Did fear of apocalypse drive ‘doomsday mom’ Lori Vallow to murder her children?

Published

2 years ago

July 31, 2023

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“I’m basically a ticking time bomb,” Lori Vallow says with a wide smile and a laugh. She’s speaking at the Mrs Texas beauty pageant in 2004 where she is competing.

At the time it must have seemed an innocuous comment about balancing home and work life, but nearly 20 years later the words take on a more chilling aspect after she was found guilty of murdering her two children and conspiracy to murder her husband’s ex-wife.

Prosecutors say the mother-of-three became obsessed with a coming religious doomsday and believed her children were zombies whose bodies had to be destroyed so they could go to heaven.

Vallow and her fifth husband Chad Daybell went from being followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) to something altogether darker and cult-like, it was claimed.

Religious beliefs in doomsday have been used to harrowing effect by cult leaders again and again to exert control over their followers, sometimes with deadly consequences.

Was it fear of the apocalypse or a belief in the coming of a leader known as “One Mighty and Strong” that resulted in the deaths of seven-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow and his big sister Tylee Ryan?

Jurors in Idaho returned guilty verdicts against Vallow in May.

A huge search, mysterious deaths and rumours of doomsday beliefs

Sometimes referred to as the “reddest place in America” for its conservative voting habits, the city of Rexburg in Idaho is home to around 40,000 people.

For many years it was perhaps best known for its large Mormon population – some 95% of people living there are Latter-day Saints (LDS) members – but in September 2019 it was thrust into the spotlight when two children vanished.

Vallow and Daybell told police that JJ was in Arizona with a family friend and that Tylee had died a year before and had been attending a university.

Their disappearance sparked a search which lasted months and grabbed huge media attention. Strangers from around the world became transfixed by the search for the children, rumours of doomsday beliefs… and the mysterious deaths of Vallow’s fourth husband Charles Vallow and Daybell’s ex-wife Tammy.

Charles Vallow had been shot and killed by Lori Vallow’s brother in July 2019, a few months after he filed for divorce. He claimed his wife threatened to kill him and that she believed she was a god.

Tammy was found dead in October 2019 of what doctors at the time thought was natural causes. Vallow and Daybell were married just two weeks after Tammy’s funeral.

It wasn’t until June 2020 that police found the mutilated remains of JJ and Tylee at a property in rural Idaho that belonged to Daybell.

JJ’s body was wrapped in rubbish bags, his arms bound in front of him with duct tape. Tylee’s remains were charred.

Vallow has now been found guilty of murder and conspiracy to murder after a lengthy trial. Daybell is set to face court in a separate trial at a later date.

‘Church of the Firstborn’

Vallow’s defence team say her religious beliefs began to change after she met Daybell, a fiction author whose books focus on the apocalypse and are loosely based on Mormon teachings.

But prosecutors say those beliefs veered toward the extreme, with the couple saying people were “dark” or “light”, telling friends and acquaintances that “dark” people had been taken over by evil spirits.

They eventually began teaching friends that once those evil spirits were strong enough, the person became a “zombie” and the only way to free that person’s soul was by killing them.

The pair met at a conference in Utah in 2018 and felt an “instant connection”, claiming they had been married to each other in a past life, according to police records.

Vallow’s longtime best friend, Melanie Gibb, told investigators that Vallow and Daybell believed they were part of the “Church of the Firstborn” and that their mission in that church was to lead the “144,000” mentioned in the Book of Revelation.

‘One Mighty and Strong’ to emerge after the apocalypse?

Apocalypticism – the religious belief that the end of the world is imminent – in Western culture goes back thousands of years, professor Stephen Kent, an expert on cults at the University of Alberta, tells Sky News.

While much of the Christian apocalyptic beliefs are rooted in Judaism, he says, the case of Lori Vallow highlights the connection with Mormonism.

“Mormonism has a belief that there will be a terrible apocalyptic period at the end of time.

“Mainstream Mormons are encouraged to stack up food and provisions that will allow them to survive a government collapse for a year – and in those last days before Jesus comes back governments will fall apart.”

Within that there is a belief among fundamentalist movements that a Mormon leader will reveal himself, known as “One Mighty and Strong”.

It is believed he will restore ideal Mormonism after the apocalypse, Professor Kent says, and the surviving Mormons will be the chosen ones.

Since the prophecy was made in 1832 a string of extremist individuals have claimed to be “One Mighty and Strong” and some have extracted dangerous behaviours from their followers, including murder.

Fringe Mormon groups involving apocalyptic beliefs have popped up over the years, often led by men who see themselves as “One Mighty and Strong”, Prof Kent said.

He described Chad Daybell as a “fringe Mormon character” and remarked on his authorship of fiction books about the end of the world.

“I’ve not seen specifically that he saw himself as being ‘One Mighty and Strong’, but he certainly fitted in that position and it seems to me that his followers saw him in that context.”

Escape from a fundamentalist Mormon cult

“Every time I would try to escape, the punishments would get heightened.”

It took Briell Decker four years and multiple attempts to break out of the Mormon cult she was born into, unscrewing a window in the compound where she was being held in solitary confinement and running for her freedom in 2013.

At age 18 she had become the 65th wife of Warren Jeffs, the now-disgraced prophet who led the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS).

It is one of a number of fundamentalist Mormon communities and emerged after its founding members were excommunicated from the mainstream Mormon church for their refusal to abandon polygamy.

Jeffs was convicted of sexually assaulting two underage girls he took as brides and sentenced to life in prison in 2011.

“I didn’t dare say no to him because of his authority,” Briell tells Sky News about agreeing to marry Jeffs. He had been her school principal before becoming leader just before her 18th birthday. They were married soon after.

“I figured I’d be really punished if I said no to him, so I just went along with it.”

Sermons in the group featured warnings about doomsday, Briell said, comparing them to a “horror movie”.

“It’s used for control for sure, to scare people into being more faithful, praying harder, more loyalty.”

‘The newer compounds have a guard tower’

Unlike so many others Briell was able to escape the FLDS – but it was no sure thing and involved a lot of failed attempts.

She spoke of being moved around for around three years, eventually managing to work her way to an older compound where security wasn’t as tight.

“The newer compounds have a guard tower, they have a gate around them. They’re really hard to escape from.”

She added: “They had four-wheelers that would drive around the perimeter of the property with the men that were assigned to keep the security.”

Briell was able to escape from the older compound and made it into the outside world, where she was adopted by a woman from an organisation that helps people escaping FLDS.

In the years since she gained her freedom Briell was able to obtain ownership of the 44-room mansion where Jeffs and his wives lived. It’s now a refuge for other women fleeing the church.

Her father was kicked out of the FLDS soon after she escaped, but Briell says she hasn’t spoken to her mother in 11 years.

Lori Vallow guilty of murder

Lori Vallow’s trial began in April 2023 – more than three years after her children’s deaths.

Before she was charged with the murders in May 2021 she was ordered to undergo a mental competency evaluation and was declared unfit to stand trial on two counts of concealment in the deaths of her kids.

A judge ordered Vallow to be committed to a mental health facility for treatment. Less than a year later, she was declared mentally fit to stand trial.

The state of Idaho doesn’t allow for an “insanity” defence and requires that defendants have the competence to understand the charges against them.

In May, jurors found her guilty of the murders of Tylee and JJ, and of conspiracy to murder Tammy. She has now been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

US

Stock markets suffer sharp drops after Donald Trump announces sweeping tariffs

Published

2 hours ago

April 4, 2025

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Stock markets suffer sharp drops after Donald Trump announces sweeping tariffs

Stock markets around the world fell on Thursday after Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs – with some economists now fearing a recession.

The US president announced tariffs for almost every country – including 10% rates on imports from the UK – on Wednesday evening, sending financial markets reeling.

While the UK’s FTSE 100 closed down 1.55% and the continent’s STOXX Europe 600 index was down 2.67% as of 5.30pm, it was American traders who were hit the most.

Trump tariffs latest: US stock markets tumble

All three of the US’s major markets opened to sharp losses on Thursday morning.

By 8.30pm UK time (3.30pm EST), The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 3.7%, the S&P 500 opened with a drop of 4.4%, and the Nasdaq composite was down 5.6%.

Compared to their values when Donald Trump was inaugurated, the three markets were down around 5.6%, 8.7% and 14.4%, respectively, according to LSEG.

Worst one-day losses since COVID

As Wall Street trading ended at 9pm in the UK, two indexes had suffered their worst one-day losses since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The S&P 500 fell 4.85%, the Nasdaq dropped 6%, and the Dow Jones fell 4%.

It marks Nasdaq’s biggest daily percentage drop since March 2020 at the start of COVID, and the largest drop for the Dow Jones since June 2020.

‘Trust in President Trump’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN earlier in the day that Mr Trump was “doubling down on his proven economic formula from his first term”.

“To anyone on Wall Street this morning, I would say trust in President Trump,” she told the broadcaster, adding: “This is indeed a national emergency… and it’s about time we have a president who actually does something about it.”

Later, the US president told reporters as he left the White House that “I think it’s going very well,” adding: “The markets are going to boom, the stock is going to boom, the country is going to boom.”

He later said on Air Force One that the UK is “happy” with its tariff – the lowest possible levy of 10% – and added he would be open to negotiations if other countries “offer something phenomenal”.

Economist warns of ‘spiral of doom’

The turbulence in the markets from Mr Trump’s tariffs “just left everybody in shock”, Garrett Melson, portfolio strategist at Natixis Investment Managers Solutions in Boston, told Reuters.

He added that the economy could go into recession as a result, saying that “a lot of the pain, will probably most acutely be felt in the US and that certainly would weigh on broader global growth as well”.

Meanwhile, chief investment officer at St James’s Place Justin Onuekwusi said that international retaliation is likely, even as “it’s clear countries will think about how to retaliate in a politically astute way”.

He warned: “Significant retaliation could lead to a tariff ‘spiral of doom’ that could be the growth shock that drags us into recession.”

It comes as the UK government published a long list of US products that could be subject to reciprocal tariffs – including golf clubs and golf balls.

Running to more than 400 pages, the list is part of a four-week-long consultation with British businesses and suggests whiskey, jeans, livestock, and chemical components.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on Thursday that the US president had launched a “new era” for global trade and that the UK will respond with “cool and calm heads”.

It also comes as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a 25% tariff on all American-imported vehicles that are not compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal.

He added: “The 80-year period when the United States embraced the mantle of global economic leadership, when it forged alliances rooted in trust and mutual respect and championed the free and open exchange of goods and services, is over. This is a tragedy.”

US

Trump’s tariffs are about something more than economics: power

Published

14 hours ago

April 3, 2025

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Trump's tariffs are about something more than economics: power

Tanking stock markets, collapsing world orders, devastating trade wars; economists with their hair ablaze are scrambling to keep up.

But as we try to make sense of Donald Trumps’s tariff tsunami, economic theory only goes so far. In the end this surely is about something more primal.

Power.

Understanding that may be crucial to how the world responds.

Yes, economics helps explain the impact. The world’s economy has after all shifted on its axis, the way it’s been run for decades turned on its head.

Instead of driving world trade, America is creating a trade war. We will all feel the impact.

Donald Trump says he is settling scores, righting wrongs. America has been raped, looted and pillaged by the world trading system.

But don’t be distracted by the hyperbole – and if you think this is about economics alone, you may be missing the point.

Above all, tariffs give Donald Trump power. They strike fear into allies and enemies, from governments to corporations.

This is a president who runs his presidency like a medieval emperor or mafia don.

It is one reason why since his election we have seen what one statesman called a conga line of sycophants make their way to the White House, from world leaders to titans of industry.

The conga line will grow longer as they now redouble their efforts hoping to special treatment from Trump’s tariffs. Sir Keir Starmer among them.

President Trump’s using similar tactics at home, deploying presidential power to extract concessions and deter dissent in corporate America, academia and the US media. Those who offer favours are spared punishment.

His critics say he seeks a form power for the executive or presidential branch of government that the founding fathers deliberately sought to prevent.

Whether or not that is true, the same playbook of divide and rule through intimidation can now be applied internationally. Thanks to tariffs

Each country will seek exceptions but on Trump’s terms. Those who retaliate may meet escalation.

This is the unforgiving calculus for governments including our own plotting their next moves.

The temptation will be to give Trump whatever he wants to spare their economies, but there is a jeopardy that compounds the longer this goes on.

Malcolm Turnbull, the former Australian prime minister who coined the conga line comparison, put it this way: “Pretty much all the international leaders I have seen that have sucked up to Trump have been run over. The reality is if you suck up to bullies, whether it’s global affairs or in the playground, you just get more bullying.”

Trading partners may be able to mitigate the impact of these tariffs through negotiation, but that may only encourage this unorthodox president to demand ever more?

Ultimately the world will need a more reliable superpower than that.

In the hands of such a president, America cannot be counted on.

When it comes to security, stability and prosperity, allies will need to fend for themselves.

And they will need new friends. If Washington can’t be relied on, Beijing beckons.

America First will, more and more, mean America on its own.

US

‘A genius actor’, ‘firecracker’, and ‘my friend’: Tributes paid to Top Gun star Val Kilmer

Published

14 hours ago

April 3, 2025

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'A genius actor', 'firecracker', and 'my friend': Tributes paid to Top Gun star Val Kilmer

Actors, directors and celebrity friends have paid tribute to Val Kilmer, after he died aged 65.

The California-born star of Top Gun, Batman and Heat died of pneumonia on Tuesday night in Los Angeles, his daughter Mercedes told the Associated Press.

She said Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 but later recovered.

Tributes flooded in after reports broke of the actor’s death, with No Country For Old Men star Josh Brolin among the first to share their memories.

He wrote on Instagram: “See ya, pal. I’m going to miss you. You were a smart, challenging, brave, uber-creative firecracker. There’s not a lot left of those.

“I hope to see you up there in the heavens when I eventually get there. Until then, amazing memories, lovely thoughts.”

Kyle Maclachlan, who co-starred with Kilmer in the 1991 biopic The Doors, wrote on social media: “You’ll always be my Jim. See you on the other side my friend.”

Michael Mann, who directed Kilmer in 1995’s Heat, also paid tribute in a statement, saying: “I always marvelled at the range, the brilliant variability within the powerful current of Val’s possessing and expressing character.

“After so many years of Val battling disease and maintaining his spirit, this is tremendously sad news.”

Heat co-star Danny Trejo also called Kilmer “a great actor, a wonderful person, and a dear friend of mine” on Instagram.

Cher, who once dated the actor, said on X that “U Were Funny, crazy, pain in the ass, GREAT FRIEND… BRILLIANT as Mark Twain, BRAVE here during ur sickness”.

Lifelong friend and director of Twixt, Francis Ford Coppola said: “Val Kilmer was the most talented actor when in his High School, and that talent only grew greater throughout his life.

“He was a wonderful person to work with and a joy to know – I will always remember him.”

The Top Gun account on X also said it was remembering Kilmer, who starred as Iceman in both the 1986 original and 2022 sequel, and “whose indelible cinematic mark spanned genres and generations”.