BOISE, Idaho — To wrap up another week in the Chad Daybell trial, the state will call more witnesses to the stand to state their case.
On Thursday, May 9, the court heard testimony from several sources. First, a forensic biologist took the stand to talk about physical evidence, which was followed by a Hawaiian law enforcement officer testifying about Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell's time in Hawaii and what he found in their car there. Then, FBI intelligence analyst Ben Dean took the stand to testify about texts sent between Chad Daybell and his first wife, Tammy Daybell.
Court had to conclude early on Thursday, due to courthouse maintenance/carpet work. With Dean's testimony wrapping up a bit earlier than likely expected, the state called a series of Tammy Daybell's coworkers to the stand. They all testified about how healthy and active Tammy Daybell was in the days leading up to her untimely death in Oct. 2019.
Testimony was heard Wednesday, May 8, from a series of different folks and experts. A forensic pathologist testified about the autopsies of JJ Vallow and Tylee Ryan. Another forensic scientist also testified, about fingerprints. They found a fingerprint on the plastic around JJ Vallow's body matching Alex Cox - who was Lori Vallow's brother.
A detective with the Chandler, Arizona police department also took the stand Wednesday, to show cell phone data for Charles Vallow, Lori Vallow's fourth husband, who was killed by Alex Cox in what Cox claimed was self defense. The cell phone data showed where Charles' phone was in the hours after his death, as Lori Vallow had taken it. There were several hours between when Charles died and when his death was reported. There was a series of call logs also shown in court, showing that Lori Vallow was calling Chad Daybell the day Charles Vallow died.
The trial is expected to last two to four more weeks.
Live Updates:
2:51 p.m.: Court is back on for the remainder of the afternoon. Lindsey Blake, prosecutor, continues direct examination of tactical specialist Nicole Heideman. More of the James and Elena story are read aloud in court by Heideman. Heideman had to examine this story deeply as part of the investigation, and had to see if it mirrored the real lives of Chad and Lori. After having the witness read more of the story of James and Elena, counsel as to approach the bench. Chad cranes his head back to look at counsel while they discuss. Trial wraps up for the day at this point, with Heideman taking the stand again on Monday. The jury exits the room, however there is some other matters to take up at this point. The livestream ends as Judge Boyce asks to speak to counsel about scheduling.
2:20 p.m.: More of the James and Elena story is read into court. It is confirmed through the story that Chad and Lori had a relationship of some kind prior to their respective spouses dying. Chad had also Googled Lori the day after he met her which is identical to what happened in the story. Mid-afternoon break takes place now.
2:04 p.m.: Heideman testifies about Lori Vallow's accounts. Heideman has previously talked about phone attribution the last time she testified. A series of documents is shown to the witness. It's a story written by Chad Daybell, about James and Elena, two names also used by Lori and Chad. The story is similar to real life events, so Heideman was tasked with investigating to see what was real and what wasn't. In the series of documents, on the third page, a quote is read.
1:46 p.m.: While Tammy Daybell was still alive, and married to Chad, Lori Vallow purchased a wedding band for Chad at a jeweler in early Oct. A few days later, that ring was taken back and exchanged for a different size. Then, that happened again. A series of texts are shown in court, with lots of 'I love you' texts sent back and forth. This is while Tammy is still alive. Lori had sent a request for a marriage in Hawaii. In the request, Lori said the date of the wedding was Nov. 5 - a Tuesday. Prosecution asks if Chad and Lori did get married that day, the answer is yes.
1:27 p.m.: The state calls their next witness, Nicole Heideman, who was previously been called. Before she is brought in, prosecution asks for a sidebar. Tactical Specialist Heideman works for the FBI. She was to examine the wedding plans of Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow, and reviewed phone records to do so. Heideman has made a PowerPoint about the evidence she found in this investigation. Throughout the investigation, Heideman found alias for Chad Daybell - which were 'James' or 'Raphael'. Lori had aliases too, 'Lily' or 'Elena'. Malachite was also something that was a big deal for their marriage, which was the stone they wore as their wedding plans. Both Lori and Chad were looking for malachite rings in May of 2019. There were several attempts to buy wedding rings. The first time, Lori tried to purchase malachite rings through Etsy, providing her home address but the Etsy shop couldn't complete the order. On Aug. 25, 2019, there was a second attempt to purchase rings through an online retailer, but Lori's card got declined.
1:19 p.m.: They discuss the addition to the Daybell home. It was called "The Cozy Cone" by the Daybell kids, as it had a vaulted roof. Sometimes Mark would sleep there. Prior then asks about how the family members accessed the addition. An image of the pet cemetery is shown, which was originally a raspberry patch but the berries failed to grow. Prior asks about the layout of the property and other key indicators of locale in the image, and then ends cross examination. Redirect begins with asking Samantha about why she doesn't talk to the Daybell children anymore. It's mostly due to the investigation. "We got blamed," said Samantha.
1:13 p.m.: Prior then asks about the pet cemetery, and if it was Tammy's primary responsibility. Samantha can't remember exactly, and believes the children may have helped. Then, Prior asks if Tammy was the "bookkeeper" or main business runner for the publishing company, Samantha said yes. Then, Prior asks if Tammy's children are still followers of the LDS faith, which Samantha said she's unsure about. It's a very erratic defense plan, with an unclear path of questioning during cross examination.
1:03 p.m.: Court returns for the second half of the day. After the jury is brought back in, Samantha Gwilliam retakes the stand for cross examination. Prior begins by asking the witness about her memory of how many times she's been interviewed for this investigation. She doesn't have an exact number, but she remembers a handful. The locations of the interviews also varied, taking place in her home, offices, etc. Prior asks a question about if law enforcement interviews and prosecution asks for a sidebar. It appears that John Prior is trying to suggest that there were law enforcement officers not in plain sight or being in deceitful in a way to Samantha. The sidebar is quicker than their usual sidebars.
11:56 a.m.: Lunch recess takes place now, court will be back in an hour.
11:46 a.m.: Tammy showed up to Samantha's house at roughly 10:30 p.m. in June of 2019. It was unexpected. Tammy always went to bed early, so the time seemed odd. Also, Chad stayed in the car the whole time Tammy was visiting with Samantha. It was weird for Chad to not come inside, because the Gwilliam's were close to both Daybell's. Samantha saw Tammy several times in 2019, and never saw signs of Tammy slowing down or being ill.
When Tammy passed, Samantha Gwilliam asked if Chad would be doing an autopsy on Tammy. Chad said the coroner told him it was natural causes, and it came at a cost that would hinder the funeral happening quickly. To Samantha, the 3 day turnaround between death and funeral seemed weird. It was also odd to Samantha that Chad requested that his name not be on Tammy's headstone. Chad was deeply into family history, and without his name on the headstone, it was hard to tie Tammy back to Chad later on down the road.
11:37 a.m.: Prosecution asks if Chad ever worked in a cemetery, Samantha said he did. He worked as a sexton. Then the line of question goes towards the day Tammy died. Prosecution asks how Samantha found out about Tammy's death. In a broken voice, she testifies that she got a phone call from Chad. Chad said that Tammy was sick in the weeks leading up to her death, but Samantha saw Tammy two weeks before her death and Tammy appeared fine.
"We'd be old ladies together," said Samantha, tears welling in her eyes. Samantha testifies that the two ladies would talk about always living close together.
11:27 a.m.: Samantha Gwilliam takes the stand, the previous witness's wife. She is Tammy Daybell's sister. Prosecution asks about the pet cemetery at the Daybell property. Samantha testifies that it was normal for Tammy to have a pet cemetery because they family had always had pets, and the pets were like family so they should be buried as such. A picture is shown to the witness, it's a closeup of a family picture. Then, the photo is shown to the public and jury. In the closeup, you see a smiling Tammy Daybell. Samantha then talks about the early years of Tammy and Chad. Samantha is four years younger than Tammy, and didn't know Chad personally when the two started dating, but over the years liked him and thought he was a good husband to Tammy.
11:24 p.m.: Gwilliam then talks about the phone call more. On the phone call, Chad said the children missing was a "simple situation" but didn't want Gwilliam to be involved, so Chad didn't elaborate. But Chad did give Gwilliam a phone number for an attorney. Prior then tries to identify Rob Wood as someone Gwilliam may know. There is a objection, which results in cross ending. The witness is released from the stand.
11:10 a.m.: The conversation goes into talking about the Springville, Utah mortician Steve Shultz. Shultz was a close friend of both Gwilliam and Chad Daybell. Now, they discuss Chad's writing process, and the series of books based loosely on his eldest daughter, Emma. After a few more questions, cross ends and redirect begins. One of the questions prosecution asks is about who was present at the phone recording in Dec. of 2019. Gwilliam has talked to roughly 20 different law enforcement officers in the case with Chad Daybell, so Gwilliam struggles to remember which officers were present on that day in December. Prosecution asks if police were trying to intimidate him, which Gwilliam says no, police were just trying to find the children.
10:53 a.m.: Cross examination starts now, with John Prior asking about religious beliefs, and titles held within the LDS church by both men, Chad and Jason Gwilliam. Chad held a pretty predominant role within their ward of the church. Chad began writing books in 2006, continued to write when he moved to Idaho. According to Gwilliam, his family and the Daybell's would get together roughly once a month in 2016 and their visitation tapered in the years following. In 2019, the Gwilliam's didn't really see the Daybell's, with Chad still publishing books. Prior asks a lot about publishing of books and it's unclear as to why. Then, Prior asks if during the phone recording, who was present. Gwilliam believes it to be all law enforcement, but Prior alludes to prosecutor Rob Wood being present as well.
10:46 a.m.: In the phone call, it is heard that Chad and Lori are telling Jason Gwilliam to not talk to the police, and that he should reach out to the Daybell attorney. Chad said that the police were not calling him, and that they were doing anything to get to Chad without calling him. So Gwilliam suggested that he tell police to just call Chad. Meanwhile, the whole phone call was being recorded by law enforcement. Later in the call, Gwilliam asks about Chad's 2019 Christmas plans, Chad said he was not going to Idaho. Gwilliam and Chad have not spoken to each other since then.
10:31 a.m.: The jury is brought back in after morning break. Jason Gwilliam is back on the stand and direct examination continues. Gwilliam wanted to record a phone call between him and Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow. Law enforcement was recording the call, as Gwilliam requested it to help locate the children. The phone call is played in court, it's an 11 minute call. In the phone call, Chad talks about not wanting to get Gwilliam involved, and that it was Heather Daybell starting rumors, and Kay Woodcock doing custody battle stuff.
10:03 a.m.: Mid-morning recess takes place, 25 minutes from now, court will be back in session.
9:59 a.m.: Now Gwilliam talks about a Dec. 18, 2019 phone call he received from law enforcement. He met with Springville Police Department, so they could discuss Lori Vallow's missing children. Law enforcement asked Gwilliam for help. Gwilliam had concerns because Chad had told Gwilliam Lori's children were older, adult age, and it didn't make sense that they kids would be missing. FBI, Madison County Sheriff's Office, Fremont County Sheriff's Office, and Rexburg PD were all present during Gwilliam's interview. Gwilliam then called Chad, after requesting law enforcement to record it.
9:47 a.m.: They now discuss a family lunch that was held after Tammy's funeral. Gwilliam was at the funeral for longer than "normal" he said. Then they went to lunch, where they had to wait for 30 minutes for Chad Daybell. Chad ended upb being roughly 45 minutes late. It caused Gwilliam a bit of concern, just because the Gwilliam's wanted to chat with Chad. Given the long history the families had together, Gwilliam felt that Chad was being distant. About a month after the funeral, Jason Gwilliam reached out to Chad, where Chad then asked if Jason was talking to Heather Daybell, Chad's sister-in-law. Jason Gwilliam and Heather Daybell are hardly even related, and didn't have a close relationship.
Chad had asked if Jason Gwilliam had talked to Heather, because Heather was "spreading rumors" in Rexburg. Then, Chad revealed he had been remarried to Lori Vallow. After suffering from a loss for words, finally Gwilliam asks who the new wife was, Chad said her name was Lori Ryan. Chad mentioned that Lori's husband had just passed, but mentioned nothing of Lori's children. Chad had told the children that he planned on getting married in Nov. of 2019, which Gwilliam asked, how did Chad keep it a secret. "My kids are good at keeping secrets," said Chad to Jason Gwilliam.
9:35 a.m.: Gwilliam testifies about the times they met up in 2018 and 2019. The two couples, the Gwilliams and Daybell's, got together in a hot tub, where Jason Gwilliam testifies about how distant Chad was that day. On the day of Tammy's passing in late 2019, Gwilliam called Chad, and they discussed talking about mortuary work, funeral planning, church services, etc. Gwilliam was surprised by how quickly Chad wanted to have the funeral. She died on a Saturday, and he wanted the funeral the following Tuesday. Later that day, Gwilliam got a call from the Springville mortician. The mortician asked for Gwilliam's help retrieving Tammy's body to bring it back to Utah. On the day that Gwilliam came to get Tammy with the mortician, all the Daybell's were present including Chad's parents. Chad was acting "abnormal." Garth Daybell, Chad's parents, all were crying but Chad was not.
9:23 a.m.: Eventually, as Chad began to write more books, he began to focus on the end of times, and that's when his viewed changed from traditional LDS faith, to fringe beliefs. As Chad's views differed, and the Daybell family moved to Idaho, Chad had asked Jason Gwilliam to move with him. Gwilliam said that as great as Idaho was, it wasn't for his family. Gwilliam did initially believe Chad's views, but then began to question them. Chad believed there was going to be a large earthquake or two, demolishing the Springville, Utah area. More talks of dark spirits comes up. Chad then tried to take responsibility of the Gwilliam family, which Jason Gwilliam disagreed with. Gwilliam then talks highly of Tammy, "she wasn't a saint, none of us are," said Gwilliam. From what Gwilliam believed, Tammy Daybell was not excited to make the move to Idaho, as it took her away from family.
9:13 a.m.: Jason Gwilliam is called to the stand. This is Tammy Daybell's brother-in-law. Gwilliam has been a member of the family for many years. They lived close by to the Daybell family from the late 90's until the Daybell family moved to Idaho in 2015. When they lived together in Utah, they lived across the street at one point, but was always about a block away. Chad would talk to Gwilliam a lot, describing him as "good friends." Chad talked about intimacy with his wife to Gwilliam, which Prior objects to. Chad told Gwilliam that his intimacy with Tammy was a bit "vanilla". Both men were part of the Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints, or LDS faith. But when Chad moved to Idaho, Chad's views differed from mainstream LDS faith.
9:10 a.m.: Willmore testifies in redirect, as prosecutors ask about the medications/remedies that Tammy took for her health. While Willmore was on the scene, she did not have access to Tammy's health records, so Willmore didn't know how Tammy could have died. They would have to wait for the autopsy. Willmore then testifies that the foam from the mouth can be caused by a lot of things, such as asphyxiation. The testimony concludes, this witness will not be recalled.
9:00 a.m.: John Prior with defense begins to ask Willmore about her talking to the FBI. Talking to the FBI, Willmore said she had many years, nearly 40, as a medical assistant and also worked as an EMT. Prior then asks about the book found on Tammy's nightstand, the book was about homeopathic remedies. She had a great deal of essential oils and other similar things in the cupboard in the kitchen. Prior also brings up the bruises on Tammy's arm and if it was any concern. It was not to Willmore.
8:53 a.m.: Willmore looked up poisonings deaths while she was at the site of Tammy's death. The foam from Tammy's mouth was so unusual to Willmore that she began to research poisonings to see if that was the cause. She didn't find anything that proved that theory. Willmore was relying on information provided by Chad Daybell. Garth Daybell never spoke up about his mother's health. Prosecution asks about the homeopathic medicine Tammy took. Willmore doesn't believe those had anything to do with her death.
8:44 a.m.: Willmore testifies about Tammy's body. Chad claimed it was moved. He claims that Tammy passed in her sleep, and when he moved around in the bed, it rolled her out of it, landing her on the ground. A photo is shown in court that displays where Tammy Daybell was found in her home. A bed, closet, and other household items are visible. Willmore talked about how stiff Tammy was, she was also covered up. Tammy had some old bruises on her arm, which was normal to Willmore. However, there was some foam coming out of Tammy's mouth, which was something that Willmore hadn't really seen before. In the photo, a towel is shown, the same towel that was used to wipe Tammy's face.
8:33 a.m.: Court begins for the 21st day of the trial. The jury is brought in. Lindsey Blake, prosecutor, will question the witness. The witness is Fremont County EMT Cammy Willmore. Willmore talks about her time as deputy county coroner for Fremont County, she worked under Brenda Dye who testified earlier in the trial. Willmore testifies about who was present after receiving the call that Tammy Daybell had passed. Chad Daybell was at his house that day, actively sobbing, which Willmore expected. Willmore talks about Garth Daybell, Chad's son, next. Garth Daybell was quiet that day.
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