July 11, 2019: Lori Vallow’s husband, Charles Vallow, is murdered by her brother, Alex Cox, in Arizona. The police initially believe Alex acted in self-defense, but reopen the case months later after the children are reported missing.
August, 2019: Lori moves children JJ and Tylee to Rexburg, Idaho, close to where her future husband Chad Daybell lives with his wife Tammy.
September 8, 2019: Tylee is seen alive for the last time during a trip to Yellowstone National Park with Lori, JJ and Alex. Over the next few weeks, Lori tells people that her daughter is a student at Brigham Young University’s Idaho campus.
September 23, 2019: The last time JJ was seen at his school in Rexburg. Lori emails the school the next day claiming she is moving the family to California for a new job.
October 2, 2019: Brandon Boudreaux, the ex-husband of Lori’s niece Melani Pawlowski, is the target of a drive-by shooting in Arizona. Police identify the vehicle carrying the gunman as a jeep registered to Charles Vallow, Lori’s late husband.
October 19, 2019: Chad’s wife Tammy, 49, dies at their Idaho home. An obituary states that she passed away peacefully in her sleep. Chad refuses an autopsy and her death is listed as a natural cause.
October 25, 2019: A friend of Tylee’s receives a vague “I miss you” text from her phone, but says it didn’t sound like the teen.
November 5, 2019: Lori and Chad tie the knot on a beach in Kauai. Receipts show that Lori bought her own wedding ring from Amazon almost three weeks before Tammy’s death.
November 26, 2019: Relatives from out of state ask the Idaho Police Department to conduct a welfare check on JJ. Lori and Chad claim he is in Arizona with relatives and ask their friend, Melanie Gibb, to lie and say she took the boy there for Thanksgiving. The police soon learn that no one has seen JJ or Tylee since September.
November 27, 2019: The police execute a search warrant regarding the children in Lori’s home and discover that she and Chad have fled Idaho.
December 11, 2019: Tammy’s body is exhumed from a Utah cemetery and her death is reclassified as suspicious.
December 12, 2019: Lori’s brother, Alex Cox, is found dead in a bathroom at his home in Arizona. Months later, an autopsy determines that he died of natural causes while overdosing on Narcan in his system.
December 21, 2019: The Rexburg Police Department issues the first press release about JJ and Tylee, revealing that they believe their disappearance may be related to Tammy’s death and asking the public for information.
December 24, 2019: Lori and Chad, through an attorney, are releasing a statement saying they love their son and daughter and look forward to “dealing with allegations once they’re past speculation and rumor.”
December 30, 2019: The police accuse Lori and Chad of lying to investigators, saying they believe the couple knows where the children are or what happened to them.
January 3, 2020: Police search Chad’s Salem home and remove 43 items, including tech devices and magazines. They also comb parts of the snow-covered garden with rakes and metal detectors.
January 26, 2020: Lori and Chad are seen for the first time in months as the police issue them with two search warrants in Kauai. Lori also receives a court order to bring the children before authorities in Idaho within five days. The couple are approached by the media as officers mean the documents and refuse to say anything about the children.
January 30, 2020: Lori misses the court deadline to present the children to Idaho authorities.
February 20, 2020: Lori is arrested in Kauai and charged with two counts of desertion and failure to support dependent children, and one count each of resisting and obstructing an officer, provoking a felony, and contempt of court.
March 5, 2020: Lori is extradited to Idaho, where she is being held on $1 million bond at the Madison County Jail.
March 17, 2020: Lori professes her innocence in a statement through her attorney as two other members of her defense team quit and the judge removes herself from the case.
March 24, 2020: Court documents filed in the divorce of Lori’s niece Melani and her husband Brandon Boudreaux allege that Lori told people she thought her children were zombies before they disappeared.
April 9, 2020: Authorities reveal they are investigating Lori and Chad for murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy in connection with Tammy’s death.
June 9, 2020: Police search Chad’s Salem home for a second time and discover human remains in the backyard. Chad is taken into police custody and charged with destruction or withholding evidence.
May 25, 2021: Lori and Chad are charged with first-degree murder in the children’s deaths. Chad is also charged with first degree murder in the death of his wife Tammy.
May 27, 2021: Lori is deemed incompetent to stand trial for the Idaho murder charge.
August 5, 2021: The prosecution announces that it will seek the death penalty for Chad.
April 11, 2022: Lori is competent again. The criminal case against her in Idaho must continue.
April 14, 2022: Lori is taken to the Madison County Jail in Rexburg, Idaho by Fremont County Sheriff officers.
April 10, 2023: Lori Vallow is on trial for the murders of JJ, 7, and Tylee, 16.