Lori Vallow Daybell’s murder conspiracy trial resumes Monday

PHOENIX — The trial in Lori Vallow Daybell’s latest murder conspiracy case is set to resume Monday morning.

This is the so-called “Doomsday Mom’s” third trial in as many years. In this case, Vallow Daybell is facing a murder conspiracy charge out of Gilbert for allegedly conspiring to kill her niece’s ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux.  

Investigators believe Vallow Daybell’s brother shot at Boudreaux outside his home in Gilbert back in October 2019.  Boudreaux was not hit or injured, but a bullet shattered his car window while he was driving.

Vallow Daybell pleaded not guilty in this case and is representing herself in court.

She’s already been convicted in Idaho and Arizona on a slew of charges, including the death of her children, Tylee and JJ, and conspiring to kill her former husband.

On Friday, things got so heated that the judge at one point had a deputy remove Lori Vallow Daybell from the courtroom.

You can watch a full recap from Friday’s proceedings here: Lori Vallow Daybell gets kicked out of courtroom during trial

12News journalist Erica Stapleton is in the courtroom and will be providing live updates throughout the proceedings.  

3:41 p.m. – Lori comes up on cross-examination. She asks Detective Pillar some questions about being the case agent. Then she asks a series of questions about the Jeep color. This has been a theme of hers when questioning investigators. 

3:33 p.m. – Detective Pillar testifies to a Tracfone associated with Alex Cox. He says the only number the phone calls is a number associated with Chad Daybell. The only number that calls the phone is associated with Chad Daybell.  The Tracfone is active from September 26, 2019, to October 2, 2019.

3:28 p.m. – Detective Pillar testifies about phone records for Lori Vallow and Alex Cox. He says they could see that there was a call between Lori’s cell and Alex’s cell before the shooting at Brandon Boudreaux. 

3:24 p.m. – Some jurors are taking notes. One appears to be looking in the direction of Brandon Boudreaux.  Brandon’s been in the courtroom each day of testimony and was called to the stand on Days 1 and 2 of testimony.

3:19 p.m. – Detective Pillar testifies he was present when a blood blot was collected from Alex Cox in December 2019 (this would have been after he died).  He says they collected this to see if it matches DNA collected from the Jeep Wrangler. 

3:12 p.m. – Detective Pillar testifies they didn’t get any usable fingerprints inside the Jeep.  He says they were able to collect DNA and gunshot residue from the Jeep.  He continues testifying about the steps taken to process and analyze evidence. 

3:05 p.m. – Detective Pillar testifies to processing the Jeep Wrangler after it was impounded in Idaho. He’s talking about where he wanted to look for gunshot residue. 

2:50 p.m. – Court is back in session. Gilbert PD Detective Ryan Pillar is back on the stand.  He started his testimony on Friday.  He’s the case agent for this investigation.

2:29 p.m. – One member of the jury has a question. This is the first jury question of the trial.  The judge reads out the juror question, which essentially asks about hitting a target with a rifle while hunting.  Robb testified earlier that she’s an avid hunter.

Robb answers about the challenges of hitting a target.  The state follows up.  Robb says that a recoil when using a rifle without a stand could cause the shot to tilt upwards. Court is in recess for an afternoon break.

2:23 p.m. – Lori asks whether the only witness Robb had who heard a bang was Brandon.  She says yes.  Robb confirms he thought there might have been a silencer.  Lori ends her cross-examination, and the state comes up on redirect.

2:19 p.m. – Robb answers more questions about the investigation.

2:05 p.m. – Lori asks whether it’s typical to put a pen in a bullet hole.  Robb testifies she was looking to see where the bullet could have gone in the car. 

2:02 p.m. – Lori comes up on cross-examination.  She asks Robb about putting her pen into the bullet hole to try and gauge the trajectory. She also asks about bullets.

1:59 p.m. – Robb testifies that Brandon thought his soon-to-be ex-wife’s family members could have been involved.  She says Brandon stated it could have been Lori Vallow and Alex Cox.  He told her that they were also involved in a July 2019 incident in Chandler. 

Robb also testifies that it was significant that Lori’s family used to live in Texas.  She says it put two and two together that the Jeep with Texas plates could mean it could be the suspect.

1:48 p.m. – Robb describes how Brandon Boudreaux was bewildered at what happened.  She says she pointed out the bullet hole in his car to him and said it wasn’t a BB gun.  She testifies that his demeanor changes after this.  She says she saw his hands shaking.

1:38 p.m. –  The state’s next witness is Marianne Robb, a former officer with Gilbert Police. She says she retired in 2021.  She says she responded to the shooting scene on October 2, 2019.

1:31 p.m. – The state’s next witness is Lisa Perry, who works for Mesa Police Forensic Services.  She speaks to the process of analyzing DNA swabs.

1:27 p.m. – Sapinoso testifies to the processes of analyzing DNA.  She says she developed the DNA profile for Alexander Cox, Lori’s brother.  The state ends questioning.  Lori has no questions for cross-examination.

1:21 p.m. – The next witness is Emy Lynn Sapinoso, who in 2019 was a forensic scientist in Mesa.

1:19 p.m. – The jury is brought back to the courtroom.  The state will continue calling witnesses out of order, but could get back to Detective Pillar later this afternoon. 

1:13 p.m. – Back in the courtroom.  The state is talking with the judge about calling more witnesses out of order.

11:54 a.m. – Court is breaking for lunch.  The trial is expected to resume at 1:15 a.m. local time.

11:51 a.m. – The jury has no questions for Special Agent Miller and he’s released from the witness stand. The parties go into a sidebar.

11:47 a.m. – Lori asks whether the agent knows how far Holbrook is to Gilbert. The state objects and the judge says he can answer if he knows. He doesn’t know. Lori wraps up her cross-examination and the state does a brief redirect.

11:43 a.m. – On cross-examination, Lori asks Miller about other cameras in Arizona – if there are any in Gilbert or Mesa.  He says he doesn’t know exactly, but there are many in Arizona.  He testifies that the Oct. 1, 2019, hit in Holbrook is the only image they have of the Jeep.

11:40 a.m. – Special Agent Miller testifies to capturing a Jeep Wrangler on I-40 westbound near Holbrook Arizona on October 1, 2019.  The prosecutor shows an image of the Jeep, which has no back tire.  She shows a close up of the Texas license plate. 

11:32 a.m. – The next witness is Special Agent Thomas Miller with the DEA. He is the Unit Chief for the National License Plate Reader Program.

11:30 a.m. – The state shows more photos of the Jeep license plate, which show Texas plates. Dan says he doesn’t recall who picked up the Jeep. The state concludes its testimony 

11:26 a.m. – Prosecutor Treena Kay asks about window tinting. She asks Dan whether someone could see in the back of the Jeep with the factory tint and the additional tint. Lori objects for speculation. The judge overrules it. Dan says you wouldn’t be able to see someone in the back of the jeep with the tint job.

11:22 a.m. – Dan is testifying to working on a Jeep Wrangler in September 2019.  The number that called to set up the work was a 480 number, which is an Arizona area code.  The prosecutor shows images of Dan and the Jeep while work was being done.

11:16 a.m. – Instead of finishing testimony with Gilbert PD Detective Ryan Pillar, the state is calling another witness out of order. The first witness they call this morning is Dan Moss, who runs a window tinting company in Idaho.

11:08 a.m. – We are let back into the courtroom. The judge comes in and calls for the jury. He tells the jurors once they’re in that they had to resolve and issue and that it’s no one’s fault that there was a delay this morning.

10:34 a.m. – The public and media are cleared out of the courtroom. We’re waiting outside again.

10:32 a.m. – Judge Beresky comes into the courtroom and says the sides need to do a sidebar. Jury is not in yet, but Vallow Daybell was brought in to the courtroom.

10:25 a.m. – Lori Vallow Daybell’s advisory council just walked into the courtroom. The prosecutor and case agent are sitting at their table. Lori Vallow Daybell is not in here yet.  Huge public turnout today. Every seat in the courtroom is full.

In 2023, Vallow Daybell was convicted in Idaho for killing her children, Tylee and JJ, who used to live in the Valley. She was also convicted for her role in the death of Tammy Daybell, her current husband Chad Daybell’s first wife.  She was sentenced to life in prison in Idaho.

In a separate trial, Chad Daybell was also convicted of murder in that case and was sentenced to death in Idaho.

In April, Vallow Daybell was convicted in Maricopa County for conspiring to kill her former husband, Charles Vallow, back in July 2019. She represented herself in that trial, as well.

Investigators believe Vallow Daybell’s brother, Alex Cox, is the co-conspirator in these cases. He was never charged because he died before charges were filed in these cases.

Twelve of the fifteen jurors will ultimately deliberate and three will be alternates.

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