'Cult' Mom Lori Vallow Makes First Court Appearance In Missing Kids' Case
Feb. 22 2020, Published 6:28 p.m. ET
Lori Vallow Daybell made her first court appearance in Hawaii on Friday afternoon in the bizarre case of her two missing children.
The woman, 46, was arrested in Kaua’i on Thursday after her kids “J.J.” Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 17, disappeared from Rexburg, Idaho. The two still went missing last September.
Vallow is charged with two felony counts of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children. She also faces charges of arrests and seizures — resisting or obstructing officers, criminal solicitation to commit a crime, and contempt of court — as well as willful disobedience of court process or order.
At Friday's hearing, Daybell’s attorney requested her bail be lowered to $10,000, and Kaua'i Prosecuting Attorney Justin Kollar requested she be held without bail.
The judge ruled yesterday that her $5 million bond will be maintained, as KSL reported.
Vallow did not waive her right to an extradition hearing, which was scheduled for March 2.
Her husband Chad Daybell, 51, came to court to support Vallow.
In a press release, the Madison County Prosecuting Attorney in Idaho claimed Vallow “abandoned her two minor children, delayed law enforcement’s attempts to locate her children, and encouraged another individual to delay law enforcement’s attempts to locate her children.”
According to reports, Vallow and Daybell have been on the run for months.
When the couple showed up in Hawaii, a court ordered Vallow to produce her children to officials in Idaho before January 30. She failed to comply.
“First of all, we wish to thank the public for the massive outpouring of concern regarding this case,” Kaua’i Chief of Police Todd G. Raybuck said in a statement after Vallow’s arrest. “We also want to thank everyone for their patience while investigators worked diligently to comprehensively gather everything they needed in order to obtain this arrest warrant.”
According to the Madison County prosecuting attorney, Vallow faces a maximum of 14 years in prison on each count of desertion of a child.
There are many strange twists to this case.
Scroll through Radar's gallery for more on Vallow's court appearance.
Under Suspicion
Authorities held a news conference about Vallow's arrest on Friday afternoon in Hawaii and she was also present in court.
Odd Times
The disturbing story began to unfold in July 2019, when Vallow’s estranged husband, Charles Vallow, 62, was shot dead by her 51-year-old brother, Alex Cox, inside her home in Chandler, Arizona.
Troubled Marriage
The Vallows had been embroiled in a divorce, with Charles claiming in court documents that he feared Lori would kill him and that she’d developed doomsday cult-like beliefs, reportedly calling herself “a god assigned to carry out the work of the 144,000 at Christ’s second coming in July 2020.”
Meeting Of Minds?
In September, Vallow and her young kids, J.J. and Tylee, moved to Rexburg, Idaho. There, Vallow continued her romance with Daybell, the author of several religious-themed fiction books about prophecies and the end of the world.
Complicated Case
In October 2019 — one month after Vallow's kids were last seen — Daybell’s ex-wife, Tammy, 49, was found dead in her family home. Officials at first said she died of natural causes, but they have since ruled her passing as suspicious. Vallow and Daybell married two weeks after Tammy’s death.
Another Death
Vallow's brother Cox, who had shot her ex, then suddenly died in mysterious circumstances in December. Authorities have not yet released a cause of death.
Headline News
Vallow did not testify during her trial.
The blonde's husband, Daybell, admits it's a "legal mess" but was by her side in court in Hawaii. Vallow is currently in the Kauai Community Correctional Center, where she will remain for her remaining court proceedings.
Wild On Web
Daybell, seen here outside the courthouse, has promised to continue his doomsday website, according to Inside Edition.