- Lori Vallow, Daybell’s wife, was also convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
- Daybell was charged with first-degree murder for the killings.
- He could be sentenced to the death penalty.
Chad Daybell was convicted of killing his ex-wife and two children in a case that shook the state of Idaho.
The jury reached a verdict Thursday in the bizarre and gruesome case of the doomsday author, accused of murdering his ex-wife and two young children.
As he learned at least part of his fate, Daybell remained stoic, standing next to his attorney as the judge read the jury’s decision that he was guilty on all charges.
The verdict came at the end of a nearly two-month trial for Daybell, 55, accused of killing Tammy Daybell, 7-year-old Joshua ‘JJ’ Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan.
During the summer of 2020, the children’s remains were discovered on Daybell’s property in Fremont County, Idaho.
Police said they believe the bodies were buried by Daybell sometime between September 2019 and June 2020.
The jury reached a verdict Thursday in the bizarre and horrifying case of the end-of-the-world author (pictured), accused of murdering his ex-wife and two minor children.
Last year, Lori Vallow Daybell, pictured here in February 2024, the mother of the deceased children, received a life sentence without parole for the murders.
Tammy Daybell died in 2019, just weeks before Chad and Lori Vallow’s wedding.
Although her death was initially believed to be due to natural causes, her body was later exhumed and, following an autopsy, it was determined that she had been asphyxiated.
Daybell and Lori Vallow were indicted in 2021 for first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and grand larceny by deception in the children’s deaths.
The couple received several additional charges related to Tammy’s death.
Last year, Vallow was convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences behind bars without the possibility of parole.
During his trial, Daybell was accused of creating an alternate reality in order to satisfy “his desire for sex, money and power.”
“When he had the opportunity for what he considered his rightful destiny, he made sure that no person or law stood in his way,” said prosecutor Rob Wood.
Prosecutors, who called 67 witnesses throughout the trial, said the couple justified the three murders by creating a detailed, apocalyptic belief system, part of an elaborate plan to remove any obstacles to their relationship and obtain money from survivor benefits and life insurances.
Daybell’s defense attorney, John Prior, presented a different picture to jurors, noting that Chad Daybell was a religious person but suggesting that his belief in things like premonitions was quite common.
Prior also explained to jurors that Lori Vallow Daybell’s brother, Alex Cox, had a violent history. He had previously been convicted of attacking Vallow Daybell’s third husband and shooting and killing her fourth husband.
“Every time there was a problem with Lori Vallow, Alex Cox ran to the rescue,” Prior said in his opening statements.
Daybell’s attorney also argued that his client lived a normal, faith-centered life before meeting Lori Vallow Daybell, who he said showered Daybell with attention.
Her legal team described her as a “beautiful and vivacious person” who lured Daybell into an extramarital relationship.
Daybell’s attorney also said he would present several experts in DNA, forensic science and pathology who would testify that it is impossible to determine what caused Tammy Daybell’s death and that none of Chad Daybell’s DNA was found on the children’s bodies.