In a written decision filed on Wednesday, Idaho District Judge Steven W. Boyce denied Lori Vallow Daybell’s “motion to remand indictment to grand jury for further proceedings.” Here’s a breakdown of what that means and an update of what else is to come in the Daybell trials.
J.J. Vallow and Tylee Ryan, children of Lori Vallow Daybell, went missing in September 2019. Their bodies were later found on June 9, 2020, in Chad Daybell’s yard. Lori Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder in the deaths of J.J. Vallow, Tylee Ryan and Chad Daybell’s wife, Tammy Daybell. Their joint trial is scheduled for January 2023 in Ada County, Idaho.
What did Lori Vallow Daybell request?
According to the East Idaho News, Vallow Daybell’s defense team argued that two of the counts of indictment were confusing and could lead to further issues. Defense attorney John Thomas said about the charges, “I’ve been practicing law for 20 years and this particular charge baffled me.”
The two charges in question are conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit grand theft. Both charges are listed in counts one and three of the indictment. While the defense would like to separate the charges and ask the grand jury to redeliberate the indictment, prosecutor Rob Wood argued that these charges are linked together, so they shouldn’t be considered separately. Boyce did not make a decision during the Aug. 16 hearing.
Why was the request denied?
According to the memorandum decision filed by Abbie Mace and written by Boyce, the court determined that “there has been no showing that the grand jury failed to separately vote to indict on each of these counts.”
The court determined “there cannot be multiple sentences. The allegation is that two separate offenses constitute the conspiracy.”
The memorandum clarified that the Idaho Supreme Court confirmed that conspiracy is a crime in and of itself in the Sanchez-Castro case. The court determined that based on this case and other precedents like the Idaho Criminal Jury Instructions, it would deny the defense’s request.
What is coming up next?
- On Sept. 15, the court will have a hearing where the judge will decide whether or not to ban cameras from the court room. About two dozen media outlets opposed the motion.
- According to The Associated Press, Lori Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell will face the possibility of the death penalty during their trial in January.