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Lori Vallow Daybell's trial began on April 7, 2025, with prosecutor Treena Kay presenting evidence that Lori conspired with her brother, Alex Cox, to murder her husband, Charles Vallow, in July 2019, using extreme religious beliefs to justify the crime. Treena argued the murder was staged as self-defense so Lori could marry Chad Daybell and claim Charles' life insurance money, which she later discovered was not hers, urging the jury to convict her based on text messages, witness testimonies, and crime scene evidence.
In her opening statement, Lori, representing herself, emphasized her long marriage to Charles and their shared life raising five children. She stated, “The evidence will show,” before each claim, asserting that Charles had purchased maximum life insurance policies due to his health, including a $1 million policy on himself and a $2 million policy on Lori. Lori described their family’s move to Kauai in 2014 and their return to Chandler in 2017, highlighting her role as a licensed cosmetologist and her support for Charles’ career as a life insurance salesman. Lori also discussed the strained relationship between Charles and her daughter, Tylee, which led to therapy sessions and frequent arguments, with the worst occurring in July 2019. She mentioned Charles moving JJ to Houston in March 2019, their reconciliation, and her decision to return to Arizona to re-enroll JJ in a special school where more services were available. Lori noted that on the day of Charles' death, they were renting two houses—one in Houston and one in Chandler—and denied the conspiracy charges, arguing that “there has to be an agreement” for conspiracy.
Lori further claimed that Charles had sent her threatening text messages and insisted on flying to Phoenix on July 10, 2019. She said she advised Charles to stay in a hotel due to his inability to get along with Tylee, and they agreed she would book it for him. Lori stated that Charles planned to pick JJ up on July 11 and take him to school, which started at 8:25 a.m. She described Charles arriving in a rental car, texting her brother Adam about Alex being at the house, and entering the house to retrieve his phone. Lori said Charles began screaming, waking Tylee, who came out of her room with a bat to protect her mother. Lori became emotional while recounting these events.
Lori added that Alex did not initially have a gun when he came out during the commotion but got into a physical struggle with Charles. She claimed that Tylee, who was on the ground during the struggle, was lifted by Lori and sent outside to be with JJ. Lori stated that Charles “prevailed with the bat” and began chasing her as she ran away. At some point, Alex retrieved his gun. Lori said she ran outside, where JJ was struggling to get out of the car while Tylee tried to keep him in. Lori described driving away with her children, taking JJ to Burger King as Charles had promised him, and then heading to school. When the school gate wasn’t open, she went to Walgreens to buy flip-flops so they could walk JJ into school on the hot pavement. Lori stated that she and Tylee then returned directly to their residence, where they met with police. She became emotional and asked for a tissue while recounting these events.
Lori also recounted going to the police station for questioning, where she met a victim’s advocate who was “very kind.” After the interview, she said they returned to the house and later picked up JJ. Lori described driving to Alex’s residence to attend to a wound on the back of his head. She stated that she gave Charles’ cell phone to the police and that by the time she, Tylee, and JJ returned home, all police had left. The next day, Lori called the police about Charles’ belongings at the hotel and was told officers would handle it. She claimed the Chandler Police Department treated the case as self-defense, though the judge sustained objections to this statement and instructed the jury to disregard it. Lori also mentioned that Alex died of a blood clot five months after Charles’ death. She concluded her statement by asserting, “Self-defense is not a crime. A family tragedy is not a crime,” before returning to the defense table.
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