CHANDLER — The Chandler Police Department said it may file charges against Lori Daybell in connection to the death of her late husband, Charles Vallow, but that the decision to ultimately charge her will come from the prosecutor's office.
Lori has since remarried and said in a court hearing that she prefers to be referred to by her new last name, Lori Daybell.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Chandler Police Department said "if and when" charges are sent over to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, they will include conspiracy to commit murder.
"Ultimately, whatever charge is sent over to the prosecuting agency by the Chandler Police Department, it is at the decision of the prosecutor," the police agency said in its statement.
Charles Vallow was killed last summer in Chandler.
In January of 2019, he made a call to Gilbert Police asking them to conduct a welfare check at their home because he hadn't heard from his children, JJ and Tylee, in the two days prior. He also told police that Lori had been acting strange. "She’s psychologically gone, something has happened to her," he told authorities.
Six months later, in July 2019, Charles was killed. Lori's brother, Alex Cox, admitted to shooting Charles but claimed it was in self-defense. Cox died in December of natural causes, according to a medical examiner's report.
Chandler police said Lori has always been a "person of interest" in her late husband's death, but it is clear she did not shoot him. They said if charges are filed it would likely happen in 4-6 months. An exact date has not been determined, police said.
Chandler police added that detectives still have search warrants and subpoenas out on the case and are going through over "10,000 pieces of digital data."
Charles and Lori's children, JJ and Tylee, were reported missing for about six months until June of 2020 when their remains were found buried in the backyard of Lori's current husband, Chad Daybell's home in Idaho.
Both have been arrested and are facing various charges.
A criminal complaint alleges that Daybell concealed the remains between Sept. 22, 2019, and June 9, 2020. Rexburg Police in Idaho began the search for the children in November 2019.
He is currently in jail awaiting trial on several criminal charges including destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence. He has pleaded not guilty.
Vallow is being held at a jail in Madison County, Idaho and is also charged with misdemeanor resisting or obstructing officers, criminal solicitation to commit a crime and contempt of court. She has pleaded not guilty to those charges. A jury trial is set for January 2021.
