Trial of Lori Vallow, who is accused of killing her 2 children, is delayed for new competency examination
By Andy Rose, CNN
(CNN) — The trial of Lori Vallow – who is charged with murdering her two children, hiding their bodies and then reporting them missing – is delayed again after the defense renewed its claim that Vallow is not competent to stand trial.
Vallow and her husband, Chad Daybell, were indicted for murder more than a year ago, but the trial was delayed over concerns about Vallow’s competency. Daybell has pleaded not guilty to the charges he faces.
Judge Stephen Boyce ruled April 11 that Vallow was competent, but the same judge said Thursday that new information from the defense requires Vallow to be reevaluated before the case can go on.
“It is impractical for all Parties to adhere to the Court’s… Scheduling Order,” Boyce wrote Thursday, indicating that the intended trial start date of January 9, 2023, is no longer possible.
The information provided by the defense is redacted in court documents, and the judge ordered that those details remain under seal.
CNN reached out to Vallow’s defense attorneys Thursday for comment on the order. A spokesperson for the prosecution declined comment.
In 2021, a grand jury indicted Vallow and Daybell for the murders of Tylee Ryan, 16, and Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7.
Tylee and JJ had gone missing in September 2019, and Vallow and Daybell married two months later.
The children’s disappearance became national news after Daybell and Vallow abruptly left the area following questioning by police about the children’s whereabouts and about the recent death of Daybell’s ex-wife, Tammy.
In June 2020, law enforcement officials found the remains of the children on Daybell’s property in Fremont County, Idaho.
Daybell also is charged with the murder of his ex-wife, who died in her sleep weeks before Daybell was remarried.
Idaho is seeking the death penalty in Vallow’s case.
Correction: A previous version of this story gave the wrong age for Tylee Ryan. She was 16 at the time of her death.
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