‘Doomsday mom' Lori Vallow Daybell kicked out of court after arguing with judge during attempted murder trial
Vallow Daybell, who is representing herself in the case, was removed from a Phoenix courtroom Friday afternoon by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Justin Beresky, the same day she cross-examined the man she is accused of plotting to kill.
The 51-year-old mom is on trial for allegedly conspiring to kill her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux.
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6 Lori Vallow Daybell stands in an Idaho court as the jury reads a guilty verdict on May 12, 2023.
AP
Boudreaux claimed he was shot at from a Jeep as he was driving home in Gilbert, AZ. on Oct. 2, 2019.
Prosecutors allege Vallow Daybell and her now-deceased brother Alex Cox conspired to kill Boudreaux and that Cox fired the shot that was inches away from hitting the estranged relative's head.
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She had argued for an additional hearing where she could 'introduce her good character,' despite prosecutors bringing up her four murder convictions.
'Do we get a hearing on what 404b (character evidence) can come in,' Vallow Daybell said, according to courtroom footage by East Idaho News. 'If I opened the door, do I get a hearing do we stop the trial and I get a hearing?'
Beresky cut off Vallow Daybell's inquiries, saying there could be a brief hearing if she wanted.
'If you are going to introduce how you have great character and good character we will have a short hearing on what evidence they can bring in to rebut that character which could include that you have been convicted of four murders,' Beresky interjected.
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6 Vallow Daybell is serving three life sentences for her role in killing her two children and Tammy Daybell in killing her two children and Tammy Daybell.
Idaho Department of Corrections
During Friday's contentious exchange, Vallow Daybell accused the judge of yelling at her
'You do not need to talk to me like that, I'm being very courteous to you,' she added.
The fed-up judge called for court security to remove the child killer from the room.
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'Take her out, take her out,' Beresky ordered. 'You have been nothing near courteous to me during the course of these proceedings.'
6 A courtroom sketch of Brandon Boudreaux testifying during Lori Vallow Daybell's murder trial in Boise, Idaho on April 10, 2023.
AP
Vallow Daybell was escorted out of the courtroom as the trial took a 15-minute recess.
Beresky threatened to remove the defendant's right to self-representation because of her courtroom antics.
'Ms. Daybell, if you continue to ask lines of questions where I've sustained an objection, into areas where I've sustained an objection, if you continue to speak over me or the prosecutor … I may be forced to revoke your pro se status,' Beresky said, according to KSL.com.
Vallow Daybell and invoked her pro se status before the trial started.
Vallow Daybell was found guilty in 2023 for the murders of her two youngest children Joshua 'JJ' Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 16 in 2019.
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Their bodies were discovered on a property owned by Chad Daybell, Vallow Daybell's fifth husband.
The couple were the leaders of a 'doomsday cult' and were also found guilty of killing Daybell's ex-wife Tammy Daybell, who died of asphyxiation in October 2019.
The trial began with jury selection on May 30, and the second day of selection was halted because Vallow Daybell claimed to be sick.
She appeared in court on June 2 in a wheelchair and claimed she still felt nauseous and was crying loudly, according to East Idaho News.
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6 Vallow Daybell was found guilty in 2023 for the murders of her two youngest children Joshua 'JJ' Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 16 in 2019.
Madison County Jail
6 Chad Daybell sits at the defense table after he was convicted of murder at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho on May 30, 2024.
AP
Beresky found that Vallow Daybell was not suffering from any documented medical condition and proceeded with the trial.
Vallow Daybell cross-examined Boudreaux during the hearing, where she asked about her character and how they got along. Boudreaux contested that they had argued and didn't always have a good relationship, according to KSL.com.
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Vallow Daybell is serving three life sentences for her role in killing her two children and Tammy Daybell in killing her two children and Tammy Daybell.
Chad Daybell was sentenced to death.
6 Lori Vallow Daybell's fourth husband, Charles Vallow.
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In April, Vallow Daybell was convicted of conspiring to kill her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, with the help of her brother Alex Cox.
She will be sentenced in the Charles Vallow murder case after the Boudreaux trial ends.
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