Lori “most of the time” and that there was tension in their relationship.

Melanie G then asked about when she met JJ. She said it was within a week or two of meeting Lori. She said that sometimes she would Lori with JJ and she would seem very affectionate and loving. She watched Lori sing him a song at bedtime and seemed like she cared a lot about him, but as time went on JJ seemed frustrated and Lori was “distracted a lot”.

Lindsey then asked Melanie G how often her and Lori were in contact with each other after they first met. She said that she saw Lori daily or several times a week during the beginning of their friendship, but that all changed in January 2019 when Lori “started moving.” She said that they lived within 20- 25 minutes of each other.

The move that Melanie G said that Lori did was to Arizona to stay with Alex, then to Hawaii, then to Texas and then back to Arizona by July 2019 when Charles was killed.

Melanie G then talked about a trip she and Lori went on a trip with 5-6 other ladies for a conference in St. George, Utah sometime after October of 2018 where she observed Chad and Lori first met Chad. She said that Chad and Lori were very friendly to each other, interactive and talking a lot about the beliefs they had and there was “definitely an attraction” at the beginning. She said that Lori seemed very interested in Chad and that it seemed like she was attracted to him and flirty.

Lindsey asked Melanie G what Chad did for a living. She said that Chad was an author, a publisher and a sexton. Melanie G was then asked if she had read any of his books and she said yes. Then she was asked if Lori had read any of his books and Melanie G answered yes, a few before she met Chad.

Melanie was asked what religious talk Chad and Lori talked about when they met. She said that after she had spoken with Lori after Lori meeting Chad that “She shared with me that he told her that they had been married in another time period. She did believe that. She had already had the belief system that these multiple lives, as they would call it, she already believed that before she physically met him.” And that Lori had been married to the prophet Moroni from The Book of Mormon and that Lori had thought that before she had met Chad.

Melanie G said that after the conference she kept in touch with Chad on the phone, but not very often unlike Lori who would be often on the phone to Chad. During this time, Chad was still married to Tammy and Lori to Charles, and both were still alive.

Lindsey asked Melanie G when she learned what the term “multiple probations” meant. She replied that it was when she first started interacting with Lori and Chad introduced it through Lori to Melanie G and that he often spoke about it. Lindsey then asked what was it that Chad and Lori believed about multiple probations. Melanie G said that their definition of multiple probations changed the longer they knew each other but, in the beginning, it was believed that in this earth you could come back multiple times, but it was different for everybody.

Melanie G was then asked when was it that Chad and Lori met next. She said it was two weekends later, Chad came to Arizona for another event that Melanie G and Lori also attended. Melanie G said that before the event, Lori held a little meeting at her house, but does not remember if Chad was there. Lindsey asked what she observed between Lori and Chad that weekend. She said that after they interacted at the conference Chad stayed at Lori’s house over the weekend while Charles was out of town.

Lindsey then asked Melanie G if she recalled if Lori told her anything in November of 2018 about her Lori's relationship with Chad. She replied yes that Lori said she had been married 4-5 times as other “characters” to Chad and the weekend Chad came to Arizona, they met in the LDS temple in the waiting room and were unofficially sealed together by Moroni and Jesus Christ. That “That relationship of multiple lives was reunited.”

Melanie G then explained that in the Mormon Church it is believed that when you are sealed to someone, you are bound to them for all eternity.

Then Lori allegedly told Melanie G that she and Chad loved each other and also in previous mortal probation and that such had a lot of affection for him.

Melanie G was then asked if Lori ever told her what her mission on earth was. She replied that Lori told her before she met Chad that she thought she was a part of the 144,000 people who will be here during the return of Jesus Christ to earth. And after she met Chad, she said that she felt like her and Chad were the leaders. Melanie G was then asked to explain what the 144,000 were. She said that it is reference from scripture and Bible and the doctrine covenants about a group of 144,000 during the return of "our" savior and they would do great missionary work a spiritual endowment from on high ahead of the Second Coming.

Melanie G said that she wasn't the only one that Lori shared her mission with. She said that Lori had told her inner circle of friends which included Zulema Pastenes, Serena Sharp, Christina Atwood, someone named Nicole, Alex Cox, Melanie Pawlowski and Lori's sister Summer.

Melanie G described the light and dark scale that Lori had told her about shortly after she had met Chad. She said that Lori had told her that were light were people that had signed with the "Savior" before they came to this planet and those that were dark had signed contracts with Satan. Melanie G said that besides teaching her, Lori also taught her inner circle of friends about the light and dark scale and that over time the light and dark scale evolved over time. She said that someone could switch from light to dark and dark to light.

Melanie G said that Brandon Boudreaux and Charles Vallow were not present for these meetings and were not told about these teachings.

Lindsey asked Melanie G if Lori said anything to her about anyone being possessed. She said one day in January 2019 Lori told her told her that Chad said that Charles Vallow was taken over by an evil spirit and was now dark. Around the same time, Lori had also told Melanie G about a dream she had where Charles was in a car accident with JJ in Texas and would not be coming back home by January 1st. 

The prosecution then asked Melanie G if JJ was with Charles at the time and would he have been traveling back with him to which she replied yes. Melanie then testified that when Charles wasn't in the predicted accident, she asked Lori what happened. Lori replied, “You shared you thought he was going to die. He didn’t because Satan interfered with the plan.”

Melanie G then testified that the plans that were revealed to Chad and Lori were that their spouses needed to pass away so the couple could be together. And that to her understanding, that since Charle's was dark he needed to pass away.

Lindsey then asked Melanie G to tell the court what Lori told her about castings. She said that Lori would say that she was trying to understand how to get these evil spirits out, which she would attempt to do using prayer. Melanie G said that she started participating in the casting in January/February of 2019. The first casting was held at Zulema's house with Melanie G, Zulema, Christina, Lori, Serena and Nicole in attendance. The casting involved what Melanie G said what sounded like energy work in attempts to get the evil spirit to leave the body.

The first spirit that the group cast out of Charle's body was “Ned”. Melanie G said that since Charles was still alive the teachings changed and now a spirit named “Garrick” or “Garrett” entered Charles’ body. The final spirit to enter Charles' body was “Heblows”.

Melanie G than testified that weeks after the idea of spirits taking over bodies Lori started to use the term “zombie.”

Melanie then testified that Lori was present for all the castings while Chad didn't attend any until after Charles' death. She said she could only remember for sure Chad attending one casting, which see things was the casting for Brandon. She said also said that she possibly participated in a casting for Brandon Bourdeaux. Lori told Melanie that Brandon was dark, and he had an evil spirit in him and had evolved over time into a high-level dark spirit. She said that Lori told her that Brandon was possessed by a spirit that was from Hitler's group. 

Lindsey asked Melanie G if Lori had mentioned anyone else as being dark. Lori had told Melanie that besides Charles and Brandon, one of Lori’s brothers (not Alex), Lori’s dad, Tylee, Kay and JJ and random people were all dark. She also said that Lori might have told her that Tammy had considered dark, and if she was it was before Tammy died, just like Lori did with JJ in September of 2019. She then testified on to talk about how she was told by Lori that Chad had learned years before that Tammy was going to pass away early in her life.

Melanie G then talked about how she had been in contact with Lori after Lori came back to Arizona and even stayed at Lori's house with her. on July 9th or 10th, 2019. Melanie G was told that Alex was going to stay there the next day, which was the night before Charles died. Lori told Melanie G that Alex was spending the night at her house for protection because Charles was going to kill her. 

Lindsey then asked Melanie G if Lori ever told her how Charle's died. Melanie G said yes that Lori said Charles had been in an argumentative with her. She said she that a spirit told Lori to pick up Charles’ phone he got upset and they argued. He threatened her and that is when Tylee came out with a baseball bat to protect herself and "them". The argument got very heated, Alex interacted with him and it became very argumentative. Lori told Melanie that Alex said that was then went to get his gun to protect him and then he shot Charles. 

Melanie G said that within a week or two of Charles' death, Chad came to see Lori and the couple seemed happy.

Melanie G testified that before Charles. death, Chad and Lori communicated multiple times a day. She said that Lori had 2-3 cellphones, one of which was just to talk to Chad.

Lindsey asked Melanie G if Lori and Chad ever met up While Charles and Tammy were still alive. She said that Lori had told her that she would meet Chad at hotels and that “they were intimate”. Lori said she believed that it was god's will that her and Chad slept together and that they had been married in multiple lives and had a mission together. 

Lori had also told Melanie at the beginning of their friendship that during her mission everyone in Lori's family would die due to tribulations.

Melanie said right before JJ was killed, Lori said he was difficult to handle and to be with Chad. Lori indicated she was going to ask Kay if Kay watch him from then on.

Melanie testified that the last time she saw Tylee was in July-August 2019, right before Lori, JJ, Tylee and Alex moved to Idaho. After the move to Idaho, Melanie remembered hearing Tylee in the background a few times, but she never saw Tylee again. During the middle of September of 2019, Melanie went to Idaho with her boyfriend to visit his on and for a seminar and also to visit Lori, because Lori asked her to. Melanie and her boyfriend David Warwick went to Idaho, they ended up staying at Lori's house.  Melanie said that she didn't see Tylee and when she asked Lori where she was Lori said that she moved her in with some female friends in the dorms at the BYU campus. Melanie G and David were there from a Thursday to a Monday and did not see Tylee and did not hear anyone talk to her. When Melanie G asked where Tylee's belongings were, Lori told her that they were in storage. Lori also didn't talk about Tylee much after that.

Melanie G did see JJ while she was staying with Lori. Lori told Melanie that Chad said the day before that JJ had an evil spirit in him. She also told Melanie that she noticed that JJ's speech was more intelligent, his behavior difficult and he would say things like “I love Satan.” She told her that he would climb up on the fridge and cabinets and that he was acting more aggressive. Melanie G said that Lori "tried to explain how he was changing into a more negative type of demeanor i guess.”

The defense then asked Melanie G if this was the first time Lori talked to her about someone changing once they were dark or possessed. Melanie G said that Lori had told her that Charles had looked different, and "their behaviors would change" and maybe "they would talk to her differently."

Melanie G testified that before the visit to Idaho, that maybe she saw JJ 10 or 15 times in his life. She said that she didn't notice any changes in JJ and that he seemed to be a typical seven-year-old autistic kid. She said that she had experience with autistic children and that his behavior was normal. She also testified that she never saw JJ climbing on the counters or anything like that. However, Melanie said that she did see JJ very upset one day and so Chad took him upstairs and "took him into a bedroom with him according to Chad." 

Melanie said that she visited Lori from September 19th, to September 23rd, 2019. This is after Charles had been killed but before Tammy died. She said that Chad visited but never spent the night.

When Chad came back down from taking JJ upstairs, Melanie G said she asked him why his neck was so red. Chad told her that JJ had scratched his neck.

During her visit to Lori's Melanie G said that Chad and Lori were very affectionate towards each other, he'd console Lori, kiss her on the cheek and hug her. She said that the pair had fun singing and dancing together too. Melanie G said that she walked with them around the track at BYU-Idaho and also explored the campus with them. When they went to leave Chad helped Lori in her car and gave her a kiss. 

Melanie said that that weekend, Chad indicated to David that he'd appreciated it if they didn't share anyone anything about Chad and Lori's relationship and that he was still married to Tammy.

Melanie testified that the date September 22nd has a special meaning to Lori, that that was the date that Moroni appeared to her in a temple. Melanie also testified the last time that she saw JJ was when Alex took him upstairs the Sunday night while she was staying at Lori's house, which happened to be September 22nd, 2019. Melanie G didn't recall seeing JJ the next day before she left to go back home.

Lindsey then asked Melanie G if Lori talked to her about life insurance before Charles died. Melanie G said that she was in Lori's kitchen the day before Charles was killed and asked her why Charles would want to kill her. Lori said that there was a million or a few million dollars of insurance on her that he wanted to have. But then Lori told her that Charles had changed the insurance policy and if Charles died all the money would go to Kay. Melanie G asked Lori why she didn't get a divorce from Charles and Lori told her it wasn't God's will and God would penalize her for that. That is the same reason why Chad didn't want to get a divorce, because they would lose their exaltations, their standing with God.

After Melanie G's trip to Idaho, she said that she talked to Lori and Chad occasionally. In November of 2019, right before Thanksgiving Chad called Melanie G while she was in Utah and told her the Rexburg police would be calling her and not to answer the phone. He said that the police were looking for JJ. She then asked Chad wasn't JJ with Kay, Chad answered that he was not. Melanie G said that Chad had a nervous voice, so she asked him if he was nervous, and he answered yes. He then said that Lori would be contacting her shortly.

Melanie G testified that the reason why she thought JJ was with Kay is because that is what Lori had told her after Melanie's visit in September. She said that Lori had told her that she had met Kay at the airport and had asked her to take him because she had cancer.

After the phone call with Chad, Lori ended up calling Melanie G. Melanie said that Lori told her that the police had come by, and she told them that JJ was with Melanie G at the movie theater watching "Frozen". She then told Melanie G to just go to the movie theater and take random pictures of kids running around.

Melanie testified that JJ was never with her. 

Melanie then testified that when law enforcement reached out to her, she didn't initially respond because she didn't know what to do. She said that previously, Lori had told her that law enforcement was dark and that they were after her, like Satan was after her like all the other dark entities and dark translated beings. She said that Kay, Lori’s dad and her brother (Adam Cox) were all after her too. 

Another reason why Melanie G said that she didn't engage with police right way is that Lori had told her that JJ's life was in danger and that Kay was trying to kidnap him. Melanie said that she hadn't been sure if she should believe Lori or not and that she was in shock and perplexed.

Eventually when Melanie contacted law enforcement, she talked with officer Piller from Arizona she said that she had JJ but then didn't have him anymore and he was with Lori. Melanie then testified that she never had JJ and the reason why she said she did was because she wasn't sure 100 percent if Lori was telling the truth. She said that she felt like she was put in a really uncomfortable position, and she regretted her lie to law enforcement. She ended up talking to law enforcement again at the end of November/beginning of December and told them that JJ had never been with her and shared with them what she knew.

Lindsey then admitted a 20-minute phone call into evidence that Melanie G had previously shared with law enforcement and that she had recorded sometime in the beginning of December where she confronted Chad and Lori.

Chad- “Hello, sweet Melanie.”

Melanie G- “Hi, Chad. Hey, Lori.”

Chad- "Here, let me put it on speaker.”

Melanie G- “Oh, OK.”

Chad- “All right.”

Chad- “We’re inept with the phone.”

Melanie- “How are you guys?”

Chad- “We’re okay, how are you doing babe?”

Melanie- “I’m doing pretty good, thanks. I was wondering, where are you guys?”

Chad- “We’re just hanging out.”

Melanie- “Hanging out? Are you? Are you in Idaho?”

Lori- “No.”

Chad- “We’re nowhere near Idaho. ”

Melanie- “I just wanted to ask you a question if you don’t mind, Lori.”

Lori- “Of course, honey.”

Melanie- “I wanted to know, remember we talked about JJ going to Kay’s [Woodcock, JJ’s grandmother and Lori’s sister-in-law from prior husband Charles Vallow] house? And he told me they went there. And now he’s not there. I was wondering what happened?”

Lori- “Well, I had to move in somewhere else because of her actions. So…”

Melanie- “Was she, was she doing something? Like was she trying to come get them or something or, like trying to kidnap them?”

Lori- “Well, she’s, yeah, she said that often times before, but, umm…”

Melanie- “Okay. Well, you know, when I asked Chad the other day, I was like, hey, you know, where is JJ? And he said for my security, he didn’t want me to know. So is there a reason I should be in danger to know where he is?”

Lori- “No, it’s nobody. It’s his danger. It’s the danger that there’s people after me.”

Melanie-“Okay.”

Chad-“We just thought if you knew, that puts you in a danger.”

Lori- “Well, just in a bad position.”

Chad- “Yeah, a bad position for her.”

Lori -“Everybody. If they don’t know anything, then they don’t have to say they know.”

Melanie- “Right? So you’re just worried, okay.”

Lori- “I’m just, keep him protected…”

Chad- “And keep you protected.”

Lori- “And keep everybody else.”

Melanie- “I appreciate that. Well, I was wondering why you told the police why he was with me.”

Lori- “I just needed to use, talk somebody, so I wouldn’t have to tell them where he really was if they were going to tell Kay where he is.”

Melanie- “Oh yeah, so is it you think it’s like your family? Or you know, like your family, your dad or you know or those people?”

Lori- “Well my family, well not my whole family but as you know, most of my family is working against me and–”

Melanie- “Yeah.”

Lori - “–with her, basically.”

Melanie- “Yeah. Is JJ safe?”

Lori- “He is safe and happy.”

Melanie- “Okay, well, that’s good to hear. Are you afraid of anything? Like, are you afraid to tell me that you’re just afraid that he, umm, that I could be in danger? Like you’re, y’know like I don’t, like if I knew, like, how could that hurt me? I don’t understand all that can hurt me if I knew where he was.”

Lori- “Well, I’m just not telling anybody so that nobody has to say where he is or question to where he is so I can keep him as safe as possible.”

Melanie- “Yeah. Okay, I hope, wow. I hope he’s okay. I hope you guys are okay. I did have a question. I asked Al at one point, your brother if I wanted to know, you know, like where he was? And he said, I did not want to know and that he could not be found. So what does that mean?”

Lori- “I don’t know why he would say that. But it’s the same story. I didn’t even want Al to know I don’t want anybody to know so that nobody has to be worried about it. I mean, nobody has to be–”

Melanie- “Yeah.”

Lori- “–questioned about it so he can be safe.”

Melanie- “Yeah, so are you I mean, are you — How long are you gonna be away for? Like how, I mean, are you ever going to be able to come out and come back to society again? Are you going to keep, you know, like, come back? I mean, like, what does that look like?”

Lori- “I will do whatever the Lord needs me to do every day so…”

Melanie- “Okay. I just wondered if I was ever going to see you again.”

Lori- “Absolutely, you will.”

Melanie- “Okay, so, so maybe when they’re done chasing you, you’ll be able to come out of, JJ will come out again? Or…”

Lori- “Yeah, I mean, it’s a ridiculous thing for them to be working with Kay to find me there’s nothing that’s gone on that’s, y’know what I’m saying? Like, they’re working with her in some dark capacity. The police are working with her in some dark capacity. There’s no reason for them to be after me in the first place.”

Melanie- “Yeah. Has she, has she threatened you at all?”

Lori- “Yes, lots of times.”

Melanie- “Oh boy. What did she say?”

Lori- “Well, it’s in emails and everything. So…”

Melanie- “So, like she said she was gonna come take them or she was…”

Lori- “There’s a lot of things…”

Melanie- “Yeah.”

Lori- “…Melanie.”

Melanie- “Well I know it sounds like it. I’m just worried for you guys because you know, he’s missing. And, you know…”

Lori- “I know exactly where he is. He’s perfectly fine with me.”

Melanie- “Okay, well, I hope so.”

Lori- “(Unintelligible)”

Melanie- “I have a scripture I wanted to share with you if you don’t mind.”

Lori- “I’d love it.”

Melanie- “I was thinking about some of the things you guys have gone through. And I saw this scripture today. And I wanted to–”

Lori- “Let me ask you a question.”

Melanie- “Okay, yeah.”

Lori-“Let me ask you a question about a scripture, ‘kay? Did Alma turn yourself into King Noah? Or what it was he required to be?”

Melanie- “Well, King Noah was incredibly wicked.”

Lori- “Yes.”

Melanie- “And so he fled his, his evil ways which is, which is adultery and, and living riotously and breaking all the commandments.”

Lori- “Right. So, what did he, what was he required to do, Alma?”

Melanie- “He had to go and flee so that he would be safe and then help other people realize how, you know, jacked up the system was and the government was.”

Lori- “What about Moroni? What was he required to do at the end?”

Melanie- “To, to carry Alma’s plates and bury them. That was his responsibility,”

Lori- “What did he do that? What did he have to do to do that? Did he hide?”

Melanie- “Well, he had to hide. He had to hide because they were so–”

Lori- “Oh.”

Melanie- “They were so, everybody was killing everybody in this society everybody was dying. They were killing all the Nephites.”

Lori- “That’s, that’s, and the scriptures had to hide in the cavity of a rock by day and go out by night.”

Melanie- “The prophets, the prophets, the prophets did.”

Lori- “They did.”

Melanie- “Yep. Okay, well thank you for sharing that with me. Okay, I just, this scripture’s just something that may be thoughtful for you. ‘For behold– ‘This is Doctrine and Covenants Section 3, Verse 7 and 8. Says, ‘For behold you should not have feared man more than God. Although man set not the councils of God to despise his words, yet you should have been faithful, and he would have extended his arm and supported you against all the fiery darts of the adversary. He would have been with you in every trouble.’ So, when we work with the Lord and are obedient, he has, he’s gonna protect us from adversarial darts and all kinds of negativity, but when we open the door to Satan, he comes in and then he attacks and then he takes away to make it look like somebody else took it away. But that’s not how God works. He doesn’t work in darkness.”

Lori- “I agree with you one hundred percent. And that’s what the Lord is doing for me. Exactly what he’s doing for me.”

Melanie- “Well, I was just–”

Lori- “We have not opened the door to darkness, Mel. Darkness is knocking on the door all the time, because that’s the way dark works with the light. And I promise you that I have done nothing wrong in this case. But sometimes you have to hide in a cavity of a rock for your own life safety. And that’s what the Lord requires of you sometimes. And that’s how it is. And I’m sorry that’s how it is because there’s a lot of darkness on the earth.”

Melanie- “I know.”

Lori- “That’s been after me for zero reason, besides the darkness of Kay, which you already know, she’s dark.”

Melanie- “I haven’t met her enough to know if she’s dark or not. I’ve just met her slightly and she seemed like a normal kind of person, but then I haven’t engaged with her that much. So I don’t know that personally.”

Lori- “So you don’t know about her changing the things for herself to be the beneficiary of the policy and also none of that’s dark right.”

Melanie- “Well, I haven’t seen those documents, so I have no way of knowing.”

Lori- “You’ve seen them on my computer.”

Melanie- “No, I have not. I haven’t even looked on your computer before. You haven’t showed me anything.”

Lori- “I don’t know why you’re being controversial to me or if you’re recording this conversation for the police or whatever, I don’t know what your intention is on this phone call.”

Melanie- “Well–”

Lori- “But I love you with all my heart and I have forever and I will always–”

Melanie- “Well, I appreciate those words. But if you really love me, you wouldn’t have told the police that I had JJ with me. That’s not, that’s not what a friend does. I mean, that just makes me look weird. And it just, it’s not safe. For me. That doesn’t look good. You have to think of my welfare if you love me.”

Lori- “I do, and I did exactly what I felt the Lord was instructing me to do. And I appreciate you and I love you.”

Melanie- “Well–”

Lori- “And I’d never to do anything to harm you. And you can have all of this confirmed to you by the Lord.”

Melanie- “I have and my, my conscience is clear. I feel very understanding what’s really going on, Lori. And I believe that, I believe that you have been very deceived by Satan. I believe that he has tricked you. And I just, I don’t believe that what you’re doing is correct. I just don’t, I mean, Tammy dies. And then your husband died. And then, and then he’s missing it just doesn’t sound like God’s plan to me. Just sounds, it gives me a gut feeling, like in my gut, it feels weird. It doesn’t feel right. I don’t have peace about I never have felt one-hundred percent peace about always felt like a little weird in my stomach about all these things.”

Lori- “You know me, Mel. You know me. This does not sound like you. It sounds like you’ve been influenced by somebody dark who wants you to believe dark things and have fear and have fear of the Celestial world.”

Melanie- “I don’t have fear.”

Lori- “You obviously do.”

Melanie- “No, I have a peace of conscience and I can see clearly.”

Lori- “Well I’m sorry that you feel that way. I love you so much.”

Melanie- “I know you do. I don’t know what else to say.”

Lori- “Stand for Christ when he comes again and he’s coming soon, and we will all stand there, and you will know at that point that he is supporting me and has supported me the whole time and I have not been deceived.”

Chad- “I just want to testify that I, I know Tammy [Daybell, Chad’s deceased first wife who died in October 2019] loves (unintelligible) and the conspiracy theories. My sister-in-law’s right behind it all and I hope that you’re not being influenced by dark game.”

Melanie- “I don’t know who she is. I’m sorry. You said your sister-in-law? I don’t even know her.”

Chad-“I know, but she’s coming up with the same type of theories. And it’s just not true. My own children were there. They testified that Tammy had been getting weaker and sick and I begged her to go to the doctor. There’s, she just, her heart was failing her. She was physically falling apart. And she hates doctors and she just passed away. That’s how it happened. My son Garth was right there with me the whole time. My kids were at the house within 20 minutes of her passing. There were two coroners. They checked her out right there on the bed. All these conspiracy theories just make me sick to my stomach. Just absolutely sick. I know, I’ve been told for years that Tammy would pass away at a young age. I had no idea that Lori would even be a part of my life. I just knew that my life had two segments and that I know Tammy’s on a special mission and she’s with my kids. She’s visited them. Just, there’s so much, Melanie, that you just have to have faith. And this is not some sort of master plan. There’s no way Lori and I could have ever come up with this. It’s just…”

Melanie- “You can understand my concern, correct?”

Chad- “I can, from an outside perspective. But, from an–”

Lori- “From someone who knows as much as you know? No, not really. But we can feel Dave’s [Warwick, Melanie’s boyfriend] influence on you. I can feel that for sure.”

Melanie- “He’s a very good man. And he has a very strong foundation. That I know.”

Lori- “I know, but he seems to be the one that’s putting the doubts in your mind.”

Melanie- “No, no, but, you know what? I have, I have come to understand that my gut feeling, I was not listening to it. And I always felt uncomfortable with many things.”

Chad- “Okay.”

Lori- “Well, I’m sorry that I included you in those teachings then for your own sake because I wish that you didn’t have as much knowledge as you have, because you will be accountable for the knowledge that you do have, Mel.”

Melanie- “So will you.”

Lori- “I agree. A hundred percent. A hundred percent. I have no fear. I have no fear of that that. But–”

Melanie- “I was reading the story of Korihor and it’s so very similar to this, you just can’t see it. But he did it because he was trying to reclaim a people and he thought at the very end because of his carnal and natural desires. That’s what influenced him. And he was very, very–”

Lori- “That’s me? And carnal natural desires?”

Melanie- “Well honey, you got a lot of natural desires. We all know that.”

Lori- “That’s what you think is me? Korihor? Are you kidding me right now?”

Melanie- “I think both of you have had similar, similarities. It’s in the scriptures. It’s in the scriptures. And the scriptures are very powerful.”

Lori- “Yes, they are. I live by the scriptures, as you know.”

Melanie- “I know, but we can wrest the Scriptures for our own vainglory.”

Lori- “I wrested the scriptures?”

Melanie- “We can. We can do that and I feel that you have to (unintelligible) our belief systems.”

Lori- “Do I wrest the scriptures? That was you’re accusing me of at this point?”

Melanie- “I feel that you have.”

Lori- “How, why do you feel that way? I need an explanation on this.”

Melanie- “Because if you look like the scripture, just said, okay–”

Lori- “(Unintelligible) the scriptures every single day? Do you know?”

Melanie- “Oh, I know you read them. I don’t doubt that. But this scripture right here says that you will be supported by all against the fiery darts of the adversary. You would have been supported. If you had not opened dark portals and dark junk. You would have been safe. If you would have obeyed God, he would have had your back but you have been chased and tortured and–”

Lori- “(Unintelligible)”

Melanie- I’m sorry?”

Lori- “He has my back, so…”

Melanie- “Well, if he has your back, you would not not be able to tell me where you are. And we couldn’t find JJ. Like, where is he? I’ve been asking. Where is he? And you know what I mean? That’s, that’s not the Lord’s work.”

Lori- “I could tell everything where JJ is right now and that would not be good for JJ. So, I’m sorry that you don’t want me to protect my children. But I would never ask you to not protect your children.”

Melanie- “Of course you wouldn’t.”

Lori- “So I can tell that you’re just adversarial, Mel. I love you. I’m sorry that you feel this way.”

Melanie- “I’m not, this is because I actually do care. I’m sharing what I feel for you because I know your salvation’s in trouble for what you’ve done.”

Lori- “My salvation’s not in trouble at all and I think you should check that with the Lord again.”

Melanie- “Well I, I, I felt a lot of things from the Lord. And this doesn’t feel right.”

Lori- “Well, I’m sorry that you feel that way, sweetheart. I’m sorry that you’re friends with all those who are are against me. Joseph Smith’s friends turned against him.”

Melanie- “I’m not friends with people that are against you.”

Lori- “Apparently you are.”

Melanie- “I am not. I don’t know Kay. I don’t know who you’re talking about, your sister-in-law. I don’t even know what her name or who she is. I don’t know any of those people. Why would they contact me anyway? How would I even know about that?”

Lori- “Well, you’re friends with Dave and he’s apparently against me now.”

Melanie- “Well, David is a very righteous man. And I’ve always known that grounding about him. And he has a lot of beautiful experiences with the Lord. And these are not the same. You know, when you get the Priesthood. That’s Peter, James and John shows up and then he confirms all those in the circle that are to get it and everybody’s a witness of that. Everybody’s a witness that the pattern is in the scriptures. There’s no witness that you ever receive what you think you’ve received. Nobody has seen that but you. There’s no witness the witness Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdrey, Martin Harris. The eight witnesses. They all showed up.”

Lori- “Was there a witness when Jesus and Heavenly Father gave that to Joseph Smith by himself in the Grove, was there a witness?”

Melanie- “No, but they had it later with other people. That was one experience, but others joined in later when he brought other people into it. And they had experiences.”

Lori- “(Unintelligible) Was that in the scriptures? Yes or no?”

Melanie- “I’m sorry?”

Lori- “Is that the scriptures? Yes, or no?”

Melanie- “That, that Joseph was alone when he saw God the Father and Jesus Christ?”

Lori- “Yes.”

Melanie- “Yes, he was alone.”

Lori- “He was alone.”

Melanie- “But he opened up–”

Lori- “So that’s not a pattern at all.”

Melanie- “Honey, what I’m saying is, is that after he saw that and other people joined in, they saw the things with him. He wasn’t alone. There was a witness for them. There was no witness anybody’s never seen what you’ve seen or experienced what you’ve seen. That is your own witness, but nobody’s had that.”

Lori- “I know God knows it, and I will never deny it. For my soul would be at stake if I did. So you can say it didn’t happen to me, Mel. But if I say it, then I am accountable. You didn’t witness it. But I did.”

Melanie- “But your behaviors is not, okay–”

Lori- “(Unintelligible) Jesus Christ.”

Melanie- “I understand that’s what you, you believe you saw but this is the thing is I see is that your behaviors not one of somebody that’s seen Christ.”

Lori- “Never (unintelligible)”

Melanie- “Your behavior, your behavior. What?”

Lori- “Never had any idea that you would be the person, of all people, to drag me. I cannot believe it.”

Melanie- “I’m asking questions and I am concerned for you. That is what somebody does when they care.”

Lori- “You don’t sound like you’re concerned. You sound like you’re accusatory. You do not sound concerned. You sound pissed off.”

Melanie- “I’m not. I am very, I am troubled. Maybe that’s the better word: troubled. Because these things, like you being with Chad before he’s even divorced, is unusual behavior for a person that’s seen Jesus Christ.”

Lori- “I was never with him and he was never divorced.”

Melanie- “Honey, I’ve seen you guys together.”

Lori- “That’s your story. (Unintelligible)”

Melanie- “Oh, oh. So I haven’t ever seen you with, I’ve never seen you with Chad, kiss him and walk around the track and BYU with him. I never saw that? You say I’m–”

Lori- “You’re the one who’s feeling guilty about being with someone before they were divorced.”

Melanie- “Oh honey. I think that’s not what we’re talking about here.”

Lori- “It’s not what we’re talking about here. That’s why I’m saying. You aren’t going off the deep end. But–”

Melanie- “I’m just saying, this is not a behavior of someone that sees Jesus Christ. It’s not the behavior.”

Lori- “Really?”

Melanie- “Really.”

Lori- “Have you ever seen Jesus Christ so do you know what the future behavior would be if you’d seen Jesus Christ?”

Melanie- “I know that when I, I know that when I pray–”

Lori- “(Unintelligible) each of you every day and he does protect me and he is protecting me, and he will protect me against this accusation as well. And we will both stand there with him. And you tell me if I was lying or not when we’re both standing there with Jesus Christ.”

(Call disconnects)

Melanie- “Okay.”

Now there are a few things you need to know about some of the words that were mentioned in this call. 

Korihor is an anti-Christ type figure in the Book of Mormon.

King Noah was a pretty bad guy as well. He was best known for burning the prophet Abinadi at the stake. It is also said that he presided over a wicked kingdom guided by false priests.

Melanie said she recorded the call because she wanted to know where JJ was, and she wanted to record Lori saying that Melanie didn't know where JJ was. She also wanted to learn any information she could on where Chad and Lori were.

Lindsey asked Melanie why she initially became concerned about JJ's whereabouts. Melanie testified that it was because at first, they said that JJ was safe with Kay and then the police became involved and started questioning where he was. Then Chad said that Kay didn't have him.

The defense then brough the questioning back to the last night Melanie had seen JJ, which was September 22nd, 2019. Lindsey asked her what room she stayed in at Lori's. Melanie said Lori had her sleep in Tylee's room and let David sleep in JJ's room, but she went back and forth from her room to David’s. Melanie said that while she was with David he woke up “very troubled” from a dream.
His heart was racing, and he was very scared by the dream, so Melanie grabbed her cell phone and tried to text and call Chad and Lori and even knocked on Lori's bedroom door for a blessing. However, they didn't answer the texts or phone calls and Lori's door was locked. Melanie said she never saw JJ the next morning and Lori never told her where he was.

Melanie testified that she believes that all the teachings of multiple probations, lives, people being light or dark, etc. originated from Chad and taught by both Chad and Lori. Melanie also agreed that they are not taught in the traditional LDS faith.

Melanie then testified that she had told Lori in the phone call that in her opinion Lori's character didn't represent someone who met Christ. Melanie told the court that she felt that way because of all Lori's deception, lies and the relationship that she had with Chad while their spouses were still alive.

Lindsey asked Melanie if Lori had ever said that she had seen Jesus. Melanie said that Lori had told her when they first met that he had appeared to her in the temple. Lindsey then asked Melanie if people in the Mormon church had revelations and if people came to them for guidance. Melanie said that yes, they do, but people only the people that have authority give guidance. She then asked Melanie if Lori claimed to see Jesus, if that would make people come to her for guidance. She replied that she didn't believe so.

Melanie then testified that Lori organized all the castings that she participated in.

Melanie then talked about how she found out about Tammy's death the day after she died. A friend of Melanie's had sent her a screenshot from Chad’s Facebook account announcing Tammy's death. Melanie called Lori mid-morning and told her about Tammy’s death. Melanie said that Lori told her that she already knew what happened because "Two of the girls from their group had called Lori and inquired about it.”

Melanie said she then asked Lori what happened to Tammy and Lori responded, “She had a dark entity in her, and they had to do what they could to get that spirit out of her.” Melanie stated that "they" were Lori and Chad.

Melanie then testified that Lori said that Tammy was starting to get suspicious that Chad was having an affair. She said that Lori had told her that she found out that Tammy and Charles had known each other. Melanie said that Tammy had been suspicious about the affair and had also turned dark within the two weeks before her death.

Lindsey asked Melanie what Lori's demeanor was after Charles passed away, but while Tammy was still alive. Melanie said that Lori was eager to be with Chad and frustrated that Tammy hadn't passed on yet. After Tammy passed away Melanie said that Lori was very happy to get married to Chad and never expressed any sadness or sorrow. 

Melanie then went on to talk about “vibrations” and how Lori told her that they were equal to your level of spirituality. If you were at 1,000, you were at a high level called the terrestrial. The more your vibrations increased, the closer your body was to being translated and changed. Melanie said that Lori had told her that sometimes she wouldn't necessarily have to eat, she would get younger, and her menstrual cycle would not be changed. Melanie agreed that these changes would take someone beyond the normal mortal body.

Melanie then testified that Lori indicated to her that she believed that her dreams of Tammy dying would come true.

Lindsey asked Melanie if "these things" were taught to Alex Cox. Melanie said that these teachings were shared with Alex, and that he told her he believed the people Chad and Lori were hoping would pass away, which were Charles, Tylee, JJ, Tammy, were zombies. Melanie said when she told Alex she didn’t 100% believe that people could become zombies Alex responded that he 100%believed it.

Lindsey then referred back to the phone call when Melanie told Lori she had asked Alex what happened to JJ and Alex responded with, “You don’t want to know.”

That was the end of the prosecution's questioning.

Friday, April 21, 2023

Lori Daybell Trial Day Three- The Phone Call Between Lori And Chad

The cross examination of detective Ray Hermosilla by the defense continued as Jim Archibald asked about how long it took to excavate JJ on Chad Daybell's property. Ray said that it took about 5 hours until the remains were fully unburied. Then Ray testified, again, that he escorted JJ's remains along with Ron Ball to the morgue before overseeing the discovery of Tylee's remains. Jim went clarify about the teeth and bones being found in the firepit.

Questions involving the movement of the remains to Ada County were points of interest for the defense before then ended their cross examination.

Next witness to take the stand was Lieutenant Jared Wilmore. He has worked in law enforcement and for the Madison Country Sheriff's office for over 20 years. He oversees the jail where Lori was housed as well as the Telemate system.  

The prosecution asked how the phone and computer systems are accessed and how it is monitored by authorities. Jared was asked if has the ability to edit or change any of the information in the Telemate system and answered no, nor do any other agency. 

Jared was asked how he knew the date and time calls came in or were placed. He said that they were time stamped with the date and time they came through the system.

The prosecution then asked Jared if he was ever asked by the state to access some calls and video visits made or received by Lori. Jared replied yes. A thumb drive containing a phone call from June 9th, 2020, between Chad Daybell and Lori was admitted into evidence. Next admitted into evidence was a thumb drive containing a video call between Lori and her sister Summer on June 24th, 2020. Next was another thumb drive containing a video visit between Lori and her son Colby that occurred on August 3rd, 2020.

The prosecution then went back to the call made on June 9th, 2020, by Chad to Lori. Jared said that that was the day the FBI searched Chad's property and found JJ and Tylee's remains. The call was then played for the jury.

Lori Daybell “Hi, babe.”

Chad Daybell “Hello.”

Lori Daybell “Are you okay?”

Chad Daybell “No, they’re searching the property.”

Lori Daybell “The house right now?”

Chad Daybell “Yeah, yeah. [Unintelligible, possibly ‘not the house.’] So Mark Means [Lori Daybell’s attorney] will be talking to you.”

Lori Daybell “Okay. What, are they in the house?”

Chad Daybell “No, they’re out in the property.”

Lori Daybell “Are they seizing stuff again?”

Chad Daybell “They’re searching. There’s a search warrant and so [unintelligible] with the kids.”

Lori Daybell “Okay.”

Chad Daybell “So yeah, saw you’d tried to pull up a, a call. I’m glad you called.”

Lori Daybell “Yeah.”

Chad Daybell “So, we’ll see what transpires.”

Lori Daybell “‘Kay.”

Chad Daybell “[Unintelligible]”

Lori Daybell “What do you want me to do? Pray?”

Chad Daybell “What?”

Lori Daybell “What do you want me to–”

Chad Daybell “No, [talking over Lori] I’m sorry.”

Lori Daybell “[Laughs]”

Chad Daybell “Well, [unintelligible]”

Lori Daybell “Mmmkay. What can I do for you?”

Chad Daybell “I’m [unintelligible] pretty calm. I would call Mark, though. We need, can you just talk with him?”

Lori Daybell “Have you talked to him already?”

Chad Daybell “[Unintelligible, possibly ‘I’ve tried to call him since.’]”

Lori Daybell “So he knows what they’re doing?”

Chad Daybell "Yeah. Looks like I’ve, a call from somebody else who I need to talk to, honey. I love you so much.”

Lori Daybell “Okay. I love you. Should I try to call you later?”

Chad Daybell “Umm, I don’t know. I, I don’t know. Uh, you can try, yeah. I’ll answer if I can.”

Lori Daybell “Okay.”

Chad Daybell “I love you and we’ll talk soon.”

Lori Daybell “Okay, baby, I love you.”

Chad Daybell “Okay. Love you. Goodbye.”

There was no cross examination of Jared, and he was free to go.

Next called to the stand was Lieutenant Joseph Powell from the Fremont County Sheriff's Department with Fremont County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Tawnya Rawlings doing the questioning. Joe has worked for 21 years for the Fremont County Sheriff's Department. He oversees patrol, detectives, schedules and looks at reports, covers patrol shifts and help detectives as needed.

Joe testified that he learned of Tammy Daybell’s death on October 19th, 2019. Gilbert police contacted Joe on October 31st, 2019, and asked him if Tammy's death was being investigated. They also said that they had an attempted murder in Arizona. They then requested his assistance in trying to locate a 2018, gray Jeep Wrangler with Texas plates in connection with the shooting.

Joe conducted surveillance of Lori and Chad at a few different locations. Tawnya admitted a photo of Chad and Lori at Cafe Rio on November 1st, 2019, that had been taken by Joe. Next photo that was admitted was another one that Joe had taken of Chad and Lori walking into Hobby Lobby holding hands also on November 1st, 2019.

Tawnya asked Joe if an investigation into Tammy's death was ever conducted. He said yes, because it seemed that she was in pretty good health. 

Joe then testified how he helped conduct a search warrant on Alex Cox’s townhome and helped with the exhumation of Tammy’s body.  Joe then said how he obtained a search warrant for Tammy’s medical records and in reviewing them he learned that she didn’t go to the doctor much, she seemed to be in good health, that she was being seen for depression and her hand. So then said he also got a warrant for Tammy's prescription medications from Walmart and discovered that she had prescriptions for Fluoxetine (an anti-depressant) and Tramadol (an opioid pain reliever).

Tawnya then asked what facts played into the decision to exhume Tammy's body. Joe said that that Tammy had no signs of high blood pressure or other health issues and the fact her husband was with another lady so soon were contributing factors. Joe said that he was the one that got a court order, and he was present for Tammy's exhumation from the Springville Utah cemetery.

Tawnya admitted a photo showing Tammy’s grave and the backhoe into evidence along with other photos that showed the vault, the gravesite and the casket being loaded into a vehicle to head to the medical examiner’s office. Joe then testified how he had been present during Tammy's autopsy. Photos of Tammy's body then were shown to the jury.

Joe then talked about how he helped serve a search warrant on January 3rd, 2020, to 202 North, 1900 East in Fremont County Idaho., which was Chad's home. He said the FBI gave him evidence that he transported the Fremont County Sheriff's office where detective Bruce Mattingly took possession of those items.

The prosecution had no further questions.

John Thomas began cross-examination of Joe for the defense. He some questions to clarify Joe's law enforcement background. John also asked about the photos taken of Chad and Lori at Cafe Rio and Hobby Lobby. Joe said that was the only time he ever surveilled Chad and Lori and that he followed them from Madison County at the apartment complex to Idaho Falls. Joe was with his Chief Deputy and two detectives from Rexburg Police, and they all took separate vehicles, and the other officers took different photos of Chad and Lori.

Joe then testified that he couldn’t overhear the conversation Lori and Chad were having at Cafe Rio because he was sitting at a table that was too far away.

John then asked Joe if he was involved in the investigation of the paintball shooting incident of Tammy Daybell. Joe said that he was not. He was then asked if he was aware of where Lori's at the time of Tammy's death. Joe answered no. John then asked Joe if it would surprise him to know that Lori was in Hawaii. Joe replied with no. The defense had no further questions and court was dismissed for the day.


Lori Daybell Trial Day Two- Part 2- Chart and Timeline

Rob then showed the court a chart people and of times and events in the case that Ray made to help the jury understand Ray's testimony as well help the jury keep track of individuals in the case. Ray then went over a basic timeline of the case.

I do not have pictures of Ray's chart so i am just going to put pictures of the players in the case as well as a timeline.


Timeline
July 11th, 2019- Charles Vallow was killed by Alex Cox

September 2nd or 3rd, 2019- Lori, Alex, Tylee and JJ moved to Rexburg, Idaho.
September 8th, 2019- Tylee's last known proof of life, which is the photos taken at Yellowstone.
September 22nd, 2019- JJ's last proof of life, which is a photo taken with him sitting on Lori's couch.

October 2nd, 2019- Attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux, which was Melanie P's husband at the time.

October 9th, 2019- attempted shooting of Tammie Daybell.

October 19th, 2019- Tammy died.

November 1st, 2019- Detective Ray Hermosillo was contacted by Freemont County about Tylee's jeep that was seen fleeing Brandon's shooting.

November 4th, 2019- The jeep was seized at Lori's home.

November 5th, 2019- Lori and Chad were married in Kauai, Hawaii.

November 25th, 2019- Ray was asked to do a welfare check on JJ Vallow.

November 26th, 2019- Ray talked with Alex and Chad outside Lori's home. The pair alleged that Lori wasn't home. Alex said he didn't have Lori's phone number and Chad said he barely knew Lori.

November 27th, 2019- The search warrant was executed at Lori's house.

June 9th, 2020- The search warrant for Chad Daybell's house was executed and JJ and Tylee's remains were found.

June 10th, 2020- The day the children's remains were taken to the ADA county's coroner's office.


Prosecutor Rob Wood then entered photos of the pet cemetery and burial site where Tylee's remains were found into evidence. Ray described the soil and the "rotting and charred flesh" and broken bone fragments found as well as the clumps of flesh, fatty tissue, organs and bone found in the melted bucket. He reiterated that underneath the bucket was a partial skull and teeth and that the smell at the site was so bad that they had to take turns digging.

Rob asked Ray about June 10th, 2020, when Ray and Ball escorted JJ and Tylee's remains to the coroner's office. Ray told the court that he and Ball went back on June 11th, 2020, to witness the autopsy performed by medical examiner Garth Warren.

JJ's autopsy
The body bag that had JJ's body in it was the first to be examined. When the seal to the body bag was cut and unzipped the black plastic bag with duct tape and dirt on it was revealed. It was then placed onto the metal table, had photographs and whatever evidence was needed was taken from it. Then they cut down the center of the black plastic bag. Inside the bag was a little boy in red pajamas with a white plastic bag around his head and several layers of duct tape from his chin to his forehead area. His arms were folded across his chest with several layers of duct tape holding them into position. His feet were also duct taped and bound and had a white and blue child's blanket draped over the top of him.

Dr. Warren then cut the plastic bag that was wrapped over JJ's head, exposing another layer of duct tape over his mouth from jawline to jawline. He then cut the duct tape away from JJ's arms revealing another layer of duct tape wrapped around his wrists, binding them. After the duct tape that was cut that was binding JJ's wrists, Ray said that from the photographs and the descriptions of JJ he had seen and heard during the course of the investigation, he could tell that that body was of JJ.

Rob then asked Ray what stood out to him in the autopsy. Ray said the amount of duct tape that JJ had been wrapped in, his pajamas that were soaked with human decomposition, that he still had on his nighttime pull up diaper and there was some visible bruising on his arms.

Tylee's remains were brought out next. Once the body bag was open Dr. Warren said that there was nothing he could do with the remains that day and asked them to come back tomorrow.

Next Rob entered photos of JJ's autopsy into evidence and had Ray describe what was depicted in the photos.

In cross examination Jim Archibald for the defense asked Ray to clarify about the date of when he first heard of JJ and also asked to explain what an infotainment center was, even though Ray explained all this all ready.

Jim also asked if Ray or Hope had worn body cams or recording devices when they talked to Chad and Alex, which they had not. Ray was then asked to explain what the reasoning for the search warrant for Lori's home was. Ray testified that it was in order to find where JJ was since he had been lied to about his location and also Chad and Alex's actions that day.

Jim then asked Ray if there was any indication that the weapons or the weapon paraphernalia that was found in Lori's garage belonged to Lori and Ray's answer was no.

Jim asked Ray if he followed up on every tip that came in after Tylee's alleged proof of life and Ray answered yes.

Ray was then asked where Lori was at the time of Tammy's death. He replied that Lori was in Hawaii.

Jim then asked where the FBI was while Ray and three other officers secured the scene at Chad's house. Ray said they were waiting at a church. He was also asked if it was the first time he had worked with the FBI. Ray replied that he had worked with the FBI on numerous occasions.

Court then adjourned for the day.



Lori Daybell Trial Day Two -Part 1

Detective Ray Hermosillo was the third person to testify in Lori Daybell's trial with prosecutor Rob Wood asking questions. Ray is a 22-year veteran of the department and has been a detective for four years.

Rob asked Ray if he had been involved in the investigation regarding JJ, Tammy and Tylee. Ray responded by saying that he was contacted by Freemont police on November 1st, 2019, stating that there was a jeep in his jurisdiction that was involved in a possible attempted homicide. He was asked to seize the vehicle if it could be located and preform intermittent surveillance on the residents. At the time, he said he was unable to locate the jeep, but he did take pictures of Chad and Lori entering Lori's home at 565 Pioneer apartment 165.

Rob inquired if Ray had seen any teenage girls at the house or little boys. Ray responded that he never had. He was also asked if he knew who JJ or Tylee were at the time and he replied that he had not.

Ray went on to talk about how he was able to seize the jeep on November 4th and that he had contacted Gilbert police. Gilbert police then came up to Rexburg on November 18th and served a warrant for the GPS for the jeep. That was the first time Ray heard anything about JJ or Tylee. That is the date that Gilbert police asked Ray to keep an eye out for any signs of JJ at Lori's residents because they had received a call from Kay about her concerns for JJ. Gilbert police also had told Ray that they would check down in Arizona to see if JJ was staying with possible friends and they'd check with him at a later date.

Ray said that Detective Ryan Pillar from the Gilbert police called him on November 25th, 2019, and stated that they didn't find JJ in Arizona and that Kay wanted a welfare check. Ray said that the next morning he went to Lori's apartment with Detective Dave Hope where they encountered Chad Daybell as well as Lori's brother Alex. When asked where Lori was, Ray said that Alex claimed that she wasn't home. Ray said he then asked where JJ was, and Alex got a terrified look on his face and then shared panicked glances with Chad and didn't answer. Ray said he asked Alex again and this time Alex claimed that JJ was with Kay in Louisiana. Ray said he had told Alex that that wasn't very likely because Kay was the one that called in the welfare check. Alex and Chad then reportedly shared frantic glances once more. Ray then asked Alex how he could get a hold of Lori. Alex responded that she was in apartment 107 and that he didn't know her cellphone number.

Rob Wood asked Ray what he thought of Alex claims that he didn't have his sister's number. Ray replied that he suspected that that was a lie because during the investigation so far, he had learned that Alex had a really close relationship to Lori.

Rob asked Ray what he did after Alex told him that he didn't have Lori's number. Ray said that he then went with Dave Hope to apartment 107 and knocked on the door. When no one answered, Ray said that Hope began knocking on apartment doors while he went back to his car to call help to knock on doors. On his way back to his car, Ray spotted Chad driving towards him in his black Equinox. Ray said he stopped Chad and asked him when the last time he saw JJ. Chad stated that it was in October in apartment 107 with Lori Vallow, whom he alleged he hardly knew and only had met a couple of times.

When asked if Ray thought there was anything suspicious about Chad's answer, Ray stated that yes, because he already knew that Chad and Lori had been married two weeks prior. 

Ray also asked Chad for Lori's number and Chad claimed that he didn't know it. It wasn't until Hope stopped knocking on doors and came over to Chad and Ray that Chad finally gave up Lori's number. Ray said that Chad said he felt like he was being accused of something and that is why he didn't give him Lori's number the first time. 

Rob asked Ray what he did next. Ray said that he let Chad go and contacted Lieutenant Ron Ball and told him that there was something going on in the whereabouts of JJ based on the deception, the way Chad and Alex looked at each other, their non-evasive answers and their lies. 

Ball came to the apartment complex with a few detectives to help him figure out what was going on. One of the detectives was Detective Dave Stubbs. They went to Lori's apartment and knocked on the door and received no answer, so they knocked on the apartment next door 174 which was Lori's niece, Melanie P's apartment. When they didn't get an answer there either, that is when Ball instructed Ray to go get a search warrant for Lori, Alex and Melanie P's apartments.

Ray said that Hope's had left a message on Lori's cell phone and while they were at the prosecutor's office Lori' called Hope back and said she was home. He then convinced her to open her apartment door Ball and Stubbs, which there is body cam footage of. Ray said that they still hadn't been able to locate JJ, so he contacted Pillar to see if JJ was with Lori's friend Melanie G, which he wasn't.

Ray testified that the next morning they obtained search warrants for the three apartments. Apartment 175, Lori's, was first to be searched. Ray said that there was nobody home everything looked normal, expect that there were no clothes. In the garage they found several guns, knives and magazines for various different weapons. Next to be searched was apartment 174, which belonged to Lori's niece Melanie P. There was no one in that apartment either. When they searched apartment 107, which was Alex's apartment, it was totally vacant.

When searching Lori's apartment, a rental agreement for storage unit C52 at Self Storage on Airport Road in Rexburg with Lori's name on it was found. A search warrant was acquired, and the unit was searched as well. There were children's bikes, winter clothing and a blanket with pictures of Lori, her son Colby, Tylee and JJ on it found inside the unit.

Rob Wood then submitted photos into evidence of what was found in Lori's garage that belonged to her apartment. First, contents of a large storage tub and its contents were shown such as a ghillie suit, which is type of camouflage clothing that lets you blend into whatever environment you are in as well as the knives, guns, ammunition, magazines and two silencers. Next were trash bags and the contents, which were clothing and miscellaneous papers. Third was a second tub of ammunition and weapons. Next was a black rifle that had been fit for a silencer that had been found on the garage floor. Next was a rifle that had been found in a rifle bag. Next was a Halloween mask that was found sitting on top of a Walmart bag. Next was the contents of that bag which was duct tape and rope. Next was Alex's active passport. Next were documents that had been emailed from Chad Daybell. Next were books that had been written by Chad. And lastly was a cellphone.

Ray was asked by Rob what his next step in the investigation was. Ray said he contacted the FBI in order to help try to locate JJ, Chad and Lori. He said then he talked with Colby Ryan, Lori's son. When talking with Colby, he mentioned that he hadn't seen Tylee for a while and that is when they started searching for Tylee as well.

Ray said that they had tried to get a hold of Chad and Lori, but their phones were shut off and their family and friends had no idea where they were at the time.

He then testified that on December 11th, 2019, law enforcement called National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and entered Tylee and JJ as missing and endangered children. And on December 20th, 2019, the police department gave a press release to announce Tylee and JJ's disappearance. They also set up a tip line through, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the FBI and the Rexburg police department.

Rob asked Ray about a child protection action that he had filed for Lori to produce JJ and Tylee to the Rexburg police, which she never did. He then asked Ray if he ever was able to locate Chad and Lori. Ray said that they were able to locate the pair in Kauai through tips from the hotline as well as cellphone data. Ray said that he then went to Kauai to assist the Kauai police department with serving the court order for child protection. And on January 25th, of 2020, Lori was served with those papers.

Ray said that he also assisted the Kauai police with the search warrant for Chad and Lori's rental vehicle as well as their condo they were renting in Princeville. After the condo was searched Ray went inside and found no signs of Tylee and JJ of ever being there.

Then Rob asked Ray when Tylee and JJ's last proof of life was. Ray stated that a photo of Tylee had been taken on September 8th, in west Yellowstone and on September 22nd, 2019, a photo had been taken of JJ sitting on a couch in Lori's front room.

Next Rob introduced photos of Tylee's jeep that had been found parked outside of Lori's apartment and impounded by police. Then the court was reminded about the emails that were sent to Lori from Chad as well as Lori's Instagram account and the last known photos of JJ and Tylee. Rob also had Ray briefly explain what meta data is, which is a digital time stamp of where and when a photo was taken. 

The topic of the questioning went on to Tammie Daybell. As part of the investigation into the whereabouts of the kids, Ray learned that Tammie had died on October 19th, 2019. He also had learned that she had been possibly shot at on October 9th of the same year outside her home in Rexburg. 

Ray then testified about the search of the Daybell home at 202 north, 1900 East, on June 9th, 2020, at 7a.m. Chad's son Mark answered the door because Chad was still sleeping. After police went to his room and woke him up and told him why they were there, Chad called his attorney, which at the time was Mark Means. Chad also reviewed the search warrant. He then asked if he and his kids had to leave. The police said that it didn't matter, but if they stayed, they would be accompanied by an officer. Chad's kids left, but he went out to his vehicle to make a phone call. The FBI then showed up and began marking off areas and setting up their equipment.

Ray described how while Chad was on the phone, he could be seen intently and repeatedly looking over his right shoulder at to what the FBI was doing at the pond and pet cemetery area in his backyard.

Ray then testified how he was instructed to go through the firepit in Chad's backyard to see if there was anything of evidentiary value. While Ray was sifting through the firepit, he said a lot of people started accumulating over to the pond area and so he went over to assist. 

Ray explained how the pond area had a large patch where the grass had been a different length than the rest of the yard and had dirt showing and that is why that was a place of concentration. He then described what he witnessed when the FBI began their excavation. He said they removed the top layer of soil which exposed three large white rocks followed by a strong odor of a decomposing body. Under those rocks there were pieces of wood paneling. Under the wood paneling there was moist soil. The FBI then brushed away the soil to reveal what appeared to be a small body wrapped in black plastic. A slit in the black plastic had been made to reveal white plastic and then the white plastic was cut into to reveal brown human hair.

As the excavation was happening, Ray said that he was told that Chad was leaving his daughter's house, which was kiddy corner to Chads, at a high rate of speed. Chad was then pulled over and taken into custody.

The body appeared to have been found was put into a body bag then taken to the morgue with Ray and Ball escorting it. After the body arrived securely to the morgue, Ray and Ball then went back to Chad's property to continue in assisting.

The next place that was excavated was the Daybell's pet cemetery that was marked by a black dog statue. The FBI was already digging there when Ray arrived back at the scene. There was burnt flesh are charred bone found as well as the smell of a decomposing body. Ray said that they were all on their hands and knees digging and had to take turns because the smell was so bad. They eventually found more flesh and bone in what appeared to be in a green melted bucket. Underneath the bucket was a partial human skull. The flesh, bone, bucket and the skull were all put into a body bag. The scene was secured, and excavation was paused until the next day.

Ray said that on June 10th they continued to search the spot where the pet cemetery was. They dug down further and found teeth and more human remains. They made sure they gathered every little piece they could, place it all in a body bag and took it to the morgue.
Ray said that later that day, he went with Ball and escorted Tylee and JJ's remains to the coroner's office in Boise. Rob then introduced into evidence the photos that had been taken during the search of Chad's home.

A lunch break was taken, and Lori's attorney said that she didn't want to come back and sit in court. Judge Boyce denied this request.



Saturday, April 15, 2023

Lori Daybell Trial Begins! Day One.

Lori, JJ, Tylee and Tammy.

Lori Vallow Daybell along with her fifth husband, Chad Daybell, were charged back in April 2020 with the murder of her of her daughter 16-year-old, Tylee Ryan, her 7-year-old adopted son, JJ Vallow and Chad's first wife, Tammy.

It all started back in 2019 when two the children had not been seen for months and she refused to cooperate with Idaho police. Ultimately, the children's remains were found in 2020, buried in shallow graves on the Idaho property where Chad lived.

Lori also faces a conspiracy to commit murder charge in the case of Charles Vallow, her fourth husband.

In April 2022, Lori pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and two counts of conspiracy as well as grand theft. Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty for Lori and Chad, but the death penalty was taken off the table for Lori back on Tuesday, March 21st, 2023, by the judge presiding over the case, District Judge Steven Boyce. Boyce reportedly made this decision “to ensure the rights of the defendant to a fair trial are protected.”

Originally Lori and Chad were going to be tried together, but on March 7th, 2023, judge Boyce severed the cases based on new DNA evidence that was made available to all parties in the case.
Lori's trial began Monday, April 10th, 2023, with Lindsey Blake for the prosecution and Jim Archibald for the defense making their opening statements.

Lindsey has a bachelor’s degree in law as well as one in psychology. During her career, Lindsey has worked as both a public defender and as a prosecutor.

In the prosecution's opening statement, Lindsey stated that this case is all about money, power and sex. That Lori used these three things to get what she wanted, regardless of who was in the way. She then said that the three main obstacles in Lori's way were Tylee Ryan, JJ Vallow and Tammy Daybell. She then proceeded to state how each of the victims had something that Lori wanted, and all are now deceased.

Lindsey referenced the Social Security benefits Tylee had received from her deceased father. “Tylee had money; Lori wanted it. Tylee is gone.” 

JJ Vallow was difficult and took time and effort to care for, especially after the murder of his father Charles. The time and effort that Lori would rather direct toward Chad. JJ had social security benefits; Lori wanted it. JJ is gone.

Tammy Daybell stood in the way of Lori having Chad and money from a life insurance policy in Tammy’s name all to herself. And Tammy is gone.

“The defendant and Chad did what they had to do to any obstacle that was in their way of getting what they wanted,” Stated Lindsey.

Lindsey then went on and talked about Tylee's remains that were found in a shallow grave on Chad's property. That all that was left of her were "charred remains." "A mass of bone and tissue - that's what was left of this beautiful young woman - the defendant's daughter," Lindsey told the jury. 

She also mentioned that Tylee's DNA was found on a pickaxe and shovel that were found located in a shed on Chad's property. 

Lindsey then went on to talk about JJ's remains that were also found in a shallow grave on Chad's property. She talked about how his remains were found in garbage bags with duct tape around his head and arms.

Then Lindsey talked about how Tammy and Chad were home alone when she died and how Chad had moved the body. She also states that less than three weeks after Tammy's death that Lori and Chad were in Hawaii getting married.

Lindsey then states about how Lori switched Tylee's money over to go from her daughter's account to her own a little while before Tylee's death. She also talks about how she started receiving benefits on JJ's behalf before his death and continued to collect the money to support her lifestyle.

Lindsey then backtracked a little bit and stated that all of this started back in 2018 when Lori met Chad for the first time at a Preparing a People conference and how she was a big fan of him and his books. And that it seemed Lori and Chad had an instant connection and that they were flirty towards one another. Lindsey also touched base on Lori and Chad's shared religious beliefs, that they believed they had been married in past lives and that they were meant to be together. The couple also started telling people that they were figures from the bible. Chad even wrote a story for Lori that depicts them as these biblical figures and how that story mirrored some things going on in Lori and Chad's lives.

Lindsey goes on to say that after their initial meeting, Chad and Lori's relationship moves quickly and that they were in constant contact. How Chad even traveled to Arizona to visit Lori at her house while she had a gathering there while her husband was away. This is when Chad and Lori started talking about their rating system for rating people light or dark. And how people that were rated dark had essentially been taken over by evil spirits. Lindsey said this is when Chad started telling people how to get rid of the evil spirits. The first step was castings. Castings were prayer and energy work that time and time again didn't work, so they would have to move on to the next step which was destroying the body. They allegedly had to destroy the body because when the castings didn't work that meant that the person was just a zombie and unsavable.

Lindsey stated that Chad and Lori used their religious beliefs to justify to others their actions from affair to murder. This is when Lindsey segued into Lori's extremely close relationship with her brother Alex and how he would do anything for Lori. She said that Chad and Lori made Alex believe that his sole purpose in life was to protect Lori. Lindsey also talked about how when Lori moved to Idaho that Alex quit his job and followed her there. 

Lindsey went on to talk about how Lori told people how she thought that Tylee and JJ were dark. Lori also started telling people that she was here on a mission to gather the 144,000 and she couldn't do that with kids in her life.

Lindsey goes on to talk about how when Alex followed Lori to Idaho, that he texted her that he had changed the Wi-Fi password to "Too many kids." Lori sent the text "funny" back.

Then Lindsey talked about a month or so after the kids were last seen how Lori took many trips, the first of which was to Arizona where she met with her niece Melanie Polowski and Zulema Pastenes. And Lori did a casting on Tammy. That same day is when Tammy came face to face with a masked man who pointed a gun at her, she heard a couple of pop sounds and then the gunman ran off. Later that day, a phone call was overheard from a mad Lori and an unknown individual where Lori stated something about "he can't do anything right." That night there were records that Lori and Chad had talked on the phone several times.

After Arizona, Lori then traveled to Missouri with Melanie P. and the two met up with Audrey Arcario. While in Missouri, Lori led another casting on Tammy. By this time, Lori and Chad had deemed Tammy as possessed by a evil spirit named Viola. Shortly after the trip to Missouri, Lori and Melanie P traveled to Hawaii with Audrey in tow. Lindsey talked about how the kids didn't go on these trips with Lori and how the kids were nowhere to be found and about how Lori continued to spend the kid's money on herself. And even though Lori didn't have the kids with her, she had Tylee's phone which she used to send her son Colby money.

Lindsey talked about while in Hawaii, Lori was in constant contact with Chad and once Tammy died, Lori immediately went back to Idaho. Once Lori was back in Idaho she went to Chad's house and met his kids and as well as his friends and neighbors. And that Chad and Lori when meeting them, couldn't keep their hands off each other. Chad and Lori also told them about their plans to get married. When asked if Lori had kids, Chad responded by saying that Lori had a young daughter that had recently died. Lindsey said that Lori never corrected Chad about that statement and that Lori never mentioned JJ. All she said was "Well i have some step kids." 

Lindsey then talked about how not long after Lori meeting the people in Chad's life how Lori and Chad traveled back to Hawaii and got married. How Lori had been looking up their wedding rings to buy in May of 2019, months before Tammy or the kids met their fates. The rings that Lori was looking up was Malachite rings. That Malachite was very important to Lori and Chad and that Malachite rings were the rings that they ended exchanging at their wedding ceremony.

Also, according to Lindsey, Chad had begun looking at adding Lori to his life insurance policy. In the policy he marked that there were no minor children. He was also looking for rental property in Hawaii and on the application, he put that they didn't have any children either.

Lindsey then talked about law enforcement showing up at Lori's apartment in Idaho on November 26th, 2019 looking for JJ. Alex and Chad were there together. Later that day the police were able to make contact with Lori, who told them that JJ was with her friend, Melanie Gibb in Arizona. However, Melanie G had been told previously by Lori that JJ was with his grandmother, Kay Woodcock. And he wasn't with Kay either because Kay had been the one that called law enforcement about her missing grandson.

When law enforcement returned to Lori's apartment, she had cleared it out and had moved to Hawaii with Chad. This is when law enforcement had really started their investigation as to the whereabouts of JJ and Tylee. They talked to Melanie G. who told them that she didn't have the kids and that she was asked not to talk to law enforcement by Chad. That she had been asked by Lori to say she had the kids and to take random pictures of kids and pretend they were JJ and Tylee.

Lindsey goes on to talk about the phone call that Melanie G made to Lori and Chad on December 8th, 2019. In the call Melanie G asked where JJ was and why Lori had told law enforcement that JJ was with her. In the call Lori refused to say where JJ was but did say that he was happy and that she knew exactly where he was. Lindsey then reminding the court that JJ had been last seen on September 22nd, 2019.

Lindsey claimed that in the phone call Melanie G confronted Lori about Tammy's death. Lori stated that they did what they had to do. Lindsey then reminded the court about how Chad and Lori had claimed that Tammy was dark and reminded the court what they have to the dark ones once casting doesn't work.

Then Lindsey went on to talk about how on December 11th, 2019, Tammy's body was exhumed to be examined and that Tammy's cause of death was determined to be asphyxiation by the hands of another person. She then stated that around the time of Tammy's exhumation that Alex made a statement saying, "I hope i am not their fall guy." She then talked about how Alex died the next day.

Lindsey proceeded to talk about the conversations that Chad and Alex had with each other about people being light and dark. She talked about how Chad and Alex's phones pinged on certain dates. Alex phone had pinged driving past Chad's house on the day that Tammy had been confronted by the masked gunman. His phone pinged again on the day after Tylee was last seen on Chad's property over whereby her remains were found. Chad's phone pinged on his own property that day close to where Tylee's body was found.

Jim Archibald is a seasoned public defender and is one of the few death-penalty certified attorneys in eastern Idaho. He has represented several high-profile clients in death penalty cases.

In his opening statements he described Lori as a kind and loving mother who had an interest in religion, especially the end of times. He said told the jury that the prosecution wasn't sure what happened to JJ and Tylee and that it the burden of proof lies with the prosecution.

Jim then stated she had alibis for JJ and Tammy's deaths. That JJ died in the apartment of Alex Cox with Melanie Gibb and David Warwick, while she was in her apartment. And that she was in Hawaii at the time of Tammy's death.

Kay Woodcock was the first witness to testify. Kay Woodcock is the biological sister of Charles Vallow, who was the fourth husband of Lori and the adoptive father of JJ Vallow. She also is JJ's biological grandmother. 

Rob Wood was the next prosecutor up and he did the questioning of Kay. Madison County has been the prosecuting attorney since 2020. 

Kay talked about when JJ was born to her son, JJ was premature with drugs in his system and was placed in the care of Kay and her husband. She stated that her and Larry took care of JJ for the first 6 months or so of his life. However, they came to the conclusion that even though her and Larry were JJ's legal guardians, that Charles and Lori had a better lifestyle for raising a child with special needs. So when Lori and Charles approached the grandparents about taking over custody of JJ, that it seemed like the right move with the stipulation that Larry and Kay remain involved in JJ’s life.

Kay talked about how her and Larry would visit JJ every three months when JJ lived in Arizona and about every six months when he moved him to Hawaii. 

Kay then talked about how in February of 2019, Charles and Lori had split up and Kay had come and stayed to take care of JJ while Charles worked because Lori had deserted them and was nowhere to be found. Then Kay took JJ back with her to Louisiana for a few weeks. Then she talked about how Charles and JJ moved to Houston where there was better schools and Kay could travel back and forth easier to continue to help take care of JJ. She talked about how Lori still was nowhere to be found. That is when Kay began helping Charle's with his business and gained access to his e-mails and banking information. And that Charles, who had a $1 million life insurance policy, had changed the beneficiary to remove Lori to leave the money to Kay so that she could use part of it to take care of JJ and the rest give to Charles other two sons.

Kay then talked about how finally in April of 2019 Lori returned to Charles a d JJ. In June of 2019, Charles bought Lori and JJ a home in Chandler Arizona. Charles did not move into the home, he still had a place and Texas, and when he'd go to Arizona to visit JJ and Lori, he'd stay in a hotel. Kay said that during that time Charles planned on divorcing Lori, but sadly the divorce never was finalized.

Kay then said that Charles died on July 11th, 2019, and after his death Lori texted Kay asking about his life insurance policy. 

Then Kay talked about the last time she saw JJ was the weekend of May 17th, 2019. They had given him an early birthday party at Mr. Gatty's pizza place in Louisiana. 

She went on to say that after Charles passed away that she only had contact with JJ three times and all of them were on Facetime. The first was around June 20th, 2019 and it was very different from the calls they had had with JJ before. It was a very brief call that last 35 to 45 seconds. And instead of JJ holding the device he was talking on, someone taller than him was holding it for him and he kept glancing up at whomever it was. She said the next time she talked to JJ, he was in a bad mood and didn't want to talk. The conversation lasted under a minute and again someone was holding the tablet for him. August 10th, 2019 was the last time Kay heard from JJ. Someone was holding the device for him again. He said" Hi Maw Maw and hi Paw Paw." He then looked up at whoever was holding the device and told Kay and Larry he had to go and hung up. After the last time Kay and Larry talked to JJ, they tried in vain via phone, text, email and voicemail.

Rob Wood had Kay back track and talk about how shortly after Charle's death she had made arrangements to bring JJ back to Louisiana to attend Charles’s memorial service, but JJ and Lori never did attend the service.

Kay then talked about how she had been increasingly concerned about JJ's safety and how they found out about Charle's the death the day after it happened. That is when they contacted detectives and flew out to Arizona to talk to detectives in person and reiterate their concerns. Also, after the last time Kay and Larry spoke with JJ, they talked to detectives several times about being worried about JJ.

Kay also discussed that they hired a private investigator in October of 2019 in order to try to find out where JJ ways because there were rumors that Lori had left Arizona with JJ.

Wood then asked Kay if JJ had been with her in November of 2019 when Lori had told Meleni G that that is where JJ was, Kay said that he was never there. However, Kay did say that on the 8th of that month she learned where Lori was when she tried to hook up a printer that had belonged to Charles. She had logged into Charle's Gmail where she noticed a Amazon order status email that stated a packaged had been ordered a few days before November 8th and had been delivered to 575 Pioneer Road, Apartment 175 (Lori's apartment)in Rexburg Idaho. Kay then contacted law enforcement again and told them about the delivery and also what else she had found. Someone with Charle's account had browsed for dresses for a beach wedding, a bathing suit and a men's large white linen top and pants along with a couple of malachite wedding rings on October 2nd of 2019.

In January of 2020, Kay requested a welfare check on JJ by the Rexburg Police. At encouragement by the FBI, Kay also put out a reward in the aide for the search for JJ as well as media interviews. Around this time Kay discovered that Lori had married Chad.

Then Kay confirmed that she became aware of the bodies of JJ and Tylee being found in Chad’s backyard on June 9th, 2020, buried in shallow graves.

Under cross-examination by the defense, Kay was asked about how long she and Larry cared for JJ and about the adoption arrangements as well as the demise of the relationship between Charles and Lori.

Brandon Bordeaux was the next person to take the witness stand with prosecutor Rachel Smith doing the questioning. Brandon had been previously married to Lori’s niece Melanie Pawlowski.

Rachel Smith is a special prosecutor a special prosecutor from Missouri and has experience with homicide and death penalty cases. 

Brandon testified that he had a close relationship with Tylee and JJ and choked up when he described how his oldest son and JJ had a special connection and spent a lot of time together.

Brandon talked about how he watched her grow up and he was also the one who baptized Tylee into the LDS church when she was eight years old.

He then talked about how Lori was more like a mom figure to Melanie P than an aunt and that Melanie P was always trying to be like Lori. 

Brandon then talked about how in 2018 things changed with Melanie P. Before she had not been a big fan of going to church and he was the one who would drag her along. In 2018 she became more active in the church and started going to firesides, which were special religions activities. However, the firesides that Melanie would attend, Lori would be in tow for most of them and they were not sponsored by the church. Melanie P also felt the need to go to the temple everyday she also started to believe that the world was going to end soon.

Brandon went on to talk about how his family's relationship with Lori's family started to decline at the begging of 2019. Brandon and Melanie P received text messages and phone calls from Charles and Lori, where Lori had accused Chad of cheating on her.

Brandon then testified about how his marriage to Melanie P started to deteriorate after she had refused to go to his grandfather's funeral in June of 2019. The argument escalated and she claimed that she didn't feel safe with Brandon anymore, accused Brandon of hacking into Lori’s laptop and accused Brandon of being gay. 

Brandon said that in July of 2019 they started divorce proceedings at Melanie P's request. He rented Melanie P a home and as soon as Brandon sold the house that they had been living in, he rented himself a place for the time being as well.

He then started talking about how on October 2nd, 2019, someone parked in front of his house and shot at him as he drove home from the gym. Brandon described a barrel of a gun with a silencer on it appearing out of the window of a Jeep he recognized as the one that Charles had bought Tylee. Brandon then heard a “bang” and his driver's side window was shot out. He sped away and dialed 9-1-1. Later he met with law enforcement and told them how he had recognized the jeep. He also talked to Lori's brother Adam Cox and her nephew Zach Cox about his encounter.

After the shooting Brandon said that he remembered the emails that Charles had sent him before he died about the religious groups Melanie P was involved with. When he checked the emails, he came by Chad Daybell's name. From there he started Googling Chad's name and found Tammy's obituary. Brandon then reported all this to the police and told them that there was something strange going on and then asked them to follow up on things. Further conversations with family, friends and police led Brandon to realize that no one had seen Tylee or JJ for some time.

Brandon began to get choked up again when he started talking about when he learned Tylee and JJ's remains where located. He talked about how he drove up to Rexburg on June 11th, 2020, and met with Larry and Kay. While in Rexburg, Brandon was asked by police to identify JJ's remains which he did.

Lori's other defense attorney, John Thomas, began his cross-examination focusing on the internet searches Brandon had conducted as well as his sexuality. John also went over the incident where Brandon was shot at. Then he asked Brandon why he had been the one that identified JJ. Brandon stated that “I think I was as close to JJ as Larry and Kay. We were all family.” He also stated that Larry had been asked first to identify JJ, but it was too overwhelming for him so then Brandon was asked and complied.

There were no further questions asked of Brandon and court was adjourned for the day.