‘Monster’ Lori Vallow is confronted by victims’ sobbing families at sentencing

‘ Cult mom’ Lori Vallow was confronted by her victims’ sobbing family members at her sentencing hearing where they branded her a ‘monster’ and described her 1,841-day ‘cruel campaign of terror’. The 50-year-old convicted killer appeared in Fremont County Courthouse in Idaho on Monday morning for her sentencing for the murders of her two youngest children Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow and her new husband Chad Daybell ‘s first wife Tammy Daybell. Sitting slouched cross-legged in her chair between her two attorneys, Vallow get her head down and refused to look her victims’ devastated family members in the eyes as they gave heartwrenching victim impact statements to the court. JJ’s grandmother Kay Woodcock broke down in tears as she said she will ‘never understand’ how Vallow – who once appeared to be a loving mother – could have murdered the son she ‘chose’ to adopt. ‘Lori always showed her deepest appreciation that we gave her the greatest gift ever, being JJ,’ she said. ‘That same mother murdered [her son]… and I will never understand it.’ Ms Woodcock is JJ’s biological grandmother and the sister of Vallow’s fourth husband Charles Vallow. She told the court how JJ was born with drugs in his system because his parents struggled with substance abuse. She described her joy as she and her husband Larry Woodcock took in JJ as their own. They ‘loved every minute of raising him’, she said, describing it ‘as priceless’. But, around a year later, Vallow and Charles Vallow adopted the little boy. Sobbing, Ms Woodcock said that they all believed that would be best for JJ so he could be with more energetic parents with access to more resources. Describing Vallow as a caring mother to JJ, Ms Woodcock said it was even more ‘mind-blowing’ that the woman who ‘chose to be his mother’ could a few years later be the same person to murder him. ‘I knew it was the best thing for him. I knew she [Lori] would always be 1000 percent involved in his care… that is part of why this is so hard – how could someone [do this]… it’s mind-blowing and I will never understand it,’ she said. ‘The woman who chose to be his mother, the woman who five years earlier stood in front of a judge and promised to love and protect him…’ Ms Woodcock began her statement by reeling off a list of numbers and said they are ‘more than numbers’. ‘Today marks 1,481 days that have been filled with terror,’ she said. ‘One was the day that my brother was murdered.’ In August 2019, Charles Vallow was shot dead by Vallow’s brother Alex Cox at her home in Arizona. Vallow is currently awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to murder for Charles’ killing. ‘This was the beginning of her cruel campaign of terror,’ said Ms Woodcock. Vallow is facing a maximum sentence of life in prison after the death penalty was taken off the table ahead of trial. Lori Vallow appears for her sentencing hearing Vallow was found guilty of first-degree murder , conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and grand theft over the deaths of her daughter Tylee Ryan, 16, and son Joshua ‘JJ’ Vallow, 7, back in May. She was also found guilty of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in the death of Mr Daybell’s first wife Tammy, 49. Judge Steven Boyce ruled last month that only victims’ immediate family members would be permitted to speak at the sentencing hearing, ruling out some loved ones who hoped to have their say in court. Vallow will also have the opportunity to speak before the court – something she declined to do at her trial. Judge Boyce said that a pre-sentence assessment was carried out, producing a 430-page report to inform his sentencing decision. However, he said that Vallow refused to participate in the assessment. Her sentencing comes almost three years after JJ and Tylee vanished without a trace in September 2019 – sparking fears for their safety from desperate family members all the while Vallow refused to say where they were. One month later, Tammy – an otherwise healthy 49-year-old – also died suddenly. Her death was initially ruled natural causes. This bizarre spate of disappearances and death came just months after Vallow’s fourth husband Charles Vallow was shot dead by Vallow’s brother Alex Cox in Arizona in July 2019. With Vallow’s children and both of their spouses then out of the way, she and Mr Daybell embarked on a new life together – flying to Hawaii to get married in a fairytale wedding on the beach. But, with months passing since the last signs of life of Vallow’s children, concerns continued to grow, prompting authorities to exhume Tammy’s body. A subsequent autopsy revealed that she had died by asphyxiation. In June 2020 – nine months after they were last seen alive – Tylee and JJ’s remains were found buried on the grounds of Mr Daybell’s property in Rexburg, Idaho. Tylee Ryan and Joshua ‘JJ’ Vallow JJ, who had autism, had been smothered with a plastic bag taped over his face, his little body still dressed in a pair of red pyjamas. Tylee’s cause of death meanwhile has been impossible to establish as the teenager’s dismembered, charred bones and body parts were found scattered in the ground on Mr Daybell’s pet cemetery. Jurors in Ada County Court in Boise, Idaho, took almost seven hours to find Vallow guilty on all charges over the three murders after a grueling six-week trial where the panel heard harrowing details about the doomsday cult mom’s path of deadly destruction and were shown graphic images of the murdered children’s remains. The state called over 60 witnesses to lay out its case that Vallow was motivated by both her cult beliefs but also lust for Mr Daybell and financial greed when she conspired with him and her brother Cox to kill the three victims. In a bombshell move, Vallow’s attorneys declined to present any defence case or call any witnesses and the ‘cult mom’ chose not to take the stand to give her side of the story. Vallow’s legal troubles and the chilling case are far from over. Chad and Tammy Daybell before her death in October 2019 Following her sentencing, she is expected to be extradited to Arizona where she is awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to murder her fourth husband Charles Vallow and the attempted murder of her niece’s husband Brandon Boudreaux. Meanwhile, Mr Daybell is still awaiting trial for the murders of JJ, Tylee and Tammy – with a scheduled trial start date set for 1 April 2024. But, the third person accused of being a co-conspirator in the case won’t ever have his day in court. On 11 December 2019 – hours after Tammy’s body was exhumed – Cox died suddenly at the age of 51. His death was ruled natural causes, with indications of a blood clot wedged in the arteries of his lungs. However the overdose drug Narcan was also found in his system.