Lori Vallow Daybell's request for new trial denied

PHOENIX - A judge has denied Lori Vallow Daybell's request for a new trial.

The so-called "Doomsday Mom" was convicted last month in Arizona for plotting to kill her previous husband, Charles Vallow. She claimed one of the jurors in the case had knowledge of her previous convictions in Idaho before he made his decision. 

The court made it clear that jurors were not supposed to know that Vallow Daybell was convicted of killing her kids and conspiring to kill her husband's first wife.

On May 23, Judge Justin Beresky ruled Vallow Daybell had a "fair and impartial trial" and "failed to establish any ground for a new trial."

"Beresky finds no discovery violation that Daybell claimed State committed. He also finds no prosecutorial misconduct after Daybell claims that her rights under Religious Freedom Restoration Act were violated. RFRA doesn't protect one from doing a crime in the name of religion," FOX 10's Justin Lum posted to X on May 23.

The backstory:

Charles was shot by Vallow Daybell's late brother, Alex Cox. Cox had said he shot Charles after a fight involving a baseball bat.

During the trial, one of Vallow Daybell's brothers took the stand. Adam Cox, who testified on behalf of the prosecution, said during his testimony that he had no doubt that Vallow and Alex were behind Charles' death.

Vallow Daybell, who represented herself during the trial, did not take the stand, call witnesses, or enter evidence. During closing arguments, she spoke to the jury for about 20 minutes and did not address her choice not to call 911, or her suspicious religious texts with her co-conspirators. She told the jury she and her family had the right to self-defense.

Prosecutors objected multiple times during Vallow Daybell's closing arguments, claiming she is essentially testifying with her closing arguments, and bringing up her daughter Tylee Ryan and brother Alex Cox, who are both dead.

What's next:

Vallow Daybell's next Arizona trial is scheduled to begin in June. She's charged with conspiring to kill her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux, in 2019.

More motions filed

Dig deeper:

Meanwhile, Vallow Daybell has filed multiple motions ahead of the Boudreaux trial.

One is to suppress evidence of phone data and text messages related to her late brother, Alex Cox, who is named as her co-conspirator and the suspected shooter in the attempted murder of Brandon Boudreaux.

Vallow Daybell says Cox is dead and "therefore the State cannot establish Alex Cox’s intent, knowledge or absence of mistake." She goes on to claim the prosecution is using "geo-fencing from Google" or his account’s location history, but cannot determine who was in control over the device at the time.

The state argues that legal search warrants were used to obtain this data that will be presented in court.

Vallow Daybell is also motioning to suppress evidence related to the Jeep Wrangler that Gilbert police say was used in the shooting. She claims Rexburg Police Detective Ray Hermosillo did not obtain a search warrant to seize the Jeep, but the state says Gilbert PD provided probable cause, leading to a warrant just days before Nov. 4, 2019.

Lastly, Vallow Daybell filed a motion to dismiss the case for "non-preservation of crucial evidence," arguing that Gilbert PD did not preserve the car door and window of the Tesla that Boudreaux was driving when he was shot at.

She claims that the defense can’t test anything on the shooting, but the prosecution counters with the fact that there are photos and that no amount of testing would provide evidence to exonerate her from what she allegedly did to help Cox in the conspiracy from her location in Idaho at the time.

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