Lori Vallow Daybell, the Idaho mom convicted of killing her two kids and plotting the murder of her husband’s first wife, is finally speaking out from prison — and she says she’s innocent.
In an upcoming episode of Dateline airing Friday, March 7, Lori claims that she and her husband Chad Daybell — who’s on death row for his role in the crimes — will eventually be cleared of all charges. “Jesus showed me the future when I was in heaven,” Lori tells correspondent Keith Morrison. “We weren’t in prison in that future.”
The episode will also feature interviews with Lori’s son Colby Ryan, former FBI agent Doug Hart, Madison County Sheriff Ron Ball, and Rexburg police Detective Ray Hermosillo.
Lori was sentenced to life in prison without parole in July 2023 after being found guilty of the 2019 murders of her children, 7-year-old Joshua “J.J.” Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan. She was also convicted of conspiring to kill Chad’s first wife, 49-year-old Tammy Daybell. To make things worse, Lori was found guilty of grand theft for collecting government benefits after her children’s deaths.
Chad Daybell was sentenced to death the following year after being convicted of the same murders, including his first wife Tammy’s. Chad and Tammy had been married for nearly 30 years and had five children together.
According to prosecutors, Chad and Lori were deeply involved in a small doomsday cult. They believed the end of the world was near and that people with “dark” spirits had to be eliminated. The children’s bodies were discovered in June 2020 on Chad’s Idaho property, almost nine months after they were reported missing by J.J.’s grandparents. When the remains were found, it was clear that the children had died horrific deaths — Tylee had been dismembered and burned, while J.J. was bound with duct tape and wrapped in plastic.
Tammy Daybell died at home in October 2019, and though her death was initially ruled accidental, it was later determined that she had been asphyxiated. Just weeks after Tammy’s death, Chad and Lori jetted off to Hawaii and got married.
Before sentencing Lori, Judge Steven Boyce called her crimes “heinous and egregious” and pointed out that she had never shown any remorse for her actions. Despite the guilty verdicts and the mountain of evidence against her, Lori insists her story isn’t over — but for now, she remains behind bars.
