Bail Maintained at $5 Million for Lori Vallow Daybell, Children Still Missing

Lori Vallow mug shot. Courtesy Kaua‘i Police Department.

Update: 1:23 p.m. HST, Feb. 21, 2020

A Kaua‘i judge today maintained bail for Lori Vallow Daybell at $5 million, and set a hearing for Monday March 2, 2020 at 9 a.m. in a missing children case that has garnered national attention.

As a condition, if she does manage to post bail, Vallow must surrender any passport in per possession to the Kaua‘i Police Department.

A defense attorney had asked that the bail be lowered to $10,000, but that request was denied.

If extradited to Idaho, she would face felony charges surrounding the disappearance of her two minor children–17-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua “J.J.” Vallow who have been missing since September.

Kauaʻi Prosecuting Attorney Justin Kollar said that during the extradition proceedings, Vallow will have the opportunity to contest the legality of the arrest.  He said the hearing on March 2 will be for the purpose of identifying Lori Vallow, the person in custody, as the being the same person who is named on the warrant that came here from Idaho.

If the state is successful in the hearing, Vallow would be remanded into the custody of Idaho personnel once Hawaiʻi police receive the Governor’s warrant and it has been domesticated by Hawaiʻi Governor David Ige.

“We are all hopeful that we are able to locate the missing children–Tylee and JJ–and we appreciate the community’s support and the media’s interest in this story and helping all of the investigators try and locate these missing children,” said Kauaʻi Police Chief Todd G. Raybuck in an afternoon press conference today.

“I join in the chief’s statement that hopefully our involvement in this process can lead to some kind of just resolution to this case… and of course, we are hoping against hope that Tylee and JJ are out there somewhere and they will be reunited with their other family members at some point,” said Kollar.

After today’s hearing, Vallow was transferred from Kauaʻi sheriffs into the custody of the Kauaʻi Community Correctional Center, where she will remain throughout the time frame of her court proceedings on the island.

Court documents have since been released and published by East Idaho News, detailing the timeline of when the kids were last seen and the string of events that led up to today’s hearing.

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A hearing is expected to be held on Kaua‘i today for 47-year-old Lori Vallow Daybell who was arrested on Thursday in relation to an investigation into her missing children, being conducted by the Rexburg Police Department in Idaho.

The Kaua‘i Police Department will also hold a press conference at 2 p.m. today regarding Vallow’s arrest and her upcoming arraignment.

Court documents have since been released and published by East Idaho News, detailing the timeline of when the kids were last seen and the events that led up to today’s extradition hearing.

The case has sparked national media coverage amid the disappearance of her two minor children–17-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua “J.J.” Vallow who have been missing since September.

In December, Rexburg Police said the department was investigating the possible connection between the missing children and the death of Tammy Daybell, 49, (Vallow’s new husband’s former wife).

The investigation also comes amid the recent death of Lori Vallow’s former spouse, Charles Vallow who was fatally shot by her brother, Alex Cox on July 11, 2019 in Arizona.  Multiple media reports indicate that Cox claimed self defense.  Cox later was found unresponsive and died five months later on Dec. 11, 2019 in his Gilbert, Arizona, home, according to ABC News.

Vallow recently married Chad Daybell, 51, an author of several end-of times religious books.  The two had both appeared in religious podcasts focusing on personal preparation and self reliance.  The company that had published the podcasts has since removed the content in light of “concerning media reports and ongoing criminal investigations.”

In January, the Kauaʻi Police Department reported that the couple had been staying on the island for an unconfirmed period of time.  During their stay, on Jan. 25, Vallow had been served with an order of petition in an attempt to have her physically produce her children within five days to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

The next day, Kauaʻi Police served a search warrant related to the Rexburg Police investigation on the rented vehicle occupied by Vallow and Daybell, as well as the condo they were renting in Princeville.

The deadline on Jan. 30 came and went, and the couple ventured to Maui for two days this week before they returned to Kauaʻi on Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 18, 2020).

Vallow was arrested yesterday in Princeville, Kauaʻi on a warrant issued by Madison County, Idaho and is currently being held at the KPD Cellblock in lieu of $5 million bail.

She faces two felony counts of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children. She also faces three misdemeanor counts: arrests and seizures – resisting or obstructing officers; criminal solicitation to commit a crime; and contempt of court – willful disobedience of court process or order.

Prosecutors say the maximum sentence on each count of desertion of a child under Idaho law if convicted is 14 years in prison.

Vallow will now have an opportunity to waive or fight her extradition to Idaho. Once in Idaho, she will face the criminal charges.

Three Deaths, Two Missing Children
Timeline of Events:

Fox News reported that Lori Vallow’s brother, Alex Cox, killed Lori’s estranged husband Charles Vallow on July 11, 2019 in her Arizona home.  Various media reports indicate that Cox claimed self defense. Since the shooting, the publication reports that Vallow, 46, married Daybell, 51, describing Daybell as “an author of several religious-themed fiction books about prophecies and the end of the world.”

Sept. 23, 2019 was the last day Vallow’s adopted, special needs son, Joshua “J.J.” attended school at Kennedy Elementary in Rexburg, Idaho, according to a police investigation.  Seventeen-year-old Tylee, who was living with Lori Vallow in Rexburg, Idaho, was also not seen since Sept. 2019, according to police.

On Oct. 19, 2019, Tammy Daybell, the former wife of Chad Daybell was found dead at her Fremont County, Idaho home. At the time, the death was believed to be natural, but since then, police say an investigation by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office determined that Daybell’s death may be suspicious.  Police say Daybell was interred three days later in Springville, Utah. Her remains have since been exhumed for autopsy.

On Nov. 27, 2019, Rexburg Police executed search warrants at locations associated with Lori Vallow in an attempt to locate J.J.  “As the search warrants were being executed, investigators determined that Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell had abruptly vacated their residence and left Rexburg,” police said in a press release issued in December.

On Dec. 11, 2019, Vallow’s Brother, Alex Cox was reportedly found unresponsive in his Gilbert, Arizona, home, according to ABC News.

In January 2020, the Kaua‘i Police Department reported that the couple had been staying on Kaua‘i for an unconfirmed period of time.  During their stay, Vallow had been served with an order of petition in an attempt to have her physically produce her children to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

Kaua‘i Police at the time said they were assisting Idaho’s Rexburg Police Department with an active case involving Vallow’s missing children.  Police executed a search warrant on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020, in support of the ongoing investigation related to the whereabouts of the two children.

On Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020, the couple was reportedly spotted at at rental car facility in Kahului, Maui according to Nate Eaton with eastidahonews.com.  Two days later, they were seen departing Maui on a flight bound for Kaua‘i.

On Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020, Kaua‘i Police arrested Lori Vallow Daybell on a warrant issued by Madison County, Idaho.  She was being held at the KPD Cellblock in lieu of $5 million bail.

Seventeen-year-old Tylee Ryan (right) and 7-year-old Joshua Vallow (left), have been missing since the end of September 2019. PC: Kaua’i Police Department