BOISE, Idaho — Emotional testimony from Melanie Gibb, Lori Vallow's friend, was heard in court on Thursday, April 19. On Friday, her testimony continued. Defense lawyer John Prior had his chance at cross examination. He brought into evidence texts that Lori Vallow sent to Gibb, as well as asking questions about "casting" - or removing evil spirits from human forms.
Friday also heard testimony from Doug Hart, a retired FBI agent who currently serves as Chief Deputy for the Canyon County Sheriff's office. He was still with the FBI when the Daybell investigation was happening. His testimony included a great deal of text messages from Daybell to Vallow, and vice versa.
Court concluded early on Friday, wrapping up right at lunch time. Court will readjourn Monday at 8:30 a.m. with Hart taking the stand again.
The testimony on Thursday included a phone call that we heard during Lori Vallow's trial, a recording of Gibb calling both Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell, asking where the children were. At the time of the phone call, the children were still considered missing.
Gibb also testified a great deal on the religious views of both Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell, discussing a "light and dark" type system they used for people. Light, meaning they made a deal with God before coming to this earth, and dark, meaning they made a deal with the devil. It followed possession-like beliefs, with Daybell and Vallow believing that multiple entities can be within one human form.
In court on Wednesday, April 17, a financial timeline was constructed for jurors to understand Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell's spending habits in the weeks leading up to investigators finding the bodies of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow, Lori Vallow's two children.
The court also heard from Det. Chuck Kunsaitis, from Rexburg, while he built timelines showing Chad Daybell's travel records in the months leading up to his wife Tammy Daybell's death, as well as in the months leading up to finding the children's bodies.
Testimony heard on Tuesday showed search history on devices belonging to both Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow. The court also heard a patriarchal prayer done by Chad Daybell to Alex Cox, Lori Vallow's brother. An agent from the Social Security Administration also testified, discussing the amount of income that Lori Vallow was receiving prior to her children's deaths.
The trial is wrapping up its first week of witness testimony, and is expected to last another four to six weeks.
Live Updates:
11:58 a.m.: The court called a brief sidebar. After a brief sidebar, they decide to break for the day. Court will readjourn on Monday, at 8:30 a.m.
11:44 a.m.: "I love you more than ever, I can't wait to be with you forever" said Lori Vallow in a text to Chad Daybell. Hart believes this is indicative of wanting to be together, forever, regardless of what external factors are involved. Tammy Daybell was still alive when the texts were sent. Hart testifies there was no evidence of divorce for Chad to separate from Tammy. Prosecution is still doing direct examination, taking many pauses to allow the jurors to read each exhibit.
11:26 a.m.: More text messages are revealed from Lori Vallow's account. Lindsey Blake asks Hart is he noticed any "sorrow" from Lori Vallow or Chad Daybell, he said no.
10:57 a.m.: Hart testifies about Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell's correspondences. The two talk about "light and dark" people, and how certain people they know fall into the "dark" category, receiving numerical scores about how dark they are from Daybell.
10:42 a.m.: Hart reads texts from the 'Lori4Style' iCloud account. Prior objects this. The state argues that they do not need to go line by line on the exhibit.
10:24 a.m.: Court is called back to order. Judge Boyce asks that the jurors be brought back in. John Prior and Chad Daybell chat together at the dense table. Daybell leans into Prior to whisper. They nod a lot. The state calls Doug Hart to the stand and he swears an oath. Doug Hart is a retired FBI agent and currently serves as Chief Deputy for Canyon County Sheriff's Office. As an FBI agent, he served multiple assignments. Most recently, he was the supervisor for the southern 34 counties in Idaho for all criminal programs. It was through this assignment that he became involved in this investigation. Hart is testifying about the iCloud accounts associated with Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell.
9:49 a.m.: The state is objecting the fact that Prior gets to re-cross almost every witness they've called. Prior argues that it's up to the judge. The state argues that he should only re-cross when new information comes back. Part of the reason the court has allowed it in this case, the judge said he was under the belief that allowing re-cross would allow for a witness to only be called once. Judge Boyce said he'll take it under advisement. The court will be in recess for a few minutes.
9:46 a.m.: Gibb is under subpoena with defense, and Prior asks that she not look up the case at all. Prior would like the possibility of calling her again. She is admonished until the end of the trial. She cannot discuss her testimony with anyone. The court is taking a mid-morning recess. As the jury exits, counsel will stay behind and discuss a matter without jury present.
9:43 a.m.: Prior asks for re-cross. Blake asks to approach the bench. Daybell sits at the defense desk, with his hands cross in front of him. During the approach, they discussed scope of re-cross. Prior immediately discussing "castings" or ridding the body of evil spirits. According to Prior, after a casting is done, the human body dies.
9:36 a.m.: Redirect takes place, as Lindsey Blake takes the podium. Gibb testifies that it was Daybell who assigned people "light" and "dark".
9:28 a.m.: Gibb is still on the stand, discussing Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell. Gibb doesn't recall many of the topics that Prior brings up.
9:09 a.m.: There is a sidebar. When counsel walked back to their desks, Chad Daybell pulls up a paper, and shows it to John Prior, pointing at something on the legal pad.
9:00 a.m.: John Prior asks Melanie Gibb a series of cross examination questions. He asks if she talked to the police in 2019 while the kids were missing. Gibb had talked to police before making a recorded call to Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell. During that phone call, Vallow said "I had to move her somewhere else" and "I will do whatever the Lord needs me to do", referring to Tylee Ryan. Prior implies that Gibb and Vallow both know what happened to the children.
8:41 a.m.: Court is called to session. Judge Steven Boyce discusses when the trial will be let out today. There are two witnesses being called, one of which is Melanie Gibb, who was called yesterday. She will finish her testimony this morning. The jury is brought in, all are present and accounted for. John Prior stands up and heads to the podium. Cross examination continues.
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