BOISE, Idaho — Day 23 of the trial of Chad Daybell involved a great deal of forensic evidence from the autopsy of Tammy Daybell and location data relating to the whereabouts of Alex Cox ahead of the last known proof of life dates for Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow. View the courtroom updates below.
3:28 pm: Prior indicates that this may be a good stopping point in his cross-examination to allow for the courtroom to break for the day. Judge Boyce agrees and releases the jurors for the day. The cross-examination will be continued tomorrow starting at 8:30 am.
3:25 pm: Wright describes the grave dug for JJ Vallow as shallow.
3:20 pm: Wright confirms that JJ Vallow was with Alex Cox on Sept. 22 and that Cox reportedly put him to bed.
3:16 pm: A message from Melanie Gibb to Lori is displayed by Prior to the courtroom. The message reads:
"We sent this to Chad. About 2 this morning David woke up with great pain and sorrow in his heart. He felt something big was going to happen. It was going to happen now or soon. Please call when you can. Maybe you can help him understand it. Whatever it was this was immediate. He can't get to these people and there's nothing he could do for them."
Wright can not confirm details of the message as he did not investigate these messages.
3:14 pm: Prior shows the location data for Alex's device on Sept. 22 and asks Wright if there were other people at Lori's apartment with Alex that night. Wright confirms that Melanie Gibb and David Warwick were present, and so was JJ Vallow. Prior asks if there was any correspondence between Gibb, Warwick, and Lori on Sept. 22. Wright says he did not investigate that but that other officers did.
3:05 pm: Prior asks if any animal remains were found near the burial site for Tylee. Wright says there were animal remains but the investigators were unable to determine what kind of animal was buried in the area. Prior projects the image of the raccoon text that Chad sent to Tammy on the courtroom projectors while asking this question.
3:03 pm: Prior asks about how many times was Alex Cox's device located on the Daybell property, Wright says it was 7 times.
2:58 pm: Prior asks if the distance from the gated pathway was closer to Tylee's burial site than the driveway on the property, Wright says yes but explains that a portion of the property may have had a fence that would have prevented a vehicle from reaching the site.
2:56 pm: One of the location pings places Alex Cox on the Daybell property at a gate. Prior says there isn't a road here, but Wright corrects him and explains that there were tire tracks there which seemed to indicate that the gate was occasionally used for vehicles.
2:46 pm: Wright explains that on the night of Sept. 8, there were no location data points for several hours indicating Alex Cox's whereabouts, though there were other data points that were not reflected in the slideshow summary. Prior is asking for an explanation of the gap in location data. Wright says this is fairly common with Cox's location data, especially at night.
2:44 pm: After the break, Prior asks Wright about a period of time on Sept. 8 during which Alex Cox's device had no location data indicated on the report. Wright clarifies that there may have been location data, but that the summary of the data in the slideshow was trimmed down. Prior presents Wright with a full copy of the report to refresh his memory of the data that may be missing.
2:15 pm: Before Prior goes deeper into his cross-examination, Judge Boyce calls for a brief mid-afternoon break. The stream should return in 20 minutes.
2:05 pm: Prior asks about the margin of error in the data and points out that the location data uses ranges that can make it hard to pinpoint the exact location of a given device.
1:56 pm: Prior asks about the trip to Yellowstone, Wright walks him through the movement of the device through the park.
1:54 pm: Blake has no further questions, Prior prepares for his cross-examination.
1:50 pm: On Oct. 18, while Lori was in Hawaii, Alex's device was seen at the Salem LDS Church which Chad attended regularly. Wright says this was the first time the device was at this location. This was the day before Tammy Daybell's death.
1:13 pm: Alex made several purchases at the Sportsman's Warehouse in Ammon, Idaho. The items he purchased included camouflage pants, gloves, and a beanie. Some of these items were later recovered in the search of Lori Vallow's property.
1:05 pm: Wright returns to the witness stand as the lunch recess finishes. Wright continues to walk the jurors through a slideshow documenting location data associated with Alex Cox.
11:56 am: Judge Boyce sends the courtroom into a lunch recess. The livestream is expected to return by 1 pm.
11:55 am: Ahead of the change in expected location behavior for Alex's device, and the attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux, Alex Cox was at a shooting range on Sept. 28 and stayed there for about 2.5 hours.
11:48 am: From Sept. 30 to Oct. 3, Alex's device did not return to his apartment. The device stayed in the state, but the location habits were out of the ordinary for Cox, as the phone was detected at Lori's apartment through the night for 3 days in a row. The attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux in Arizona took place on Oct. 2, 2019.
11:42 am: Blake moves to admit receipts from the purchases of the two prepaid phones.
11:37 am: Alex Cox paid to have the windows of Tylee's Jeep tinted, Wright says this vehicle was used in connection with the attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux. Two prepaid cellphones were purchased by Alex Cox in the weeks following the last proof of life for JJ Vallow.
11:31 am: Wright confirms that the only person Alex Cox knew who was associated with the property was Chad Daybell, he had no connection to Tammy or Chad's children besides through Chad.
11:28 am: Wright says that police were concerned that Alex Cox was on the property when the children were buried, and the message to Tammy from Chad about the raccoon burial and debris burning made them suspicious of the pond area and fire pit area. Police later searched these locations and found the bodies of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow.
11:23 am: Location data for Cox's device is also shown for Sept. 23 now. The data indicates that he was back on the Daybell property in the morning. Alex would spend just over an hour on the property, with many location points at a pond on the property, before leaving and going back to Lori Vallow's apartment, unit 175. This was the date of the last proof of life for JJ Vallow.
11:22 am: Cox's location data for the night of Sept. 22, 2019, is shown. He moved between apartments 175 and 107, where he lived, throughout the evening.
11:18 am: Wright's testimony moves to the disappearance of JJ Vallow, whose last known school attendance was on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019.
11:17 am: The device for Alex Cox left the area where Tylee's remains were found and went back to his apartment, only stopping at a Del Taco on the trip.
11:12 am: Several location pings became more significant following the discovery of a text message on one of Tammy Daybell's devices during the investigation. The text was from a device belonging to Chad Daybell. In the message, he informs Tammy that he shot and killed a large raccoon on their property that morning and that the body was now buried in the pet cemetery. Chad also texted Tammy that he wanted to burn the debris around the fire pit before an incoming storm soaked it. This fire pit area is where Tylee's remains were eventually found.
11:08 am: The last known location for Tylee was at apartment 175 in Rexburg at 8:37 pm on Sept. 8. Location data for Alex Cox is being shown from Sept. 9. The data documents Alex's location during the morning hours from 9 am to 12 pm, and includes pings from Chad Daybell's property. Alex was on the property from 9:15 am to 11:45 am.
10:48 am: Photos taken from that trip are the last photos of Tylee. Nate Eaton with our partners at East Idaho News shared the photos in question.
The photo on the left was taken at 3:49 p.m. at Old Faithful. This was the last known photo of Tylee. pic.twitter.com/JLT5FZm2NA
— Nate Eaton (@NateNewsNow) May 14, 2024
10:46 am: Surveillance footage from the Yellowstone Park entrance shows Alex Cox with Lori, Tylee, and JJ all in Yellowstone over the course of the day. The group went to the Old Faithful geyser.
10:40 am: Cox's whereabouts on Sept. 8 are laid out for the jurors. The locations include a Maverik gas station, the Old Faithful Lodge in Yellowstone, and Buckaroo BBQ in West Yellowstone. These location pings document his whereabouts from 11 am to 7 pm.
10:38 am: Wright confirms that Cox first arrived in Rexburg on Sept. 1, 2019, driving from St. George, Utah and eventually arriving at an apartment complex that evening. Cox stayed the night at the complex in unit 175. Cox would stay in unit 175 until Sept. 5, when he began staying at his unit, #107.
10:30 am: The courtroom livestream returns as the exhibit from Wright is displayed on the courtroom projectors. The first slide specifies which account is being reviewed, as well as the associated phone number and the name of the account owner, in this case, Alex Cox.
9:58 am: Blake notes the time and asks Judge Boyce if it would be a good time to call the mid-morning break. The Judge agrees and sends the courtroom into recess, the courtroom livestream is expected to return in 20 minutes.
9:56 am: Wright explains that there is a summary of this data that was sent to the FBI in the investigation which has been prepared for the courtroom. Before it is admitted, Judge Boyce asks for more details of the exhibit.
9:54 am: Wright explains that he requested Agent Ballance, who testified yesterday, to provide Alex Cox's device location data for all of the month of September 2019 based on the estimated dates for the missing children. Wright says they later requested data for October as well following the discovery of the bodies.
9:52 am: Wright explains that both Tylee and JJ went missing in September, with Tylee disappearing first around Sept. 8, and JJ following around 2 weeks after.
9:50 am: Wright explains that investigators were concerned with Alex's location at specific key times relating to the missing children and other major events in the case.
9:48 am: Wright tells Blake that many digital devices were received and examined during the investigation. The FBI's cellular analysis agency examined data from the devices collected during the investigation. Location data for Alex Cox is being discussed.
9:46 am: Wright explains that the investigation widened in scope when the FBI became involved and linked the investigations of the attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux, the death of Tammy Daybell, and the missing status of Tylee Ryan all to the JJ Vallow case, forming a joint investigation with many involved law enforcement agencies.
9:41 am: Wright recalls being contacted by Rexburg police on Nov. 27, 2019, regarding the whereabouts of JJ Vallow.
9:39 am: Officer Wright details the training he has gone through in his work and explains his qualifications.
9:37 am: Officer Ricky Wright, who was an FBI special agent in Pocatello for 24 years, takes the stand.
9:35 am: Blake asks Marsden if she has experienced bodies rolling out of bed, and she says no. Blake has no further questions, and Prior is not granted a recross. Dr. Marsden is released from the witness stand.
9:31 am: Blake asks if there are ways to cause someone to die of asphyxiation without leaving a lot of physical traces, Marsden says yes. Dr. Marsden also says that seizures were deemed extremely unlikely as a cause of death. Marsden says she determined the manner of death to be homicide.
9:29 am: Prior finishes his questioning by asking about the contents of Tammy's stomach, Marsden says she had 3.5 ounces of potatoes and peanuts. Blake now questions, asking if the contents of her stomach would rule out a homicide, Marsden says no.
9:26 am: Prior asks if there was an indication of a struggle during the autopsy of Tammy's body, Marsden explains that the bruising present on her body could have been a sign of a struggle.
9:22 am: Marsden clarifies that there was no indication of a blocked airway on Tammy's body.
9:20 am: Dr. Marsden says that it's possible that someone could suddenly die even with a perfectly healthy heart, regardless of their age.
9:18 am: Prior asks how the foam could have formed in Tammy's lungs if her heart was stopped immediately through asphyxia, Dr. Marsden explains that asphyxia does not involve the immediate stopping of the heart.
9:13 am: Prior asks about the term "heavy lungs," but Marsden explains that this is not necessarily a medical condition but rather a description of the weight of the lungs. Dr. Marsden clarifies that there was a microscopic analysis into the lungs as well, and that "heavy lungs" can be indicative of a condition but is not one on its own.
9:09 am: Blake has no further questions, Prior initiates his cross-examination. Prior says there was earlier mention of "suspicious circumstances" ahead of the exhumation of Tammy's body and asks Dr. Marsden to clarify. Marsden says there was concern because of the missing children and the deaths related to the family. Marsden confirms that the missing kids did not necessarily have anything to do with Tammy, but she also says that the fact that a 49-year-old suddenly died is suspicious on its own.
9:07 am: Dr. Marsden says someone who dies from a seizure will usually have a history of serious seizures, Tammy did not have serious seizures so she doesn't believe this could have been a cause for her death.
9:05 am: Marsden explains that she would not expect someone to suddenly pass away due to anemia or their use of homeopathic medicines.
8:59 am: Marsden continues, she describes the bruising on Tammy's body and explains that they occurred before she was dead.
8:50 am: Marsden performed an autopsy on Tammy, she explains that through the autopsy, they were unable to determine a direct cause of death for Tammy but says it was extremely unusual for a 49-year-old to develop seizures spontaneously without a reason like a tumor.
8:39 am: Day 23 of the trial of Chad Daybell starts with more forensic testimony, this time from Dr. Lily Marsden who is the Deputy Chief Medical Examiner at the Utah Medical Examiners Office.
