A mother involved in a ‘Doomsday’ cult brutally murdered her two children under the belief that they were ‘zombies’. Lori Vallow Daybell was convicted of killing her children, Tylee Ryan, 16, and Joshua ‘JJ’ Vallow, seven, in a trial that shocked the nation. She was also found guilty of conspiring to murder her husband’s first wife, Tammy Daybell, 49, and grand theft by a jury.
Throughout the trial, Vallow Daybell drew public outrage due to her extreme beliefs, which were influenced by her “doomsday” partner, Chad Daybell. Chad claimed to have lived multiple lives on various planets and asserted that he and Vallow Daybell had shared several past lives together.
According to his teachings, people were classified as “light” or “dark”, with a spectrum in between. He believed that “dark” individuals were earthly but followers of evil, while “light” individuals were followers of Jesus Christ. Additionally, he described his wife as an “eternal being” with 21 separate lives, seven of which they had been married in.
One of Daybell’s alarming beliefs was the existence of “zombies” – deceased individuals whose bodies were possessed by malevolent spirits. It is suspected that Vallow Daybell and Daybell believed that Tylee and JJ had become ‘zombies’, leading them to believe that the only way to release their souls was to kill the body inhabited by the evil spirit.
In a disturbing statement during her 2023 conviction in Idaho, Vallow Daybell claimed to have visited heaven during childbirth, establishing a connection to Jesus and the spiritual realm. She professed to have had numerous communications with Jesus Christ, claiming to possess insights into the afterlife and her children’s well-being.
Vallow Daybell’s third child, Colby Ryan, who was not residing at home during the tragic events, participated in a panel discussion at CrimeCon 2025 in Denver. During the panel, hosted by journalist Nate Eaton, Colby was informed of a message from his mother expressing love for him and referencing a Bible verse, Matthew 25, related to judgment between the righteous and the wicked.
Following the relayed message, Colby interpreted his mother’s words as an attempt to depict herself as virtuous. Despite this, he expressed reluctance to engage with his mother again when asked, underscoring the estranged relationship between them.
Vallow Daybell and Daybell underwent separate trials, with Vallow Daybell being sentenced to life without parole in July 2023 after being convicted on all charges. Daybell, on the other hand, was found guilty on all counts on 30 May 2024 and subsequently sentenced to death on 1 June. Vallow Daybell later faced additional charges for conspiracy to murder her ex-husband and her niece’s ex-husband in separate trials in Arizona after extradition.