Lori Vallow Daybell, who was convicted of killing her children, Tylee Ryan (16) and Joshua “JJ” Vallow (7), maintains her innocence despite overwhelming evidence against her.
In a new jailhouse interview with Dateline’s Keith Morrison, she insisted she had no role in their deaths, even suggesting that Tylee was responsible for JJ’s murder—an accusation investigators have dismissed as impossible.
Lori, 50, was found guilty in 2023 after the remains of her two missing children were discovered in 2020, buried on the Idaho property of her husband, Chad Daybell. Chad, also convicted in the case, was found guilty of their murders as well as the 2019 killing of his first wife, Tammy Daybell. Both Lori and Chad were convicted of conspiring to murder Tammy.
During the interview, she was confronted with being called “the most hated mom in America.” Lori, unfazed, dismissed the media’s portrayal of her, claiming, “I don’t know how it became what it is today. It’s amazing to me.”
Asked if she had been present when her children were killed, Lori, evading the question, responded, “That’s a really sad question.” After being pressed further, she finally said, “I was not there.”
Throughout the interview, Lori repeatedly attempted to shift blame, claiming that her daughter Tylee killed JJ before taking her own life. However, authorities have ruled out this theory, confirming that Tylee was killed before JJ and that the two deaths were weeks apart.
Morrison told NBC that Lori used her first-ever television interview to deflect blame. As she was escorted from her cell in handcuffs and ankle shackles, she even winked at the camera.
“That should have been a clue about what was coming,” Morrison said, reflecting on his encounter with one of America’s most infamous killers.
“She’s a curious character and I just didn’t know what was driving her and I had a whole bunch of stuff prepared I wanted to ask her about but, again, how do you prepare for chaos? She came in and she had her own agenda,” he said.
Lori reportedly intends to represent herself in her upcoming trial in Arizona, where she faces charges of conspiring to murder her fourth husband, Charles Vallow.