Lori Vallow’s Arizona trial for murder conspiracy faces delay
Vallow charges for conspiring to kill her fourth husband Charles and her niece’s ex-husband Brandon Boudreaux
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Lori Vallow’s Arizona trial for murder conspiracy has been delayed.
The so-called “cult mom” is currently jailed in Maricopa County on charges of conspiring to kill her fourth husband Charles Vallow and her niece’s ex-husband Brandon Boudreaux.
The case was originally slated to go to trial on 4 April but has now been pushed back after being labeled “complex”. This will allow more time for both the prosecution and defence to gather more evidence, according to court documents obtained by Fox10.
Vallow arrived in Arizona on an extradition order in late November from Idaho, where she was convicted last year of the murders of her two children Tylee Ryan, 16, and Joshua “JJ” Vallow, seven – as well as conspiracy to murder her now-husband Chad Daybell’s first wife, Tammy.
Vallow’s estranged fourth husband Charles was allegedly shot and killed by her brother, Alex Cox, in July 2019 in Chandler, Arizona, months before the disappearance of Ms Vallow’s two children.
Cox told police at the time he acted in self-defence and was not charged. He died later that year, believed to be of natural causes, also with the overdose drug Narcan found in his system.
In October 2019, Mr Boudreaux said that someone driving a Jeep made an attempt on his life when he was shot at outside of his home.
The Jeep matched the description of one that was purchased by Charles before his death.
The trial originally scheduled to begin on 4 April – days after Mr Daybell is set to face his trial in Idaho on the same charges for which Vallow was already convicted – will now be delayed to a date that will be decided by the prosecutors and defence by late February.
This comes after prosecutor Treena Kay asked for the original trial date to be rescheduled, citing the complexity of the case.
The complex case order handed down by a judge requires both sides to produce a list of witnesses, a summary of alleged facts, general status of plea negotiations, among other specifics, according to Fox10.
The delay is likely to bring dismay to Charles’ family, who celebrated Vallow’s extradition last year.
“We’ve waited over four horrific years for her [Vallow] to face trial of murdering my sweet, kind, generous, loving and dearest brother Charles Vallow. Your justice is finally coming,” Charles’ sister, Kay Woodcock, wrote on social media at the time.
This trial comes after Vallow already received multiple life sentences in Idaho for killing her children and conspiring to kill her husband’s late wife.
JJ and Tylee vanished in September 2019, with Vallow reusing to identify where they were to both authorities and family members.
Instead, she and her new lover, Mr Daybell, flew to Hawaii to get married on the beach.
Nine months after the children were seen alive, their remains were found in shallow graves on the grounds of Mr Daybell’s property in Idaho in June 2020.
Over the course of the search for the children, a mystery unravelled as a string of deaths and other incidents were linked to Vallow and Mr Daybell’s alleged doomsday cult beliefs.
The charges Vallow now faces in Arizona arose out of that mysterious web.