The prosecutors in Lori Vallow's highly-anticipated murder trial have revealed Tammy Daybell's cause of death.
Lori is currently on trial for killing her two children and conspiring to kill her fifth husband's ex-wife Tammy Daybell. Her trial began on Monday (April 10), with prosecutors arguing during their opening statements that the Idaho mother was motivated by "money, power, and sex," per CNN.
Two of Lori's children from previous marriages - Tylee, 17, and Joshua 'JJ', 7 - were last seen in September 2019. Shortly afterward, she married Chad Daybell, whose ex-wife Tammy died just weeks prior.
The 49-year-old has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, three counts of conspiracy in the deaths, and one count of grand theft after she continued to collect government benefits on behalf of her children after their deaths. Lori has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The investigation has even been the subject of a Netflix docuseries.
Watch the Netflix docuseries' trailer:Prosecuting attorney Lindsay Blake told the jury that Lori "will remove any obstacle in her way to get what she wants - and she wanted Chad Daybell." Blake then added that Chad and Lori would refer to themselves as James and Elaina, and that they believed themselves to be religious leaders. They reportedly even had a system of rating people as "light" or "dark".
Though, according to the East Idaho News, Lori's attorney Jim Archibald said: "The evidence will show Lori was a kind and loving mother. The evidence will show Lori had an interest in religion - especially the end of times. Some people could care less about biblical prophecies, some people care a lot about it. Thankfully in this country we get the freedom to choose."
Also during the trial, it was revealed that Tammy Daybell - Chad's first wife - died from asphyxiation. "[Tammy] died at the hands of another," Blake told the jury on Monday, via People.
Her death was initially reported by her husband Chad on October 19, 2019. He told authorities that she had gone to bed with a cough and didn't wake up. Tammy's manner of death was initially ruled as "natural causes," and no autopsy was done, however, her death was later deemed "suspicious." Her body was exhumed in December 2019 for an autopsy, but the results were not released to the public.
In her opening statements to the jury, Blake also showed images of a shallow grave where both JJ and Tylee's remains were discovered. Tylee was dismembered and burned, while her younger brother was bound by duct tape and wrapped in plastic.
Lori's trial is ongoing, however, if convicted she will not receive the death penalty.
