Timeline of Events Around the Disappearance of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow

Using Data to Tell the Story

When the Cox family engaged in a pretty aggressive media campaign in May 2020 with what appeared to be a goal of presenting Lori Vallow Daybell as a caring mother who would never hurt her children and my brother as a real villain, there were so many conflicting statements, what was already a confusing case, with lots of twists and turns, that much more difficult to follow. I worried that their sudden blitzkrieg of information, after months of baffling silence, could have been a strategic attempt at going for a hung jury, especially since Tylee and JJ’s remains hadn’t been found yet. So I organized a GoFundMe to finance an ambitious campaign to start transcribing all these videos so that I could do my analyst thing and transform it into something called structured data. Once I had the first seven videos transcribed and massaged into a database format, I built a dashboard using a tool called Tableau and made it publicly available. And then I started adding various legal and personal documents into a Documents dashboard to cross-check information from the videos against. The video dashboard currently has 19 videos and the documents dashboard has 10 documents, with more in the works, as funds become available. I also have a publicly available spreadsheet where I keep track of the money that’s raised and how every dollar is spent.

Links

• Dashboard
• GoFundMe
• Tracking Doc
• How to Use It

How I’m Using the Dashboard

Originally I built the dashboard for the benefit of reporters, documentary producers, and law enforcement. But then I decided to use it to tell the story from nuts to bolts using the data.

Because the dashboard includes specific minute marks in videos and page numbers and line items in documents, I can quickly research any topic, such as any time someone from the Cox family talked about my brother or cheating. Or any time a member of the group talked about zombies.

I tried to use Twitter to tell the stories, but a lot of people following the case didn’t have Twitter; those who did got tangled up in the threaded tweets; and Twitter is pathetic at protecting users against trolls. People who were opposed to what I was doing (usually because they had something to hide) were throwing all kinds of flying monkeys at me, and it turned into a 💩 storm.

Moved to Youtube

I have repurposed my Annielytics YouTube channel for this purpose, until I feel like I’ve told the story I need to tell, that hasn’t been told in the media.

When I’m finished, I’ll go back to blogging and blogging about marketing data. You can follow along and even join in YouTube Lives. I’m running my first one tonight:

https://youtube.com/Annielytics

The Search is Over

The remains of my niece, Tylee Ryan, and her little brother, JJ Vallow, were recovered from the property of Chad Daybell Wed, June 10th. They were positively identified by the Ada County Medical Examiner June 13th. You can read my statement here. ?

Background

I don’t normally post personal stuff on my site, but I’ve had a difficult time finding a place I can post a curated timeline around the disappearance of Tylee Ryan and Joshua “JJ” Vallow, so I decided to keep it on my site. You may be wondering why I am following this case so closely. It’s because Tylee Ryan is my niece. Her father, Joe Ryan, was my brother. He was found dead in his home April 3, 2018.

Updates

I will be updating this timeline as new details in this twisted horror story emerge. You can also follow live updates on Twitter using this custom query link. I think I’ve included all the main names and hashtags to scoop up the majority of tweets on the topic.

Pro Tip: On Twitter go to More > Settings and Privacy > Safety > Display media that may contain sensitive content. Given the nature of this case, before I selected that option, I was missing a lot of tweets.

Missing Content

The page had gotten so cumbersome, WordPress was crashing constantly any time I tried to update the page. So I had to scale back to the bare minimum. I will now show only the past month of updates in the Updates section, and I removed all the extras, like the gallery, Out in the Wild section, etc.

Why?

Good question. I am a former reporter, and I’m really tired of watching Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell walk free while the rest of us agonize over where Tylee and JJ are. One of the toughest aspects to this case is the many moving pieces and twisted storylines. So I thought maybe if I could detangle it a bit, some brilliant reporter, real crime blogger, private investigator, or detective will find a clue that helps to crack this case.

I’ve also seen a number of inaccuracies, and I hope that this timeline will help people grasp the order of events. That said, when I cite a source, it’s not necessarily the original source. It’s just where I found that particular puzzle piece. And when I started curating this timeline, I wasn’t keeping track of any citations, so some elements are missing citations. Use at your own risk. I’ve done my best to track everything down. If you see an error or can pass on a missing citation, feel free to email me at annie@annielytics.com.

Cast of Characters

Tylee Ryan

• Who is she: Biological daughter of Lori Vallow and Joseph Ryan
• Current location: Unknown
• Age: 17
• Last seen: 9/8/19

JJ Vallow

• Who is he: Adopted son of Charles and Lori Vallow
• Current location: Unknown
• Age: 7
• Last seen: 9/23/19
• Last seen: Kennedy Elementary School

Lori Vallow (AKA Lori Daybell)

• Who is she: Biological mother of Colby Ryan and Tylee Ryan, adopted mother of JJ Vallow, and person of interest in the disappearance of Tylee and JJ
• Current location: Madison County Jail in Rexburg, ID
• Married to: Chad Daybell (husband #5)
• Notable: Married Chad Daybell less than two weeks after his wife, Tammy, died of suspicious causes

Chad Daybell

• Who is he: Influencer with the doomsday prepper group Preparing a People
• Current location: Springville, UT
• Married to: Lori Vallow
• Notable: Chad was a cemetery sexton (grave digger) and wrote a book, One Foot in the Grave, about his experiences and interactions with departed spirits.

Charles Vallow

• Who is he: Lori Vallow’s fourth husband and father to a biological son and two adopted sons, one of which is JJ
• Date of marriage: 2/24/06
• Date of death. 7/11/19
• COD: Shot and killed by Lori Vallow’s brother, Alex Cox
• Notable: Lori Vallow, Tylee Ryan, and JJ Vallow were home at the time of the shooting.

Tammy Daybell

• Who is she: Wife of Chad Daybell who died in her sleep of suspicious causes
• Date of death: 10/19/19
• COD: Unknown, awaiting autopsy
• Date of marriage: 3/9/90
• Notable: Tammy was approached by a masked man carrying what she thought was a paintball gun 10 days before her death.

Alex Cox (AKA Alex Pastenes)

• Who is he: Lori Vallow’s brother
• Date of death: 12/12/19
• COD: Unknown (but suspicious)
• Married to: Zulema Pastenes
• Date of marriage: 11/29/19
• Notable: Alex took Zulema’s last name.

Melani Pawlowski (AKA Melani Boudreaux)

• Who is she: Lori Vallow’s niece who followed her into the cult Lori joined
• Married to: Ian Pawlowski
• Date of marriage: 11/30/19
• Former spouses: Brandon Boudreaux
• Notable: Melani married Ian Pawlowski 4.5 months after Ian Pawlowski was divorced and less than two weeks after she and Brandon Boudreaux were divorced.

Brandon Boudreaux

• Who is he: Former husband of Melani Boudreaux and father of four children who was shot at
• Married to: N/A
• Former spouse: Melani Boudreaux
• Notable: Brandon is shot at 10/2/19

Zulema Pastenes

• Who is she: An LDS member and self-professed emotion code practitioner (she listed cuddling services in one of her profiles)
• Married to: Alex Cox
• Date of marriage: 11/29/19
• Notables: Zulema married Alex Cox less than two weeks before his death; Cox took Zulema’s last name; and her 25-year-old son, Joseph Lopez, found Cox unresponsive in the bathroom, didn’t know his last name, and referred to Cox as his mom’s boyfriend, not husband.

Colby Ryan

• Who is he: Lori Vallow’s adult biological son, Tylee and JJ’s half brother
• Married to: Kelsee Ryan
• Notable: Colby never knew where his mom and siblings moved to after they left Chandler, AZ.

Larry and Kay Woodcock

• Who are they: JJ’s biological grandparents, Kay is Charles Vallow’s sister**
• Notable: Larry and Kay have offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the discovery of JJ and Tylee (source).

Note: Because Charles Vallow is JJ Vallow’s adopted father, Kay Woodcock is technically both JJ’s aunt and grandmother, but she identifies as JJ’s grandmother.

Joseph Ryan

• Who is he: Lori Vallow’s third husband and biological father of Tylee Ryan and adopted father of Colby Ryan
• Date of death: 4/3/18
• Notable: Alex Cox went to jail for assaulting Ryan with a stun gun and allegedly threatened to kill Ryan (source). Also, Lori Vallow was the only next of kin the ME’s office had at the time of Ryan’s death. She never returned any of their calls or notified me of my brother’s passing, even though we had been friends since 2002 and she had my contact info. There was also no funeral for him. Another family member was contacted by a funeral home more than a month after he had died.

Melanie Gibb

• Who is she: friend of Lori Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell and the one Lori said Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow were with
• Notable:
  • She and Lori introduce their new podcast, Time to Warrior Up, 12/5/18.
  • Early on someone said Chad was a guest in this kickoff episode, but I can’t confirm since the recordings have been taken down.
  • In Feb 2019 Chad wrote the forward of her book, Feel the Fire.
  • She is unresponsive to Rexburg Police Department’s attempt(s) to get ahold of her Nov 26th (the day they question Lori and Chad about the whereabouts of JJ Vallow), forcing RPD to reach out to the Gilbert Police Department. She doesn’t speak to them until the next day, giving Chad and Lori significant lead time to flee the state.
  • She waits 10 days to inform LE in Rexburg that both Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell had contacted her separately on Nov 26th and asked her to lie to detectives and tell them JJ was with her.
  • A source close to Gibb says she has retained an attorney is cooperating with authorities.

Timeline

8/5/07: Alex Cox is arrested in Austin, TX for aggravated assault – second degree against Lori Vallow’s third husband, Joseph Ryan. Cox had used a stun gun against Ryan and threatened to kill him. Ryan had just finished a supervised visit with his four-year-old daughter, Tylee Ryan. Ryan injured his back and sprained his wrist in the fall. Cox spent 90 days in jail (source 1 / source 2).

Aug – Oct 2008: Alex Cox sends a friend a letter asking her to send him Joseph Ryan’s picture, address, and license plate number in jail, stating once that “it would be popular in here” and “some of the guys would like to hangout with him” (source 1 / source 2).

4/3/18: Lori Vallow’s third husband, Joseph Ryan, is found dead in his apartment in Gilbert, AZ. Autopsy lists heart attack as COD (source: me).

May 2018: Lori Vallow expressed fear about the end times during my visit to their home, saying that sometimes she thinks it would be better to put her kids in the car and go over the side of a cliff.

Fall 2018: According to Dateline’s “What Happened to the Children” episode, Lori Vallow and Melani Boudreaux attend a Preparing a People conference where they both meet Chad Daybell for the first time. It was reported that Lori talked with Chad afterwards and soon she was contributing to the End of Days podcast (source, 27:04).

9/23/18: Lori Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell supposedly meet, according to an anonymous email that was allegedly from a close friend of Chad (source).

ALTERNATIVE THEORY: Melanie Gibbs claimed in her interview with Nate Eaton of EastIdahoNews.com that Lori and Chad met 10/26/18 at a Preparing a People event in St. George.

Note: When I came across this Reddit post in February I dismissed it as fiction due to its references to things like zombies. Now, after reading Ian Pawlowski’s stunning document of revelations he shared with LE—but accidentally left on a laptop he gave his son—I’ve found the document to be credible, especially because there are details in this post that weren’t released to the public until after its publish date. Now I am of the opinion that a source very close to Chad indeed wrote this email.

10/26/18: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell meet at a Preparing a People event in St. George, UT (source, 4:39 minute mark).

Oct 2018: Chad Daybell starts emailing Lori Vallow (source, 00:34 minute mark)

10/30/18: Chad emails Lori a bizarre breakdown of light/dark ratings of her family members. Tylee is rated a 4.1D, only to be eclipsed by her father, Joseph Ryan, who weighed in at a 4.3D and was marked as “sealed away” (source).

11/16/18 – 11/17/18: Chad Daybell speaks at Preparing a People event in Mesa, AZ, and stays with Charles and Lori Vallow (source 1 / full transcript / source 2, 00:59 minute mark).

Note: You can see a good portion of the letter that references this stay at the 1:11 minute mark in source 2.

12/5/18: Melanie Gibb and Lori Vallow introduce their new podcast, Time to Warrior Up. This is reportedly the first podcast Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow do together (source 1 / source 2). Description of the podcast:

Jason Mow of the very popular www.TheWarChapters.com has been speaking to Youth and their Parents from all over the U.S. about what it means to be a True Modern-Day Warrior for good. “Time to Warrior Up” is a nationwide movement to become all that we were destined to become in a shifting world that needs great leaders. Of course, what would Warriors be without great WOMEN of FAITH and COURAGE? That is why Melanie Gibb and Lori Vallow had the idea to do this podcast, featuring powerful women, mothers, youth and mentors to encourage others along the pathway toward a hopeful future! They will include many unique guests who will inspire all of us to Aspire to the HIGHER within! EACH OF US were born for greatness. NOW, we have the “HOW’s” of implementing the Creeds, Tools, Steps, and Processes of The Warrior Ethos! We are marching toward victory…together! To buy Jason’s Books “A Hero Rises,” and “Teancum: The Ghost Soldier 1 & 2” go to his website: www.TheWarChapters.com These Books are also available at Deseret Book & Amazon. For more free Educational & Inspiring Videos, visit us at: www.PreparingAPeople.com

Jan 2019: JJ Vallow’s autism medication, Risperidone (source), is filled for the last time, according to court documents obtained by East Idaho News in Feb 2020. The affidavit of probable cause also states that the bottle still had 17 pills in it and that his prescription had not been filled in Idaho:

During the search of Lori’s apartment, police found an autism medication prescribed to JJ. It was filled in January 2019 and still had 17 pills in the bottle, according to documents. Police verified that the prescription has not been filled in Idaho (source).

Also, Garna Mejia from KSL TV, interviewed Vallow’s former neighbors in Rexburg, and they reported that JJ was easily angered, out of control, and playing outside unsupervised. You can hear him in a neighbor’s Ring camera video telling another boy to “get the hell out of here” (source, 1:14 minute mark).

According to neighbors, Lori never told them JJ was autistic. And when confronted about JJ’s behavior and lack of supervision, she told two different neighbors that JJ was her niece’s “drug baby” (source).

Notable: If accurate, this means Lori Vallow stopped giving her autistic son his required medication up to eight months before he went missing. You’ll also see in the second of three entries for 1/30/19 Lori allegedly also took JJ’s medication when she disappeared. It’s possible that she kept that bottle that she took, Charles had JJ’s script refilled when he got him back, and they found this partially used bottle she had been holding onto and not giving JJ since January.

1/1/19: Lori and Charles move to Gilbert (source).

1/22/19: Lori receives an email from Chad. Subject: Demon with a name, Nick Schneider. Chad told Lori that’s who took over Charles’ body. Charles texted a friend that this evil spirit had murdered him and was using him to “violate” her and her family (source, 37:39 and 39:01 min marks).

1/28/19: Lori Vallow allegedly transfers $10,000 from Charles Vallow’s business account into their personal account before moving the money into an unknown account (source / ledger). Lori also transfers 2,000 of Charles Vallow’s Enterprise points to a personal account (source), although Charles wouldn’t discover the transfer until approximately Feb 6, 2019 (source).

1/29/19: Lori Vallow allegedly transfers an additional $25,000 from the business account to the joint account, and then from the joint account to the same unknown account at Compass Bank, leaving the account at less than $1,000 (source / ledger).

1/29/19: According to a petition for an Order of Protection filed by Charles Vallow against Lori Vallow, Lori made several disturbing statements and threats to him (source). These include:

• She was a god.
• She was assigned to “carry out the work of the 144,000 at Christ’s second coming in July 2020.”
• She would have to murder him if he got in her way and tried to stop him.

1/30/19: According to a petition for an Order of Protection filed by Charles Vallow against Lori Vallow, Lori made several disturbing statements and threats in a phone call:

• She didn’t trust him.
• She would need to kill him when he got home.
• She would have an “angel” there to help dispose of his body.
• She knew his real name was Nick Schneider. Allegedly, when Charles asked Lori who Nick Schneider was, she replied, “Nick is your real name,” Lori said, according to the documents, “Nick killed Charles and has taken his identity” (source).
• He’d “have to go and painfully.”
• She also threatened to destroy him financially, according to court documents filed by Charles (source).

Note: Lori Vallow’s friend, April Raymond—who Vallow stayed with during part of the 58 days she went missing—also claimed in an interview on Dateline‘s “Where Are the Children?” that Lori said Charles was dead and had a demon living inside of him. According to Raymond, she later changed her story and said he was alive but that any day she (Vallow) was going to get a call that he was dead (source, 15:57 & 21:38 minute marks).

1/30/19: Lori Vallow allegedly cancels Charles Vallow’s flight home, which he found out when he arrived at the airport in Houston, TX. Charles was forced to buy a $600 last-minute ticket to Phoenix. After his plane landed, Charles walked out to the airport parking lot where he had left his truck. Yet he couldn’t find it anywhere. Lori had used her spare key to remove the truck. He came home to a house that had been emptied. Charles also claimed that it took Lori three days to disclose where she’d left the truck. Charles was forced to rent a vehicle during that time (source / order for temporary custody, p 3, para ).

Let’s first take a look at some of the OTHER acts of cruelty Charles reportedly came home to:

• She wiped out his business account, withdrawing $35,000. That’s been reported on quite a bit. But one thing I haven’t seen reported on at all is the smaller withdrawals made after the $25,000 the day before. According to the ledger, after the $35,000 in withdrawals, the account had $911.53 remaining. But then there are two more withdrawals made on the 30th: one for $500 and then another for $250, leaving the account with $161.53. And THEN $100 was put toward a credit card payment, leaving the account with $61.53. I don’t know if these were made by Lori. If they were, it demonstrates a chilling level of cruelty.
• She hid his truck, and it took him three days to find it.
• She hid his clothes and computer in what appears to be an attempt to cripple him in his business. Even his underwear? Really?
• She did this right before payroll was due, leaving him vulnerable to lawsuits. She victimized every employee in Charles’ company with this theft.
• She took her disabled son’s meds, his iPad, and his service dog’s collar.
• She changed the locks to the house.
• And then she went MIA and didn’t tell Charles where she was.

1/30/19: Lori Vallow disappears to an unknown location, according to then-husband, Charles Vallow (source 1 / source 2, 1:02 minute mark / source 3, para 3). She was allegedly gone for 58 days.

Notable: At least part of that time was spent in Hawaii with daughter Tylee Ryan, as well as with her brother, Alex Cox who lived nearby in Gilbert, AZ (source).

1/31/19: Lori Vallow is compelled to report to the Gilbert Police Department in regard to a harassment call for service submitted by Charles Vallow (source). Police are also informed about a petition for an involuntary hold at Community Bridges. Police say Lori would be allowed to go to the facility willingly to talk to staff. If she did not, she would be taken involuntarily. Complicating matters, Charles had taken Lori’s purse out of her car when she went into JJ’s school and refused to return it . Only after police inform him that he needed to bring the purse and petition to the station or face theft charges did he say that he found it in the parking lot. The document states, “Charles had many excuses as to why he did not give it back to her.”

2/4/19: Charles Vallow files petition for an Order of Protection against Lori Vallow, citing incidences listed in the entries for 1/29 and 1/30 (source).

Note: Lori was never served the document because process servers were unsuccessful in locating her, as detailed in the entries below.

2/5/19: JJ Vallow is absent from school at L.I.F.E. Academy in Gilbert, AZ (source).

2/5/19: Charles Vallow is threatened with legal action because of not being able to meet payroll due to the $35,000 Lori Vallow withdrew from the business account (source). According to the divorce petition, Charles owes $22,500 in commission to a few contracted representatives (source).

2/6/19: Approximate date Charles Vallow realizes Lori Vallow transferred 2,000 Rent-A-Car points out of their joint account. Charles also finds out Lori had called J.J.’s school to ask if he was in class. He was worried she may have been planning to use the rental car points to potentially leave the state and take J.J. with her (source).

2/8/19: Charles Vallow files for divorce from Lori Vallow (source / documents).

Pro Tip: To read the document, right-click on each image and choose Open Image in New Tab. I open each of them and then read them in order. In Chrome, to zoom in on the image click the zoom icon (it should have a + sign) or press Ctrl-+ (Mac: Command-+).

2/8/19: Approximate date Charles Vallow removes Lori Vallow as sole beneficiary from his life insurance policy upon the advice of Charles’ attorney, Taylor Lawson (source, 00:54 minute mark).

Note: I approximate this date because Charles’ attorney allegedly advised him to remove Lori when he filed for divorce. From an Fox 10 article published Feb 13, 2020 (source):

Charles’ former attorney, Taylor Larson, told Lum that it is rare to make changes to life insurance beneficiaries way ahead of a divorce being finalized, but Charles did tell the lawyer that he feared for his life, and did not want Lori to know he planned remove her from the policy.

“Because of the circumstances surrounding it, with him fearing for his life and really stressing to us there’s some credibility here, and so we went ahead and advised him to change it right away,” said Larson.

2/10/19: Lori Vallow flew with Tylee Ryan to Kaua’i, HI, according to then-husband, Charles Vallow (source, 1:02 minute mark). She was allegedly gone for 58 days.

Notable: At least part of that time was spent in Hawaii with daughter Tylee Ryan, as well as with her brother, Alex Cox who lived nearby in Gilbert, AZ. (source).

Note: The date was confirmed by April Raymond, the friend Lori visited in Kaua’i.

2/11/19: Charles Vallow visits L.I.F.E. Academy (source). Charles met with school officials and made a handful of claims:

• Lori had “gone crazy.”
• Lori was “hearing religious voices.”
• Lori had “disappeared to an unknown location.”
• He had secured a protection order against Lori.
• He was pulling JJ out of school and taking him out of state until he’s safe.

2/15/19: Charles Vallow files a document asking for temporary custody of J.J., exclusive use of the house and vehicle, return of the stolen money and return of his and J.J.’s personal items. Several attempts were made to serve Lori, but process servers were unsuccessful, even though Lori’s car was seen in Alex Cox’s driveway when a server tried to serve her there. She was reportedly living with her brother, Alex Cox, at that time (source).

2/16/19: Preparing a People holds a one-day conference in Boise, Idaho. Chad Daybell is one of the speakers (conference flyer / PAP statement that includes location of Chad’s last speaking engagement).

Note: It appears Charles believed Lori Vallow was planning to attend this event, which led to an attempt by process servers to serve Lori with papers at the airport.

When Charles learned Lori was going to Boise with a friend, he “made attempts to serve (her) at the airport, a hotel, and a public event.” All attempts were unsuccessful, and Charles came to believe that Lori had changed her travel plans at the last minute (source).

Feb 2019: Lori Vallow, upon landing in Kaua’i with Tylee Ryan, called her friend, April Raymond, to tell her she was leaving Charles and asked if they could stay with her (source, 16:52 minute mark).

Feb 2019: Chad Daybell writes forward for colleague and friend Melanie Gibb’s book Feel the Fire (source / screenshot).

Mid Feb 2019: The Daily Mail reported in January 2020 that Lori Vallow and Alex Cox had a “knock-down, drag-out fight” in the middle of the street fight while she was living with him “around a year ago.” The fight between Vallow and Cox was reportedly so bad that neighbors were close to calling the police on the “warring siblings.” Neighbor Donny Self told the Daily Mail, “She was screaming at him accusing him of bringing disgrace on their family.” After it was over, Vallow left the house she had been sharing with her brother and never came back, Self said.

Note: Until I get further clarification on the timing of this fight, I’m going to drop it here in the timeline because over the overlap in neighbors reporting that the fight had happened about a year prior to January 2020 and the process servers note that both Lori and Alex’s cars were in the driveway. I know that process servers also tried to meet her at the airport because Charles believed she was traveling to Boise, ID, with a friend, and we know from a flyer that Chad Daybell (the man Lori would marry before the year was over) was speaking at a Preparing a People conference in Boise Feb 16. (See entry for 2/16/19.)

2/21/19: Charles Vallow and JJ Vallow return to L.I.F.E. Academy in Gilbert, AZ. Lori is reported to still be MIA (source).

2/21/19: Approximate date staff at L.I.F.E. Academy in Gilbert, AZ, make a report to CPS regarding JJ because Lori Vallow had still not been located (source).

3/1/19: Charles Vallow files to dismiss divorce proceedings (source).

3/6/19: Court approves Charles Vallow’s dismissal of divorce proceedings (source).

3/7/19: Charles Vallow withdraws son, JJ Vallow, from school in AZ and moves to Houston, TX (source).

3/26/19: Charles exchanges text messages with a friend. The friend passed them on to a producer with Dateline (source, 39:01).

Charles: I truly feel there is no good ending for her. Emotionally JJ is about 4. He will remember bits and pieces. But thankfully not the pain she’s put a lot of people thru for her “mission from God”.
Friend: Charles I appreciate you and trusting me with your hearts issue you are safe here. I will continue to pray, for you and your family. You have a friend here that you can truly trust. I have to go now and will keep you updated sleep well my friend. Go with God
C: ❤?❤

—

F: I still can’t believe it!
C: 58 days. Believe it. The beautiful sweet Lori you and I knew is gone. She actually believes I’m not Charles. She says an evil spirit named Nick Schneider murdered me and is using me to “violate” her and her family. Not kidding. Gotta get out of here.
F: Holy camel I can’t even relate.
F: Who the fake is Nick Shhneider [sic]
F: The last time I saw Lori she couldn’t say enough wonderful things about…

—

C: Things have changed so dramatically in the past 6 months. Something snapped. It is so unbelievable and scary. I’m thankful she doesn’t see JJ…She wants him and for me to disappear. Seriously…..It’s the freakiest thing I’ve ever experienced…she’s with a group of people called “woke” and “preparing a people”. She actually believes I’m not Charles. She says an evil spirit named Nick Schneider murdered me and is using me to “violate” her….

3/29/19: Lori Vallow returns home (source). (She had abandoned her husband Charles and 7 year old son JJ Vallow for 58 days.)

Note: I derived this date by adding 58 to Jan 30. (Did you know you can run mathematical functions against dates in Excel. But I digress….)

4/9/19: Chad Daybell’s friend and doomsday podcaster, Julie Rowe, is told she would be excommunicated from the Church of Latter Day Saints “based on the charges of (1) apostasy, (2) teaching false doctrine, (3) priestcraft, and (4) defaming the good name of the Church.” She and her husband have appealed the decision but expect it to be denied (source).

5/31/19: Chad Daybell cancels speaking gig at a Preparing a People conference due to a family emergency (source). The announcement reads:

David Warwick and Shawn Littlebear will be filling in for Chad Daybell, who had a Family Emergency. We regret he won’t be able to attend this PAP Event.

June 2019: Melani Boudreaux asks husband Brandon Boudreaux for a divorce. Brandon said, “I thought I had a happy marriage, so it was pretty overwhelming” (source).

6/20/19: Lori Vallow moves into her rental home in Chandler, AZ (source: Facebook post by landlord that was subsequently deleted).

6/29/19: Charles Vallow sends email to Lori Vallow’s brother, Adam Cox, to say he’s suspicious of Lori and Chad’s relationship and plans to reach out to Tammy about his concerns (source, 1:37 minute mark).

Excerpt of forged letter from Charles to Chad:

I would gladly fly you down here early next week…you could stay in our guest room like before. I hate to take you away from your family, but I would definitely make it worth your time. With Admiration, Charles.

Excerpt of email from Charles to Adam:

I’m not sure of the relationship with her and Chad Daybell but they are up to something…She will not explain it…I am going to send it to Chad Daybell’s wife. Her name is Tammy and I found her email address on their website too…I’ve got her cell number too.

Late Jun 2019: Lori contacts L.I.F.E. Academy to let them know the family was back in Gilbert, and she enrolled JJ in the school summer program (source).

7/11/19: Charles Vallow is shot by Alex Cox (source / source). According to Fox reporter Justin Lum, the shooting occurred around 8:30am (source). Cox claims self-defense (source) and calls 911 (recording). Alex Cox was questioned by LE outside the home, which was recorded on bodycam and can be viewed here and here. An officer goes into the home to look around and sees the body of deceased Charles Vallow. Bodycam video can be viewed here. (Warning: graphic footage.) Lori Vallow and 17-year-old Tylee Ryan were interviewed outside the home, which was recorded on bodycam and can be viewed here (starting at the 1:15-minute mark). Lori Vallow (source), Alex Cox and Tylee Ryan (source) are all questioned at the police station, and transcripts of their Lori’s interview can be viewed here and Tylee’s here. Cox’s has not been released as of Feb 9, 2020. There are reportedly contradictions in their stories (source), but no arrests are made.

Notable:

• Alex was staying at the house where Charles Vallow was shot, despite living 23 miles away (source, 25:16 minute mark).
• Colby Ryan, Lori Vallow’s adult son, later claims that his mother called him the day Charles died and said he died of a heart attack. When he got to the house he discovers his stepdad had actually been shot by his uncle (source, 9:32 minute mark).
• Charles was scheduled to look at apartments with the landlord after dropping JJ off at school (source: landlord in a Facebook post that was subsequently deleted).
• Alex said Charles attacked him with a baseball but only had trace amounts of blood on a napkin he dabs the back of his head with (source, 25:10 & 28:05 minute marks).
• Alex said Lori, Tylee, and JJ left before the shooting (source, 25:23 minute mark); Lori told police she had been at home when Charles was shot but needed to leave to take JJ to school (source, 25:45 minute mark).
• Lori was glib and playful when talking to the officer at the scene (source, 26:00 minute marker).
• Dateline’s Keith Morrison described Tylee’s demeanor as “somehow apologetic but overly composed.” Chandler detective Nathan Moffat described Tylee as “very well spoken.” He said Tylee told Detective Cassandra Ynclan, “In retrospect, I probably shouldn’t have gotten the bat.” Moffat noted that as weird but then walked it back (source, 28:32 minute mark). Author’s note: Moffat’s tone seemed to suggest Tylee had possibly been coached in what to say.
• Moffat described the ride in the police with Lori, Alex, and Tylee as “straight-up bizarre.” He added, “It was the weirdest ride I’ve ever had with three strangers.” He described Lori as “happy go lucky,” and said she was smiling and nonchalant. “You would have thought we just recovered their stolen vehicle” (source, 28:48 minute mark).
• No one has come forward saying that Charles was given to rages or abusive behavior. Not his ex-wife (source, 31:31 minute mark), not Lori’s adult son Colby (source, 11:26 minute mark), and not Lori and Charles’ mutual friend April Raymond (source, 33:23 minute mark). I also never saw Charles exhibit abusive behavior or rage, but I had far less exposure to Charles than the others referenced here. UPDATE: A group by the name of WTAF FOIA’d thousands of pages of court records from Lori Vallow and Joe Ryan’s divorce, and Charles did have a number of allegations against him, both of domestic violence toward Cheryl, as well as his attorney’s wife. There were also allegations of pretty menacing behavior toward Joe Ryan (my brother). He was still a victim, obviously. I just try to keep this outline as free from sentiment and hyperbole as possible, even when it involves people I cared about.

7/11/19: Neighbors report that the family hosts a pool party at the house where Charles Vallow was shot the day of the shooting. They report there are lots of people and loud music (source).

7/12/19: Lori Vallow texts her stepsons a little after 4:30pm—approximately 20 hours after Charles Vallow was shot—to tell them their father had died. She doesn’t tell them how he had died, and when one of the sons asked, she answered, “We are still waiting for the ME report.” The son asks a series of questions, trying to find out what happens. No response. 6:54pm he asks again, with building frustration/anger. 8:20pm he texts again. Lori replies again that she is still waiting for the ME. She does not tell them he was shot (source).

7/12/19: Cheryl Wheeler, Charles Vallow’s ex-wife and mother of his two grown sons, finds out from the ME’s website that Charles’ death had been classified a homicide. She then searches Google for more information and discovers from news reports out of Chandler, AZ, that Alex Cox had shot him (source).

7/12/19: Approximate date Lori Vallow attempts to file a claim on Charles Vallow’s life insurance policy and discovers she had been removed as sole beneficiary. Charles had made his sister Kay Woodcock beneficiary. (See 2/8/19 entry.)

7/13/19: Lori sends another text to Charles’ son after a couple promptings in the late afternoon. It just says, “I’m still waiting working on arrangements and sorting things out the best I can.” Charles’ son asks why she won’t just tell them what happened (source).

7/14/19: Lori Vallow leaves a voice message for one of Charles’ grown sons inviting him to talk (source).

7/15/19: One of Charles’ adult sons texts Lori Vallow again, saying that it had been three days with still no answers about how their dad died (source). He wrote, “The only information we have is that one text from you saying he passed away. You disappeared after that. We need any information you have. What happened, when did it happen, how did it happen. Where is he now. Are there any funeral plans and can [redacted] and I be a part of it.” He later asks why Colby and Tylee haven’t contacted them at all and why Colby didn’t answer his call. He ends the text with, “This isn’t a nonchalant topic you can just throw a text at and be done with it.”

7/16/19: Ian Pawlowski (future husband to Melani Boudreaux) divorces his wife, according to the date of divorce listed on his Facebook profile page (source).

7/22/19: Approximate date Lori Vallow tells an official at L.I.F.E. Academy that Charles Vallow committed suicide (source).

Late Jul 2019: Lori Vallow allegedly texts Charles Vallow’s sister, Kay Woodcock, having just discovered she had been removed as sole beneficiary from Charles Vallow’s $1 million life insurance policy. Kay alleges she wrote”something to the effect of”: “Five kids and no money and his sister gets everything” (source, 00:55 minute mark).

Notable: At this time Lori Vallow had two children living in the home, one adult son, and two adult stepsons.

Jul – Aug 2019: After learning Charles was shot—and not the victim of suicide as Lori had told them—L.I.F.E. Academy files a report with Arizona’s Department of Child Safety (source).

8/5/19: JJ Vallow starts the new school year at L.I.F.E. Academy (source).

8/9/19: Lori Vallow puts JJ Vallow’s service dog Bailey up for sale (source). City: Chandler, AZ. Ad number: 20875. Description:

“Bailey has such a sweet spirit- he has brought so much love to his home, but his owner recently died and he needs a new home. He is fully trained with certification as a service dog. Up to date on vaccinations. Has been trained with children in the home, non-smoking home. Bailey is sweet and friendly around other dogs. Looking for new owners who will appreciate and love him the way he has been loved! Spent 7,000 on service training, he is a full bred golden doodle, has experience on airplanes, has experience with people with autism.”

Notable: Vallow was later told by the organization they got the dog from that she couldn’t sell the dog; she would need to return him. Bailey has since been placed with a new family of a boy with autism. (This was shared in a private Facebook post.)

8/10/19: The last time Kay Vallow Woodcock hears from JJ Vallow via FaceTime. Call was reportedly 35 seconds long (source). They will be edged out of JJ Vallow’s life for a little more three months, with multiple attempts to get ahold of them (source, 46:38 minute mark).

8/10/19: Kay Vallow Woodcock texts Lori Vallow to ask to see JJ. She says, “We’re not up to anything except to see our little boy.” Kay says she never received a response from Lori (source).

8/25/19: Kay Vallow Woodcock sends Lori Vallow another email begging to FaceTime and visit JJ (source).

8/27/19: Date Lori Vallow’s apartment was taken off the market (source).

Note: Melani Boudreaux’s apartment was taken off the market three days before she actually signed the lease. So Lori may have signed the lease a few days later when she rolled into town.

Notable: As of 4/5/20, the apartment still isn’t on the market, according to Zillow’s records. Alex’s was listed for rent the week after Lori, Chad, and Alex fled Rexburg, but Lori’s is still open.

8/28/19: Date Alex Cox’s apartment was taken off the market (source).

Notable: Alex’s apartment was listed for rent 12/2/19; the rent was reduced 1/3/20 (shortly after this case went public); and it was sold 2/10/20.

8/30/19: Lori Vallow stops by the workplace of her oldest son, Colby Ryan, to tell him in the parking lot that she, Tylee, and JJ were moving the next day (source, 22:35 minute mark). Colby says he didn’t ask where they were moving and didn’t find out they had moved to Rexburg, ID, until detectives came to his door Nov 27, 2019, to inquire about the whereabouts of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow (24:57 minute mark).

8/30/19: Colby Ryan told Gilbert Police he last spoke with Tylee Ryan over FaceTime. According to court records, Ryan said after that his mother gave him excuses as to why Tylee couldn’t talk to him (source).

Notable: So does this mean Colby had a FaceTime call with Tylee after saying goodbye to her in the parking lot of his workplace? And why FaceTime when they still lived near each other?

8/30/19: Lori Vallow has JJ Vallow’s service dog, Bailey, picked up by Dog Training Elite in Arizona. Vallow had asked the organization to find the Goldendoodle to find another family because she could no longer care for the pet due to a “change in life circumstances” (source).

Author note: Bailey was an adorable and sweet-natured dog that stayed close by JJ’s side and ran more like a bear cub than a dog when I was there in 2018. ?

8/31/19: Lori Vallow moves with Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow to Rexburg, ID.

Late August: JJ Vallow’s grandparents, Kay and Larry Woodcock, call L.I.F.E. Academy to “asking if JJ was okay” (source).

9/3/19: Lori Vallow enrolls JJ Vallow at Kennedy Elementary School in Rexburg, ID (source).

9/4/19: JJ Vallow’s first day at Kennedy Elementary School in Rexburg, ID (source).

9/5/19: Lori Vallow emails L.I.F.E Academy, JJ’s school in Chandler, AZ, to say she needed to withdraw him. She allegedly told staff over the phone that she accepted a position in California—which was not true—and that his father committed suicide—which was also not true (source).

9/6/19: Neighbors take a pic of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow with an unidentified child through their blinds. When asked why they said it was because they thought it was strange that the children were using stuffed animals to play in a large puddle of water (source 1 / source 2, 00:55 minute mark).

Note: This is the second-to-last time Tylee is seen alive. The last time is two days later in Sep 8, two days later.

9/7/19: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

9/8/19: Last day Tylee Ryan is seen alive. In a picture obtained from Lori Vallow’s iCloud account, Ryan is seen at the entrance of Yellowstone National Park. Ryan was at the park with Lori Vallow, Alex Cox, and JJ Vallow. “This is the last time we can find any record of [Ryan] being with Lori Vallow,” the affidavit of probable cause says. “We have found no witnesses who can verify they have seen [Ryan] since Sept. 8, 2019” (source).

Author’s note: This detail, in concert with the nanny interview (see 9/18/19 entry below), indicates Tylee may have met her fate at the hands of Alex and Lori at Yellowstone. I’m of the persuasion that Lori may have gone one way with JJ and Alex another with Tylee…. I hope to God I’m wrong. But if I’m right, the fact that Lori would take a pic of Tylee at the entrance—just to be led off like a lamb to the slaughter later that day—is suggestive of getting a keepsake of the moment.

When I went in to be interviewed for the Dateline episode someone kindly offered to take a picture of me. I declined, telling him I didn’t want to remember this day. I’m not trying to set myself up as some kind of model to be emulated, and I’m not seeking the highest moral ground I can find. There would have been nothing wrong with agreeing to the pic. I just knew I’d never flip back through my photos and want to see any reminder of this nightmare. So, in my mind, the fact that Lori would take a pic of Tylee at the entrance as a keepsake is potentially bone chilling. I am no longer willing to give her any benefit of the doubt. The fact that she could [allegedly] refer to JJ as her niece’s “drug baby,” lie repeatedly, try to hinder the investigation, and do everything else she’s done before and after Tylee and JJ went missing disqualifies her from receiving any more benefits from me. The Lori I knew and loved appears to be gone.

She has the right to a fair trial by law; I’m not beholden to extend her those same rights.

9/17/19: Lori Vallow’s neighbor in Rexburg, ID, captures last-known footage of JJ Vallow playing outside (source, 00:57 minute mark).

9/18/19: A nanny Lori Vallow hires through care.com for what she thinks is long-term care comes to the house for the first time to babysit JJ. She tells the nanny her husband died of a heart attack in Arizona and that her daughter was going to school in Rexburg. (She wasn’t.) The nanny describes Tylee’s presence in the home as intermittent visits:

“Occasionally her daughter would come visit for dinner or to do laundry, but she never said that she lived there with them. It appeared that only Lori and JJ lived there, from the look of things and from what she told me” (source).

Read the entire Twitter thread for 9/18 here.

Notable: It would appear Tylee Ryan went missing sometime between Sep 8th and Sep 18th. ?

9/18/19: Kay Vallow Woodcock sends Lori Vallow another email begging to be able to call, FaceTime, and visit with JJ (source).

9/19/19: The nanny Lori Vallow hires returns for a second day of caring for JJ. She notes several things from that day:

• Vallow joked that sometimes she gives JJ his meds early so he’ll go to sleep earlier to give her a break.
• Vallow told her that her brother, Alex Cox, is going to come over and they’re going to the Idaho Falls Airport.
• Cox came over, just said “hello,” and left with Lori.
• JJ went to play at a neighbor’s house and came home for dinner.
• After dinner he wanted to go back to the friend’s house, but the nanny said no.
• JJ had a meltdown and threw furniture and told the nanny he he hated her and didn’t want to be her friend.
• Nanny went upstairs to find JJ and found him under Lori’s bed.
• JJ’s room only had toys, no bed.
• JJ slept on a small mattress in the corner in Lori’s room.
• Lori, Alex, and Lori’s friend came home.
• Lori “babied” JJ to comfort him.
• Lori told the nanny the woman did podcasts with her.
• Lori gave her $40 cash and then never had her back.

Read the entire Twitter thread for 9/19 here.

Notable: This out-of-town friend was in Lori’s home day just four days before JJ was last seen. So who’s the mystery woman? I’m only aware of two female blogging buddies, and one has denied ever meeting Lori and her kids and the other told LE less than a week later she hadn’t seen JJ in months.

9/19/19: Rexburg woman claims to have been on flight with Chad Daybell on a flight from Idaho Falls to Mesa, AZ. The woman said Daybell planned to help a relative in the Valley who needed to remodel her home. “He said I hope we can get this work done in the time that I have before I have to be back,” said the woman who wished to remain anonymous (source, 35:05).

9/19/19 – 9/23/19: Melanie Gibb visits Lori Vallow in Rexburg (source).

Notable: Tylee was already missing, and Melanie said Lori never so much as mentioned her, except to say she was at BYU (33:53). You said in this question that it could have been possible, but “it didn’t feel like it” and that there were “question marks” and “didn’t feel like the truth.”

9/23/19: JJ Vallow is last seen at Kennedy Elementary (source). No requests are made for JJ’s transcripts (source).

9/24/19: Lori Vallow disenrolls JJ Vallow from school, indicating she would homeschool him. JJ is not seen with her (source).

9/24/19: Lori Vallow tells babysitter JJ had gone to stay with his grandma for several weeks, and she was in Hawaii and that the babysitter’s services were no longer needed. According to the affidavit of probable cause obtained by East Idaho News, Police Detective Ron Ball reported, “We contacted this babysitter and she informed us that she watched (JJ) on the 19th of September…The babysitter understood that her employment was to be ongoing” (source 1 / source 2).

9/24/19: Tylee Ryan’s 17th birthday passes with no social media posts.

Correction: I originally thought Colby’s text exchange with Tylee below was on her birthday, 9/24, because he wishes her a happy birthday. According to Dr. Phil it was on 9/28.

9/28/19: Colby Ryan has a text exchange with Tylee Ryan four days after her birthday and tells Dr. Phil that it didn’t sound like her. He asked her to call him that night, and she didn’t (source).

Transcript:

C: Hey Ty!! Happy birthday I’m so proud of you! I know you have been through [a lot]…Trust god, it’s all gonna be okay…

T: Thanks colbs. I love you

//Colby commented she would normally use emojis here.

C: Hey ty are you okay?

T: I’m good just tired…Call you back later. Love you

C: Okay call me tonight please

T: at the movie. I’ll call you after

//She didn’t call him.

C: Ty please call me after your movie. I’m worried about you.

T: Worried about me? What?

C: …I just wanna hear you talk…

T: Ok this week was just busy. I’ll call you soon.

//Colby commented that he was confused by this, wondering what a busy week had to do with calling him back.

C: Okay. Please call me tonight if you can.

Author’s Note: Colby said in his interview with Justin Lum that he didn’t feel like her texts started getting weird until “later in October” (source, 27:50). One thing I really don’t understand about the Cox family is how this went on so long. It will be almost two months from this date before Kay and Larry Woodcock request a welfare check. But Lori Vallow’s niece, Melani Pawlowski, was in Rexburg 10/28/19 to sign a lease and stayed until 10/31. Then she permanently moved into the apartment right next door to Lori. Yet there have been no accounts of family members calling each other to see if anyone has heard from Tylee or JJ. When I stayed with Lori in 2018 and visited in 2003, family was in and out all the time. Most family members lived within minutes of each other outside the Phoenix area (Chandler, Gilbert, and the San Tan Valley). Yet these kids went missing and undiscovered for 2+ months because of what appears to have been radio silence between family members. By the time they were discovered missing, the Rexburg area was covered in snow, and now we are dealing with a pandemic, so they may have to wait even longer before searches can begin. It’s one of the more crushing aspects of this case. ?

Late September: Chad Daybell and friend and fellow doomsday author Julie Rowe speak by phone about Tammy’s imminent death. From a Fox 13 post (source):

Three weeks before Tammy’s death, Rowe and Daybell called each other.

“And I asked him, do you still see Tammy dying? And he said yes I do,” said Rowe.

Tammy was in charge of the finances and covers for Daybell’s books. Rowe said Daybell wanted to get out of the business, but Tammy wanted to keep going.

“He said I’m ready to get out now and Tammy doesn’t want to get out. When she passes, I’m done, I can’t keep doing this,” said Rowe.

10/1/19: Lori Vallow opens a 10×10’ storage unit at Self Storage Plus in Rexburg, ID (source).

Notable: This storage unit is 350 yards from the Rexburg Transfer Station—aka the city dump (Google Map). ?

10/1/19: Last time Janis Cox, Lori Vallow’s mother, speaks to JJ. She alleges that she spoke to him on the phone and provided a copy of their phone bill as proof (source).

Note: It goes without saying (though I’ll say it anyway) that a phone bill only proves a call was made to Lori’s cell phone, not that she spoke to JJ.

10/2/19: Lori Vallow orders the ring later shown in her wedding photos from Amazon using Charles Vallow’s account (source).

Notable: This is 17 days before Chad Daybell’s wife, Tammy Daybell, died.

10/2/19: Lori Vallow and a man who appears to be Chad Daybell are seen on surveillance at the storage unit (source).

From the East Idaho News site:

Timestamps on the video show a blue Rogue arriving at 1:25 p.m. but the owner of the storage facility says clocks were off by one hour, so Lori actually pulled in at 2:25 p.m. She made her way to the door of the building where her unit was, and two minutes later, at 2:27 p.m., got out of the vehicle with the man we believe is Chad.

At 2:29 p.m., he pulled a tire out of the back of the Rogue and rolled it into the storage unit. One minute later, he and Lori carried in what appears to be a removable rear car seat together. They put it in the locker, shut the door and left the facility at 2:32 p.m. The entire visit was seven minutes.

Note: Reporter Nate Eaton offers a plausible explanation for why Lori and [allegedly] Chad would have been moving a tire and removable back seat into the storage unit: Brandon Boudreaux said someone shot at him out of the back window of the Jeep. The back window of that model Jeep doesn’t open if the tire is attached. Ergo, it’s possible they removed the back seat and tire of the Jeep. Then Lori and Chad moved it into the storage unit (source, 2:31 minute mark).

Bonus: Chad Daybell—still married to Tammy Daybell at the time—acts in a manner you might find a bit salacious for a married man whose wife will conveniently die in one week to the day at the 1:41 minute mark.

10/2/19: Brandon Boudreaux is shot at outside his home in Gilbert, AZ around 9:30am (source, 1:44 minute mark). The shooter was driving Tylee Ryan’s 2018 Jeep Wrangler, which is registered in Charles Vallow’s name (source 1 / source 2, 41:25 minute mark). Boudreaux later identifies Alex Cox as the shooter (source 1 / source 2, 42:07 minute mark).

10/3/19: The browser history on the computer from which Lori Vallow’s wedding ring was ordered the day before shows someone searching for wedding dresses (source).

10/3/19: Lori Vallow and a man “who appears to be her brother, Alex Cox,”are seen on surveillance at the storage unit (source). Vallow and Cox retrieve the tire and backseat and put them into Vallow’s car (source, 3:08 minute mark).

10/4/19: Tammy Daybell visits parents in Springville, UT, allegedly at Chad’s urging. Chad Daybell claims divine urging from ancestors (private Facebook post).

10/6/19: Alex Cox visits the storage unit by himself (source, 3:49 minute mark).

10/9/19: Tammy Daybell files a report with the Rexburg Police Department, claiming to be shot at by a masked man carrying a paintball gun (source 1 / source 2, 43:24 minute mark)

10/9/19: Last time Melani Pawlowski has seen her kids (source).

10/10/19: Tylee Ryan’s Venmo account shows a payment to her older half brother, Colby Ryan, with “we love you” in the description field (source).

10/12/19: Allegedly, Chad buys rope and a ski mask at Cabela’s in Idaho Falls (source).

Note: I almost didn’t include this because it’s as unverified as a claim can get. But I decided to just add it with a disclaimer.

10/14/19: Approximate date Melani Boudreaux allegedly texts her estranged husband, Brandon, to let him know she planned to move to Boise (source). Text reads:

The kids could remain with you in Arizona, you would have to arrange for daycare, and I could have the kids for school holidays and summers. Or I could take the kids to Idaho and enroll them in school there and you could have the kids for school holidays and summers. Please let me know what you’d like to do.

10/16/19: Tylee Ryan’s Venmo account shows a payment to her older half brother, Colby Ryan, with a heart emoji in the description field (source).

Note: This transaction was removed from Tylee’s feed sometime after March 1.You can see a screenshot of it here.

10/16/19: A man allegedly accesses Lori Vallow’s storage unit and spends what appears to be 6 minutes on premises (source, 1:18:00 minute mark).

10/19/19: Tammy Daybell dies in her sleep, according to husband Chad Daybell. He claims she went to bed with a cough and just didn’t wake up. Her death is believed to be natural and no autopsy is performed (source). An investigator told East Idaho News reporter Nate Eaton that Chad “didn’t seem all that curious about how she died” (source, 42:56 minute mark).

10/19/19: One of Chad Daybell’s daughters allegedly says to Chad Daybell friend and colleague Julie Rowe that she was most afraid of her dad getting remarried (source, 1:25 minute mark).

10/22/19: Tammy Daybell is interred in Spring Creek, ID (source).

10/22/19: A man allegedly accesses Lori Vallow’s storage unit and spends 9 minutes on premises (source, 1:18:00 minute mark).

10/23/19: A memorial service is held for Tammy Daybell in Rexburg, ID. Chad’s younger brother, Matt Daybell, later tells East Idaho News that he and Chad had not “directly spoken to each other” since the service in Rexburg on Oct. 23 (source). “Since that time, I have texted Chad twice. Once, when I heard from a neighbor of his quick marriage to Lori Vallow, expressing to him my shock and dismay at this news,” Matt Daybell says. “Second, just recently, pleading with Chad to cooperate with authorities and reveal the whereabouts of his new stepchildren.”

10/25/19: A friend of Tylee receives a text from Tylee but says it didn’t sound like her (source).

10/25/19: A man allegedly accesses Lori Vallow’s storage unit and spends 10 minutes on premises (source, 1:18:00 minute mark).

10/25/19: Date Melani Boudreaux’s Rexburg apartment was taken off the market (source).

10/26/19: A man allegedly accesses Lori Vallow’s storage unit and spends 11 minutes on premises (source, 1:18:00 minute mark).

10/28/19: Two men who appear to be Alex Cox and Chad Daybell are seen moving bikes and other items into the storage unit Lori Vallow rented Oct 1 in Rexburg, ID (source 1 / source 2, 3:58 minute mark). They allegedly spend 6 minutes on premises (source, 1:18:00 minute mark).

10/28/19: Melani Boudreaux signs a lease on her apartment in the same complex as Lori Vallow and Alex Cox (source).

10/29/19: Unidentified woman seen playfully running through the snow and then approaching Lori Vallow’s apartment (source).

10/31/19: Melani Boudreaux and Alex Cox fly from Idaho Falls to Phoenix and then pack up Melani to move to Rexburg, ID (source).

10/31/19: Approximate date nanny texts Lori one last time about working for her. Lori never responds (source).

10/31/19: Rich Robertson, a private investigator hired by Brandon Boudreaux, sees Melani Boudreaux and Alex Cox outside her home taking her children’s clothes, toys, and beds to the curb (source 1, 42:56 minute mark / source 2).

Late Oct 2019: Colby Ryan says communication with Tylee Ryan started to change. He started calling and FaceTiming her, but she wouldn’t answer and always had a reason for why she couldn’t talk. And they didn’t sound like her, he told Fox reporter Justin Lum.

Lum: “But did it sound like how she would text and how she would talk?”

Ryan: “It [sic] was bouncing back and they just didn’t seem normal…And all these things started piecing together (source, 27:50).

Update: Colby told Dr. Phil that his text exchange with Tylee on 9/28/19 didn’t sound like her (e.g., she would have used an emoji over saying that she loved him) and that he was worried (source).

Late Oct/Early Nov 2019: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell lie about the death and even existence of Lori’s children. Rexburg Police Department publish witness testimony is a press release alleging that Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell both lied about the children’s existence:

“We are aware that in the weeks after Tammy Daybell’s death, Lori Vallow/Daybell and Chad Daybell told witnesses that Lori’s daughter had died a year before the death of her father, which is untrue. Around that same time Chad told another witness that Lori had no minor children” (source 1, source 2, 42:56 minute mark)

According to an affidavit obtained by East Idaho News in February 2020, LE also interview Chad Daybell’s parents and Tammy Daybell’s sister. There was no date in the article Daybell’s parents tell detectives Chad and Lori had told them in November that Lori was an “empty nester.” Tammy’s sister reports that Chad told them Lori had no juvenile children (source).

Note: There was no date for the interview of Chad Daybell’s parents and Tammy Daybell’s sister, so I approximated. I have reached out to the reporter to find out if the affidavit listed a date. I also created an account to start requesting court documents myself and am in the verification process…which requires waiting for a letter to be mailed to me with a verification code…because government. ?

Late Oct/Early Nov 2019: Estimated time Chad Daybell received $430,000 in life insurance proceeds following Tammy Daybell’s death (source).

Note: I will update this entry to a more exact date if it becomes available.

Fall 2019: Chad Daybell is allegedly excommunicated from the LDS church after he declared he was a prophet (source).

Nov 2019: Tylee’s gray Jeep Wrangler—which was seen in CCTV the day Brandon Beaudreux was reportedly shot at in front of his home in Gilbert, AZ—is seized and impounded in accordance with a search warrant in November 2019 in Rexburg, ID. The Jeep is registered to Charles Vallow (source).

First week of Nov 2019: Rexburg PD is contacted by Gilbert and Chandler PDs after the attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux for help in obtaining search warrants for the 2018 Jeep Wrangler Tylee Ryan drove but was registered to Charles Vallow and in Lori Vallow’s possession. It was believed to be “related to a possible attempted murder” of Brandon Boudreaux (source 1 / source 2). Police note:

“It is significant that the vehicle (Tylee) regularly drove was still in Rexburg nearly two months after the last known sighting of (Tylee).”

11/1/19: Rich Robertson follows Alex Cox and Melani Boudreaux to Rexburg, ID (source 1, 42:56 minute mark).

11/1/19: Detective Ray Hermosillo starts “intermittent surveillance” on Lori Vallow at the request of the Gilbert Police Department. Hermosillo reports that he never saw JJ Vallow when he was performing surveillance during the month of November, 2019.

11/1/19: Two detectives knock on Melani Boudreaux’s door asking about Lori Vallow. Her account: “I’m foggy on this date but (Rexburg Police) Detective Hermosillo and another gentleman had come to my door while I was moving my stuff in so it had to have been early in November – I’d guess the second week in November” (source).

Note: Since they came to Melani’s door while she was moving her stuff in, that would be Nov 1, not the second week in November.

11/5/19: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell marry in Kaua’i, Hawaii (source, wedding pics start at the 1:08 minute mark).

Note: This is 17 days after his former wife, Tammy Daybell, died unexpectedly.

11/7/19: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell meet with Jeani Martin about renting a room from her home in Kaua’i, HI. According to Martin, after claiming to receive a “sign from God” about moving in to her home, she asks about former wife, Tammy Daybell’s recent death. He answers via text, claiming, “She helped me reconnect with Lori so quickly and it helped my children move forward” (source).

11/8/19: Chad Daybell sent an email to a Kauai realtor. Three days after he & Lori Vallow got married. Outside of authorities, this is second source to tell us that Daybell said he had no kids on the island (source).

11/12/19: Melani Boudreaux trespasses onto Brandon’s parents’ property in America Fork, Utah. American Fork Police say Melani’s uncle, Alex Cox drove her to where her children were in a 2020 Kia Telluride (source).

11/14/19: Melani Boudreaux trespasses onto Brandon’s parents’ property a second time, around 10:30pm, claiming to have a court order stating she could take the children. Police cite Melani for criminal trespassing and tell her to leave the property but then decide to take her into custody for criminal trespassing enhanced by domestic violence. Melani turns herself in to AFPD and is booked into Utah County Jail. Melani’s uncle, Alex Cox, posts her bail of $1,950. The day after the arrest, Cox bailed Melani out (source / source).

Mid November: Lori and Chad return to Rexburg from their honeymoon in Kaua’i, HI (source, 46:28 minute mark)

11/19/19: Melani and Brandon Boudreaux’s divorce is finalized. She doesn’t show up, and he is awarded full custody of their children.

11/21/19: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

11/24/19: Lori Vallow and an unidentified man visit her storage unit in Rexburg, ID, for the last time. They leave a box of memorabilia for Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow, as well as a tote of clothing. They stay for 4 minutes (source 1 / source 2, 4:07 minute mark).

11/25/19: Kay Woodcock discovers by hacking into Charles Vallow’s email—after trying one of three passwords Woodcock says her brother always used—that an Amazon purchase had been sent to Lori Vallow’s address in Rexburg, ID. Woodcock said now that she had an address for them she could order the welfare check (source, 47:25 minute mark).

11/25/19: Investigation begins when Rexburg Police Department is contacted by the Gilbert, Arizona, Police Department in response to a welfare check for JJ requested by JJ’s grandparents, Kay and Larry Woodcock. (source 1 / source 2, 45:40 minute mark).

Note: Tylee Ryan wasn’t included in the welfare check because Detective Nathan Moffat—one of the detectives who was on scene the day Charles Vallow was shot and described his ride with Lori Vallow, Alex Cox, and Tylee as “straight-up bizarre”—thought he didn’t need to include Tylee Ryan in the welfare check:

I got on the phone with Rexburg PD, and I requested they do a welfare check at the residence for JJ. More specifically JJ than Tylee because Tylee’s 16, 17 years old (source, 47:52 minute mark).

11/26/19: LE performs welfare check on JJ Vallow at 565 Pioneer Rd, Rexburg, ID. Lori Vallow tells police JJ is staying with a family friend in AZ. Investigators learn later that day had not been staying with the friend (source).

Other suspicious activity later released in a 14-page affidavit of probable cause document obtained by East Idaho News (source):

• “Chad acted as if he didn’t know Lori very well and stated he didn’t know her phone number.” They had married three weeks prior. (See the 11/5/19 entry.)
• “Alex [Cox] told the detectives that [Joshua Vallow] was with his grandma, Kay Woodcock, in Louisiana, which was not likely to be true due to the fact that Kay was the individual who first called in a missing child report to the Gilbert Police Department.”
• Cox told officers Lori “might be” in apartment 107.
• Apartment 107 was vacant.
• Police found Lori “later that day” in apartment 175 (source).
• Chad Daybell tried to drive away while detectives were at the apartment complex, but a detective stopped him.
• Chad told an investigator that the last time he had seen JJ was in apartment 107 in October. He also admitted that he knew his wife’s phone number. Notable: This proves that Chad was aware that Lori had at least one minor child.
• Vallow told detectives JJ was with Melanie Gibb—a friend of Lori and Chad who had participated as a co-host with Chad and Lori on a Preparing a People podcast, co-hosted the Time to Warrior Up podcast with Lori, spoke at the Preparing a People conference, and wrote the book Feel the Fire (Chad wrote the forward). Detective Ron Ball stated that this lie “delayed the investigation into the whereabouts and safety of [JJ] by requiring us to take time to investigate a lead that was verified as false.”
• Detectives called Gibb but were unable to reach her. Lori claimed that her friend and JJ were at Frozen 2. Officers told Lori to tell her friend to call them.
• After not hearing back from Gibb that night (‼️), LE in Rexburg called the Gilbert Police Department. Officers from GPD went to Gibb’s home. She was not there, but they reached her by phone. Gibb told them JJ had not been there for several months (source). Notable: Not getting back to LE in a timely manner gave Lori and Chad significant lead time to flee the jurisdiction.
• Gibb waited 10 days before telling RPD that both Lori and Chad asked her to tell them she had JJ (source).
• Gibb has reportedly retained a lawyer and is cooperating with authorities (source, 1:57 minute mark).

Author’s note: This is the scene that played out in my head as I recorded the ill-fated antics of this ragtag bunch of misfits. ?‍♀‍

11/27/19: LE executes a search warrant for the townhouse Lori Vallow’s was renting and discovers that Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell vacated the home. Witnesses say kids weren’t with them. LE also search the townhouses belonging to Vallow’s brother, Alex Cox, and niece, Melani Boudreaux, who reportedly lived within a few doors of Vallow (source).

11/27/19: LE search Lori Vallow’s Self-Storage Plus storage unit, where they find kids’ bikes, toys, photo albums, winter clothes, a backpack with JJ’s initials, a jersey with Colby Ryan’s name on it, photo blankets made from pictures of Tylee and JJ from infancy on (source). Related: Lori Vallow or men associated with her visit the storage unit a total of 10 times between Oct 1 and Nov 24.

11/27/19: Approximate date Alex Cox moves back to Arizona (source, 1:01:39 minute mark).

11/27/19: Detectives come to the house of Lori Vallow’s son, Colby Ryan, to inquire about the whereabouts of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow (source, 24:57 minute mark). Colby told Fox reporter Justin Lum that he called his mom after they left and said, “Two detectives just came to my door. What is going on?’ She allegedly answered, “‘I got it, I’ll take care of it. Love you.” Colby added, when pressed by Lum, that she also asked what the detectives asked him but that was it (25:47 minute mark).

11/27/19: Approximate date Rexburg Police Department requests the assistance of the FBI in finding Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow (source).

11/28 – 12/1/19: Chad Daybell spends Thanksgiving weekend on vacation with his family in Southern California, traveling there via the Salt Lake City airport. Photos posted to social media show Chad at the airport and later Knott’s Berry Farm, an amusement park in Buena Park, CA. Lori wasn’t in any of the photos, and her location during this time is unknown (source).

11/29/19: Alex Cox marries Zulema Pastenes in Las Vegas (source). According to the owner of A Chapel of Love in Las Vegas—where the two were married—the minister reflected on the service, commenting that the thing that stuck out to him the most was their “lack of emotional response.” He continued, “They were very cold. It was business. They wanted to get in and get out.” The owner said their service only lasted 8 mins, and their only witness was the chapel security guard (source, 1:21 minute mark).

Notable: Alex Cox took Zulema’s last name (source).

11/29/19: Lori’s friend, Melanie Gibb, receives email from Lori full of beautiful pictures of their wedding on the beach. Gibb claims she didn’t know they had gotten married (source).

11/30/19: Melani Boudreaux marries Ian Pawlowski in Las Vegas (source).

Note: Alex Cox (AKA Alex Pastenes) is their witness.

Early Dec: Ian Pawlowski texts his ex-wife concerns about the attempted shooting of Brandon Boudreaux: “She didn’t know beforehand what was gonna happen. They made the attempt, failed and told her about it after the fact (transcript).”

Dec 2019: Melanie Gibb allegedly says kids are most likely dead and that all were probably killed by Alex. Gibb also says (again, allegedly) that Lori and Chad were frustrated that Tammy had not died yet, andChad allegedly told Lori, “It’s not that easy to get someone’s spirit out of their body” (source).

Note: I’m assuming “all” means everyone who died in this story: Tylee, JJ, and Tammy.

12/1/19: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell fly from LA to Kaua’i on American Airlines. RPD cannot find any information that confirms they’ve returned to the mainland since this date (source).

12/2/19: Ian Pawlowski’s mother calls him after talking to his ex-wife Natalie. She told him that Melani was in a cult, Chad is a cult leader, and her uncle had shot a man (source).

12/2/19: Alex Cox’s apartment goes back on the market (source).

12/3/19: According to an email from Natalie Pawlowski (ex-wife of Ian Pawlowski) to an associate of Brandon Boudreaux, Melani Pawlowski (current wife of Ian Pawlowski and former wife of Brandon Boudreaux) is interviewed by LE for five hours (source).

12/4/19: FBI agents from Phoenix, AZ, look into Lori Vallow, Melanie Gibb, and Richard “Jason” Mow (source 1). Agent digs into Lori Vallow’s podcasts. FBI agent notes Jason Mow joined them in the podcast. Mow said they had a “special connection” and described her as a “gatherer.” Mow connected Vallow with Gibb (source 2). Vallow mentions how “suffering leads to salvation and that even thought she doesn’t want her kids to suffer she understands they have to so they can see the light.” Agent also describes podcasts as “not soothing by any means” (source 3).

12/4/19: FBI agent digs into Richard “Jason” Mow’s professional background. Agent notes that the Phoenix Police Department’s Homicide Sergeant recalls a time he was “sleeping in the front seat of his car while he was supposed to be doing security for them as they were executing a search warrant.” Agent asks another agent to look into him more (source).

12/4/19: Natalie Pawlowski contacts an associate of Brandon Boudreaux, trying to find him. It’s a pretty desperate cry for help and reveals how scared she and Ian both were (transcript).

12/5/19: Natalie and Ian Pawlowski are interviewed by Rexburg Police Department (source).

Notable: One of the items Lori Vallow’s defense attorney requested from Rexburg Police Department was recordings from Ian Pawlowski (source). I wonder what he recorded. ? It’s worth noting Idaho is a one-party consent state, meaning he wouldn’t have needed to get permission from someone he was recording.

12/6/19: Lori Vallow’s friend and one-time Preparing a People podcast co-host, Melanie Gibb, informs RPD that both Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell had contacted her separately on November 26th and asked her to lie to detectives and tell them JJ was with her (source). Notable: This was 10 days after she spoke to GPD detectives and let them know JJ was not with her.

12/6/19: Ian Pawlowski meets with LE again alone and restates what he knows for a few other detectives, Lieutenant Ball, and another FBI agent named Travis (source).

12/6/19: Chandler PD in AZ serve a search warrant for all JJ’s records at L.I.F.E. Academy, where he attended before Lori Vallow moved him to Rexburg, ID, following JJ’s father’s death (source).

12/8/19: Melanie Gibb records a call with Chad and Lori Vallow Daybell and asks for information about JJ’s whereabouts (recording of call).

12/8/19: Approximate date Ian Pawlowski texts his ex-wife Natalie with grave concerns about Melani’s court hearing, her uncles’ advice for her to move to Ammon, ID, his insistence on staying in Rexburg, and concern for Natalie’s safety (source):

Don’t respond.

I need you to encourage Brandon to keep info he gets on the down low until I can get this sorted out.

I want to help, but it will be tough if every[one] starts figuring out what I’m learning.

She didn’t know beforehand what was gonna happen (Note: He’s talking about the attempted murder of Melani’s first husband, Brandon Boudreaux.)

They made the attempt, failed and told her about it after the fact. I understand that he doesn’t want the kids around her because of all of this, but I believe if she can see them, it will put a huge dent in her trust with her uncles. She’s scared and had been told her middle children are dead. She has a family court date on 12/11. I’m trying to get her to go…

I don’t know if I can convince her to go to the family court hearing on Wednesday. I’m trying but she “got an answer” last night from God himself. Her uncles have her so wrapped up. They’re telling her she needs to move to Ammon. That’s not gonna happen because I’m not going to leave Rexburg. They think is (sic) has something to do with jurisdiction. Dumbest thing ever. Don’t respond. Just wanted to update you earlier because I had a quick second to call. Stay safe.

Note: Screenshot is from Brandon Boudreaux’s phone; thus the misspelling of “Pawlowski” and question as to the date the text was actually sent to Natalie.

12/9/19: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

12/10/19: Approximate date Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell move into a condo at the Villas on the Prince community in Princeville, HI (source).

Notable: The complex was across the street from the townhouse complex Charles and Lori used to live in.

12/11/19: Melani Pawlowski has a family court hearing scheduled. Ian Pawlowski had told his ex-wife Natalie he was trying to get her to go. He said she “got an answer” last night from God himself (source).

12/11/19: Tammy Daybell’s remains are exhumed by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, with the assistance of the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner, and an autopsy is conducted (source). The warrant states, “There is probable cause to believe that the hereinafter described property or persons, presently located within the hereinafter described location, is connected with the commission of public offense(s), to wit: conspiracy to commit homicide first degree… which occurred on or about July 11, 2019.”

12/12/19: Alex Cox dies of suspicious causes in Gilbert, AZ. Zulema Pastenes’ 25-year-old son, Joseph Lopez, found him unresponsive in the bathroom and reports being unable to turn him over to administer CPR because he had lost control of his bowels. He refers to Cox as his mom’s boyfriend, revealing he seemed to be unaware she had married Cox 12 days prior. He also didn’t know Cox’s last name when the operator asks (source). As part of the autopsy, investigators request an expanded toxicology panel from the medical examiner’s office (source, 1:02:29 minute mark).

Notable: Keith Morrison said detectives wanted to question Cox about the shooting of Charles Vallow (7/11/19), as well as the mysterious shooting attempts at Brandon Boudreax (10/2/19) and Tammy Daybell (10/9/19). But before they could question him, he too died. But more than two months passed. If he wasn’t questioned during those two months, why?

12/18/19: Chad Daybell’s parents, Jack and Sheila Daybell, are interviewed by Rexburg Police Department (source 1 / source 2).

12/19/19: RPD executes a second search warrant on Alex Cox’s apartment. They went in with a forensics team and looked for any evidence of JJ having been there (source).

12/19/19: Ian Pawlowski tells Melani he had spoken with LE (source).

12/19/19: Approximate date Ian Pawlowski records his notes of everything he told the FBI (source).

12/20/19: Rexburg PD announces investigation into the disappearance of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow (source), as well as their partnership with the FBI in the investigation into the disappearance (source).

12/20/19: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

Notable: The announcement of the investigation may have been the trigger for this login. But why?

12/21/19: Rexburg PD calls Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell “persons of interest” in the disappearance of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow (source).

12/23/19: Sean Bartholick, of Rigby, Andrus & Rigby, issues statement on behalf of Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell (source).

12/27/19: A friend of Lori Vallow who spoke under the condition of anonymity said Vallow would say, “It’s gonna be the end of the world and we should all just drive off a cliff and kill us and our kids and die all at the same time” (source, 2:37 minute mark).

12/27/19: Chad Daybell’s friend, Julie Rowe, claims both she and Chad had a vision where angels told them Daybell’s wife, Tammy would die (source). Rowe also claims she knows the kids are safe from her visions: “I do know the kids are safe. I can see them. I can see their energy and that they’re in a bright house. I can see they’re in the living room where they are. I can see they’re comfortable [in their] bed at night.”

12/30/19: Rexburg PD issues press release stating that they know the children are not with Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell and that they have information indicating that Lori “knows either the location of the children or what has happened to them” (source).

Early Jan 2020: Melanie Gibb allegedly records a conversation over phone with Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow, where she confronts them about their false beliefs and cheating on their spouses (source).

1/3/20: Rexburg PD and the FBI search Chad and Tammy Daybell’s former home in Salem, ID. LE collects 43 items (source).

1/3/20: In an act of defiance, Chad Daybell’s adult daughter, Emma Daybell Murray, makes faces at reporters, which was captured by a KIDK3 reporter (source, 1:50 minute mark)

1/4/20: Kay Woodcock reveals in an interview with Fox 13 that Charles Vallow made recordings of Lori. “Charles told me he had recordings of her,” Woodcock said. “He said, ‘Nobody will believe me,’ and he recorded her one night. Even though it’s deleted, nothing is ever deleted electronically or whatever” (source).

Note: From the context, it sounds like he may have made recordings of her bizarre statements and/or threats.

1/6/20: Kay and Larry Woodcock are interviewed by Rexburg Police Department (source).

1/6/20: Fremont County and RPD publish press release about issuing search warrant on Chad Daybell’s house. Release mentions 43 items were removed, including electronic devices, journals, documents and medications (source).

1/7/20: Melani Boudreaux’s court date for the trespassing charge.

1/7/20: Larry and Kay Woodcock, JJ Vallow’s grandparents, announce a $20,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of him and Tylee Ryan (source).

1/8/20: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

1/10/20: Chad Daybell’s younger brother, Matt Daybell releases a statement expressing dismay at Chad’s sudden marriage to Lori Vallow and urging him to cooperate with authorities regarding Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow’s disappearance (source).

Notable: Matt adds that his statement represents the views of him, his wife and children, not his extended family or parents.

1/13/20: Bodycam footage, 911 call, and police report from the day Charles Vallow was shot is obtained by Fox10 (source).

1/14/20: Melani Boudreaux is interviewed by Rexburg Police Department (source).

1/14/20: Surveillance video from Yellowstone National Park is received by Rexburg Police Department (source).

1/25/20: LE in Kaua’i, HI, serves Lori Vallow with a child protection order from Madison County’s prosecutor’s office in Rexburg, ID, requiring her to produce Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow to Idaho Department of Health and Welfare or Rexburg Police Department in Rexburg by Jan 30 (source).

1/26/20: LE in Kaua’i, HI, “serve search warrants on the persons of Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow and on a black Ford Explorer they had rented” in the parking lot of the Kaua’i Beach Resort (source). LE found the following items in their possession:

• birth certificates for both Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow
• Tylee’s financial transaction card by BBVA
• JJ’s iPad
• another iPad logged into JJ’s Apple account
• JJ’s school registration receipts from Kennedy Elementary in Rexburg, ID

Notable:

• Tylee’s card was still active at that time and had been used since she was last seen.
• It would be very difficult to prove plausible deniability re: the theory that Chad didn’t know Lori had minor children, when she had their birth certificates and an iPad with JJ’s name on it in her possession.
• Between having JJ’s iPad she had in the car, another iPad that was still logged in to JJ’s Apple account, and her login activity with JJ’s previous school’s app, it’s possible she missed JJ. She had logged in five times since withdrawing him from L.I.F.E. Academy.

1/26/20: LE in Kaua’i, HI, serve a search warrant for the condo Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell rent. Officers observe there are no signs children Evidence they cited:

• There were two beach/lawn chairs in the garage.
• There were two exercise mats in the garage.
• There were only two beach towels in the garage.
• There were no items in the garage or condo that appeared to belong to a minor child.
• There was no evidence of a 7 year old boy—e.g., clothing, toys, books, medication, etc.
• There was a second room in the condo that had no signs of being lived in.

Note: Nate Easton from East Idaho News pursues the couple to question them about the whereabouts of the children who have been missing four months at this point (source).

1/29/20: Kay and Larry Woodcock file for emergency guardianship of JJ Vallow in Rexburg, ID (source).

1/29/20: Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow reportedly clear out of the condo they were renting in the Villas on the Prince community (source). They allegedly move to the Kaua’i Beach Resort (source).

1/30/20: Sidney Woodbury Shenk is interviewed by Rexburg Police Department (source).

1/30/20: Lori Vallow defies the court order and does not produce the kids to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare or Rexburg Police Department, risking potential civil and criminal consequences (source).

1/30/20: Lori Vallow retains Daniel Hempey, an attorney in Kuau’i, HI (source).

1/31/20: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

Early Feb: Lori Vallow has her church records transferred to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kaua’i, HI. Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow’s names were not included in the record. Chad Daybell hadn’t transferred his records to the new ward yet (source, 00:05 minute mark).

2/1/20: Colby Ryan’s mother-in-law, Carrie O’Neal Benson, launches a GoFundMe to raise $15,000 for Colby and his wife, citing financial burdens resulting from the family crisis (source).

Note: The goal has since been reduced to $7,500.

2/2/20: Lori Vallow and new husband Chad Daybell start attending church at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kaua’i (source).

Related: As of Jan 2, 2020, a spokesperson for the church has not confirmed or denied whether Chad Daybell has been excommunicated or is still a member (source).

2/4/20: Lori Vallow accesses JJ Vallow’s app from his old school. (Lori withdrew JJ 9/5/19.)

2/4/20: Approximate date officials at L.I.F.E. Academy—JJ’s former school school in Chandler, AZ, that Lori Vallow withdrew JJ from 9/5/19—removes Lori’s access to the app after discovering she had continued to access the app to get updates. Dates accessed: 9/7, 11/21, 12/9, 12/20, 1/8, 1/31, 2/4 (source, 00:21 minute mark).

Notable: 12/20 coincides with the date Rexburg PD announced the investigation into the disappearance of Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow.

2/4/20: East Idaho News publishes surveillance footage of the Self Storage Plus storage unit Lori Vallow rented in Rexburg, ID (source).

2/5/20: Rich Robertson, a private investigator hired by Brandon Boudreau comes forward to say Boudreaux identifies Alex Cox was the shooter (source). “The vehicle that was involved in the shooting belonged to Charles Vallow,” Robertson said. “It was a green Jeep Cherokee** with Texas license plates. He recognized that as his former in-law and he suspected Charles Vallow’s killer, Alex Cox, was the one driving that jeep.”

Note: Alex Cox was actually driving a gray 2008 Jeep Wrangler with Texas license plate LWD0997 (source, pg 3 / para 8). This Jeep is also sometimes described as green in court documents because of its hue.

2/10/20: Law enforcement report that they found Tylee Ryan’s cell phone with Lori Vallow in Hawaii (source).

2/11/20: Fremont County’s Office of the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office denies Fox 10’s public records request for the “911 call and report taken in the death of Tammy Daybell” and “any 911 calls from the Daybell home…on 10/9/19” (source). The letter cites two justifications for its denial:

1. Idaho Code 124(1)(a): (1) Notwithstanding any statute or rule of court to the contrary, nothing in this chapter nor chapter 10, title 59, Idaho Code, shall be construed to require disclosure of investigatory records compiled for law enforcement purposes by a law enforcement agency, but such exemption from disclosure applies only to the extent that the production of such records would: (a) Interfere with enforcement proceedings;
2. Wade v Taylor 156 Idaho 91, 98, 320 P.3d 1250, 1257 (2014): The legislative intent underlying the section is to prevent the premature disclosure of information that may compromise an investigation, the state’s case in court, or the defendant’s right to a fair trial.

Note: 10/9/19 was the date Tammy Daybell filed a report with the Rexburg Police Department, claiming to be shot at by a masked man carrying a paintball gun.

2/12/20: Keith Morrison of Dateline is tipped off that Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell had packed their bags and were heading to Mexico (source, 00:22 minute mark).

2/14/20: Dateline airs a two-hour special on the case, “Where Are the Children?” (source).

2/16/20: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell check out of the Kaua’i Marriot Resort where they had been staying (source).

2/16/20: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell are seen in Kaua’i boarding a plane to Maui (source).

2/16/20: Ian Pawlowski brings his ex-wife his laptop where she found a bizarre note about Melani and the group she was involved with (transcript).

Author’s Note: UPDATE: I now believe this document is credible and was accidentally left on his laptop that he gave to his son.

I’m not buying Ian just happened to journal about his entry into this group…which he left in an unprotected file on his laptop…that he turned over to his ex-wife to ((oops)) find. To me, the note has a very contrived feel to it and puts both him and Melani in a very favorable light. I think the email sent an associate of Brandon Boudreaux 12/4/19 has a more authentic timbre to it. Melani moved to Rexburg away from her four children. Whatever the reason, it must have been compelling enough to motivate her to move away from her kids. I’m not buying that casual interest in this group would be compelling enough. Ymmv.

2/18/20: Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell return to Kaua’i (source).

2/18/20: A search warrant was served at Self-Storage Plus where Lori Vallow rented a storage unit. Police removed all of the items in the unit (source, 1:05 minute mark).

2/18/20: The Madison County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office submits a criminal complaint against Lori Vallow (source). The complaint alleges five crimes:

• two felony counts of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children
• resisting or obstructing officers (misdemeanor)
• criminal solicitation to commit a crime (misdemeanor)
• contempt of court (misdemeanor)

Note: I will start referring to Lori as Lori Vallow Daybell from this point onward since the arrest warrant and court documents affirm she took Chad’s last name. If I refer to Lori by last name only, I’ll include Vallow just to be clear which Daybell I’m referring to.

2/20/20: Lori Vallow Daybell is arrested at and taken into custody at 2:30 pm HST by Kaua’i Police Department. She is held on $5 million bond pending extradition to Idaho.

2/21/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s first court hearing in Kaua’i, HI (recording of hearing). Highlights:

• Vallow Daybell’s defense attorney, Daniel Hempey, requested her bail be reduced from $5 million to $10,000. Justification for the reduction by Hempey was, “We are sitting here with a couple felonies and misdemeanors and a half a million dollar bail” (source).
• Judge Kathleen Watanabe kept Vallow Daybell’s bail at $5 million.
• Vallow Daybell asserts her right to an extradition hearing to fight extradition to Idaho. That hearing is scheduled for March 2.
• Prosecuting attorney Justin Kollar requested Vallow Daybell be remanded without bail.
• Kollar requested an identification hearing be set for March 5, 2020.
• Vallow Daybell exercised her right to demand a governor’s warrant.
• Hempey alleged that the police officers from Idaho questioned Vallow Daybell with Kuau’i police while she was in custody even though “they knew she was represented by counsel” (source). Note: Kelly Vaughan from 2KUTV reported on February 21st that the police chief and assistant chief were not in Hawaii (source, 2:09 minute mark). It’s unclear—at least at time of writing—who was there from RPD.
• Kollar requested that, if Vallow Daybell posts bail and has a passport, she surrender it to the Kuau’i Police Department.
• Vallow Daybell focused her transformation efforts on new husband Chad Daybell’s hair and overlooked training him how to pick a tie (source). I gotchu, Chad. You have a week to shop and practice. We’ll check back on your progress. ?

2/21/20: Lori Vallow is booked into Kauai Community Correctional Center (source).

2/23/20: Child custody papers reveal Ian Pawlowski provided statements to LE that Melani Pawlowski—Brandon Boudreaux’s ex-wife—told him shortly after they married that she conspired with her uncle, Alex Cox, to kill Brandon. Brandon alleges that Melani was motivated by a $1 million life insurance policy. Melani’s new husband, Ian Pawlowski, told LE Melani once said “something to the effect of ‘sometimes children are full of light and then just like that they go dark.'”

Note: I modified this entry after Melani Boudreaux’s attorney issued a statement refuting that Melanie accepted any responsibility (source). And it appears all news stories covering this release have been taken down.

2/24/20: Chad Daybell cancels lease on condo in Kaua’i, HI (source).

2/25/20: Madison County Prosecutor’s Office subpoenas Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell’s Princeville landlord, the Kauai Beach Resort, and JJ Vallow’s school in Rexburg, ID, Kennedy Elementary School.

For all parties, they have until 3/9/20 and have to produce all documents from 8/1/19 to the present.

2/26/20: Judge denies Lori Vallow Daybell’s second request to lower bond. Vallow Daybell waives right to an extradition hearing. She will return to Idaho to face charges (source).

2/26/20: The attorney for Melani Pawlowski issues press release denying Pawlowski admitted to any wrongdoing with the kids and denies knowing where they are. He also denies she had anything to do with the alleged shooting of former husband Brandon Boudreaux (source).

Author’s note: It does give me pause that a court petition to modify child support released by Brandon Boudreaux’s attorney seemed to be treated with the same credibility in the press as a court document released by law enforcement. Pawlowski has a right to a fair trial, if it comes to that. Also, after reviewing the recording of Boudreaux’s 911 call, he did say at the time he didn’t see who shot at him (source, 00:11 minute mark) but later identified the shooter as Alex Cox through his attorney. So there’s quite a bit for LE to sift through here. I’m not in any way defending Melani. She is knee deep in all of this and has acted erratically with regard to the children (notifying Boudreaux in a text she’s moving to Boise, moving to Rexburg where two children went missing, moving into the same apartment complex as Lori Vallow and Alex Cox, trespassing at the home of Boudreaux’s parents two days in a row, etc.). I hope she did cooperate fully with LE, as she asserted in this press release. And I hope that this family can get to the bottom of these alarming events that threaten the safety and welfare of their children on so many levels.

2/29/20: Chad Daybell returns to Rexburg, ID (source).

3/4/20: Lori Vallow Daybell has a status hearing in Kaua’i, HI, before being extradited to Idaho (source).

3/5/20: Lori Vallow Daybell arrives in Rexburg, ID (source).

3/5/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorneys request a number of documents from the prosecuting attorney’s office (source):

• Warrants and related documents
• Communications between LE and media
• Court orders
• Un-redacted police records
• Handwritten notes
• Dispatch tapes (and a full paragraph of someone riding the caps lock)

3/6/20: Lori Vallow Daybell is scheduled for an arraignment hearing in Rexburg, ID (source / watch live).

3/6/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s bond is reduced from $5 million to $1 million by Magistrate Judge Faren Eddins (source).

3/6/20: Madison County Prosecutor Rob Wood reveals in Lori Vallow Daybell’s first court hearing in Idaho that Daybell continued to receive social security benefits for both kids after she left Idaho without them (source).

3/9/20: Deadline Madison County Prosecutor’s Office assigns for all parties to comply with subpoenas served Feb 25 (source).

3/11/20: The FBI, Rexburg Police Department and numerous law enforcement agencies investigating cases related to Lori Vallow and her missing children meet in Salt Lake City, UT, to “coordinate, review, and share information” (source).

3/11/20: Madison County Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood and Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorneys request to move preliminary hearing from Mar 18–19 to May 7–8 to allow for more time to exchange and review discovery (source).

3/11/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Mark Means, files a motion to disqualify Magistrate Judge Eddins (the judge who dropped Daybell’s bail from $5 million to $1 million) without cause, pursuant to Idaho Criminal Rule 25 (source).

3/11/20: Approximate date Colby Ryan talked with his mother, Lori Vallow Daybell, while she was in jail (source).

3/12/20: Madison County Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood objects to Lori Vallow Daybell’s motion to disqualify Magistrate Judge Eddins from the case (source).

3/12/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Mark Means, responds to Madison County Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood’s objection, stating that a child protection action he’s presiding over could potentially prejudice him against Vallow Daybell (source).

3/13/20: Lori Vallow Daybell has telephonic hearing where three decisions are made (source 1 / source 2):

1. Magistrate Judge Farren Eddins agrees to reschedule Vallow Daybell’s preliminary hearing for May 7 and May 8.
2. Eddins disqualifies himself without cause from the case.
3. Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Brian Webb, announces he plans to file a motion to withdraw from the case. Edwina Elcox, who works with Webb’s law firm, will also withdraw from the case.

3/13/20: Michelle Radford Mallard is made judge over preliminary hearing for May 7–8, 2020 (source).

3/16/20: Two of Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorneys, Brian Webb and Edwina Elcox, withdraw from her case (source).

3/16/20: Prosecution turned over approximately 1,600 pages of documents and 14.6gb of videos, photos, and other electronic media to the defense (source, line item 3).

3/24/20: Detective Nathan Moffat with Chandler PD writes in an email to Fox 10 reporter Justin Lum that he is confident CPD is getting closer to indicting Lori Vallow for her involvement in the shooting death of Charles Vallow (source).

Author’s Note: I don’t care how premature this is…HELL YEAH!!!

3/30/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Mark Means, visits with Lori and is forced to sit in a public area, speak on a recorded phone line, and pass confidential paperwork through employees due to Corona Virus constraints (source).

3/30/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s apartment went back on the market for rent (source / screenshot 1 / screenshot 2).

Note: On 4/5/20 the property was listed as pending.

Notable: As of 4/5/20, the Zillow page for this property wasn’t updated to show it as available. It appears from the date of the Facebook post, it went back on the market 3/30/20. This is interesting to me because Alex’s went back on the market the week after Lori, Chad, and Alex fled Rexburg, while Lori’s apartment was in limbo for four months following their sudden move out.

4/2/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Mark Means, requests all evidence pertaining to the deaths of Charles Vallow, Joe Ryan (??????), Tammy Daybell, and Alex Cox (source).

4/2/20: Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Mark Means, requests all records pertaining to the following witnesses (source):

• Adam Cox
• Charles Vallow
• Alex Cox
• Ethel “Kay” Vallow
• Larry Woodcock
• Brandon Boudreaux
• Melani Pawlowski
• Melanie Gibb
• Christina Atwood
• Jack Daybell (Chad Daybell’s father)
• Sheila Daybell (Chad Daybell’s mother)
• Jason Gwilliam (Tammy Daybell’s brother-in-law)
• Samantha Gwilliam (Tammy Daybell’s sister)
• Summer Shiflet (Lori’s sister)
• Ruth Mortensen
• Detective Hope (RPD)
• Matt Daybell (Chad’s brother)
• Heather Daybell (Chad’s sister-in-law)

4/4/20: Fox 10 reporter Justin Lum tries to set up a meeting with Lori Vallow Daybell in jail via the Telmate app. She accepts him as a contact but denies his call (source).

Note: Truth be told, I just included this “event” to point out homegirl is looking rough. ?

4/7/20: Madison Co. Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood argues Lori Vallow Daybell shouldn’t be permitted a bond reduction because she hasn’t complied with the standing court order to produce her children (source).

4/10/20: Idaho Attorney General’s Office assumes full responsibility and authority in the investigation of Chad and Lori Vallow Daybell’s roles in the death of Chad’s late wife, Tammy Daybell. The pair is being investigated for conspiracy, attempted murder, and murder (source).

4/17/20: Tentative date Lori Vallow Daybell’s fourth hearing to request a reduction in her bond is scheduled for, provided COVID-19’s restrictions are lifted Apr 15, as scheduled (source).

Note: This was postponed a third time to May 1.

4/29/20: Attorney Sean Bartholick tells Fox reporter Justin Lum that he no longer represents Chad Daybell. Daybell is now represented by his wife, Lori Vallow Daybell’s attorney, Mark Means (source).

4/30/20: A motion is filed to move the preliminary hearing from 5/7/20 – 5/8/20 to 7/9/20 – 7/10/20 (source).

5/1/20: Tentative date Lori Vallow Daybell’s fourth hearing to request a reduction in her bond is scheduled for (source).

5/7/20: Larry and Kay Vallow Woodcock appeal to members of the Cox family to have a meeting to try to work together to find Tylee and JJ (source).

5/25/20: JJ Vallow turns eight years old.

6/9/20: The Rexburg Police Department, assisted by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI, executes a search warrant on the property of Chad Daybell and discover two sets of human remains. Chad Daybell is arrested, charged with the destruction or concealment of evidence, and booked into the Fremont County Jail (source).

6/10/20: Chad Daybell appears in court for his initial hearing. Judge Faren Eddins agreed with Prosecutor Rob Wood’s recommendation for a $1 million bond. In arguing for the bond amount, Wood confirms that the remains found on Daybell’s property belong to children and that the “concealment of one of the bodies is particularly egregious” (source).

6/13/20: The remains found on Chad Daybell’s property are positively identified as belonging to Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow by the Ada County Medical Examiner. ? Rexburg Police Department issues press release (source).

7/1/20: Chad Daybell is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing (source)

7/22/20: The anticipated end of the world in Lori Vallow’s mind (source). Vallow Daybell believed she was a god and allegedly warned her late husband, Charles Vallow, not to get in the way:

As a god, her mission was to carry out the work of the 144,000 at Christ’s second coming. That second coming was imminent. According to Lori, Jesus was headed to Earth in July 2020. And if Charles got in the way of that mission, Lori would murder him.

Additions to Timeline

As I add new items/details to the timeline, I’ll document them here. I won’t add minor modifications, like typo corrections, to keep this as clean as possible. I will also remove items from the log after a month (give or take) because this post had become the equivalent of 250+ pages. I’ll group them by the date of the add, which might also be the date of the event.

9/3/20

12/8/19: Melanie Gibb records a call with Chad and Lori Vallow Daybell and asks for information about JJ’s whereabouts (recording of call).

What About Data?

Great question! I took 2018 and 2019 off to write my Making Data Sexy books and planned to hit 2020 hard with new content for the blog. And then tragedy struck and followed me into 2020. As you can see from the timeline, the pace of the investigation has been dizzying because of the sheer number of deaths, sudden divorces, shotgun weddings, attempted murders, and disappearances. Hopefully Tylee and JJ will be found super soon (???) and I can get some semblance of normalcy back again. Or, at minimum, this timeline will slow down. I’ve been watching real crime TV for enough years to know that sometimes the wheels of justice move very slowly. ?

Whichever the case may be, I have a list of topics and guides I plan to start hitting as soon as I can come up for air. Thank you for your patience and understanding.