LIVE UPDATES | Chad Daybell’s children take the stand on day 26 of murder trial

LIVE UPDATES FROM THE CHAD DAYBELL TRIAL

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TRIAL LIVE
Please excuse the typos. These are live updates from the courtroom.

3:15 p.m. Boyce says we are dismissing for the day. We will be back tomorrow. Join me tonight on “Courtroom Insider” at 6:30 p.m. MDT. Lots to discuss!

3:14 p.m. Larry Woodcock just walked in during the sidebar. He and Kay left for the weekend for a graduation. Kay stayed back in Louisiana as her brother Gerry is in the hospital.

3:13 p.m. Joseph says his dad was losing weight, and Tammy was jealous. Prior has nothing further. Boyce asks for a brief sidebar.

3:11 p.m. Prior wants to ask Joseph about his parents and a competition between them and Tammy. Joseph says it was a FitBit competition regarding the number of steps they got in each day. His parents were competitive, and Tammy was competitive. Jospeh says there was a family joke about Tammy shaking her arm to get more steps on her FitBit.

3:10 p.m. Prior asks Joseph about him going to Sunday School and a lesson in church that Matt Daybell (Chad’s brother) was giving. Rocky Wixom objects based on relevance. Boyce sustains. Murray says after Chad was arrested, he got a lot of dirty looks at church and on Facebook, the deputy prosecutor for Fremont County at the time made a “pretty nasty post” about the case.

3:08 p.m. Joseph says even after Chad was arrested, Det. Hermosillo drove by their property several times a week. Prior asks about the 5K race for September 2019. Joseph put on a race for Operation Underground Railroad. He was the lead organizer. Tammy and their publishing company sponsored the race. Tammy was a volunteer in the race – she didn’t run it, Joseph says.

3:07 p.m. Prior asks where JJ and Tylee were buried. Joseph answers. Prior asks if someone could access the burial sites from the driveway and not be visible. Joseph says that’s possible.

3:05 p.m. Prior asks if there are two driveways on the Daybell property. Joseph says there is a short driveway on the northwest side of the lot in front of the house. Behind the house, there is a much longer driveway. Prior asks if there is access to the field from the long driveway. Joseph says there are two access points from the driveway to the pasture area.

3:03 p.m. Prior asks about a red shed on the Daybell property. Joseph borrowed tools from the neighbor or from Chad’s red shed. Joseph explains the shed and how it was never locked. Joseph says the red shed is about the distance from the wall behind him to where Prior is standing at the podium.

3 p.m. Prior asks how far away Joseph is from Chad’s house. He asks who lives in the homes near Chad’s house. Prior asks about raccoon problems the summer of 2019. Joseph said raccoons were getting into the animal feed bins, so a neighbor offered Joseph the use of a trap. Raccoons were caught.

2:58 p.m. The next morning, Joseph was getting ready for work. He saw a deputy vehicle outside and he was worried Garth may not have come home from work. Joseph went back inside and told Emma. Emma called Garth, Chad and Tammy but nobody answered. Joseph and Emma started walking across the street to the house and then a deputy and Garth told them what happened. Garth was very shaken up. Joseph says when he saw Chad, he was wandering aimlessly and kept holding his head. He kept asking, “What are we going to do? What are we doing to do?” Joseph had never seen him in that state before.

2:57 p.m. That evening, when he brought the keys back, Tammy was sitting on the couch and seemed “very exhausted and was coughing pretty hard.” Chad was sitting at the computer desk. Tammy was sitting up on the couch. Prior asks if she was in distress. Joseph says, “It appeared she was sick and wasn’t feeling well.”

2:55 p.m. Prior asks Joseph if he observed anything unusual when he went in to see Tammy. Joseph says earlier in the day, around 2-3 p.m. when he went to go get the truck, Tammy seemed exhausted. “She was carrying around several Scholastic school boxes that were pretty heavy,” Joseph says. “She seemed exhausted and exasperated.”

2:53 p.m. Joseph said he needed to get Tammy’s set of keys that had keys to the truck and the Equinox. He used the truck and returned it to the Daybell home. Joseph got there around 5-5:30 p.m. – early evening. Joseph went into the house and handed Tammy the keys. She was sitting on the couch. Chad was also there.

2:52 p.m. Prior asks about Tammy Daybell preparing for a book fair on Friday, Oct. 18. Tammy was driving the Dodge Dakota that day. Joseph said that fall there was a major issue with potatoes freezing. Joseph was helping his friend get the potatoes in. Joseph went and picked up Emma from school. They only had one working vehicle, and Joseph wanted to help his friend. Tammy said Joseph could use the truck and Emma said she would take Tammy home.

2:50 p.m. Chad also did some writing at the BYU-Idaho library, Joseph says. The majority of each day, Chad was either writing at the church or the campus, Jospeh explains. Prior asks who was the primary driver of the Dodge Dakota – Tammy or Chad. Joseph says Tammy was. Tammy and Chad then bought a black Equinox, and Tammy drove it.

2:47 p.m. Prior asks about the Dodge Dakota. He got it in December 2019 from Chad. Prior asks Joseph if he observed Chad’s regular patterns of travel living kitty-corner to him. Joseph works at the hospital and said his work shift began at noon. Joseph would often cross paths with Chad as Chad was headed to the Salem church to write around 9 a.m.

2:45 p.m. Prior asks Joseph if he spoke with any members of the family after the incident. He says he talked to his wife. The discussion about whether it was a paintball gun or another gun was never discussed. Based off what Tammy said, Joseph understood it was a paintball gun.

2:43 p.m. Joseph says he was in the woodshed when he learned about the Facebook post. Joseph never heard a scream or yell from Tammy. He never heard a swooshing sound or rifle or anything like that. Joseph never saw anything. Prior asks Joseph about his talk with Dep. Colter Cannon. Joseph says after calling 911, he saw Cannon in his vehicle and spoke with him.

2:40 p.m. Joseph said that in the Facebook post, Tammy said it was a paintball gun. Prior asks Joseph if he recalls what he said when he called 911. Joseph said he told them his mother-in-law was shot at by someone with a paintball gun and the person ran away. This was based off what Tammy had told him.

2:38 p.m. Prior asks about Oct. 9, 2019, and what Joseph was doing that day. He says in the evening, he was out chopping wood for their fireplace. He got a notification that Tammy posted in a Facebook group that someone had attempted to shoot her with a paintball gun. Joseph went inside, and Emma was calling Tammy. Joseph asked Tammy if she called law enforcement. Tammy said no, so Joseph called the police.

2:37 p.m. Joseph says he and Emma have been married for seven years. They have three children, including a newborn. Prior asks how many times he and Joseph spoke or met before last night. Joseph says just once on the phone for about five minutes.

2:36 p.m. Joseph Murray, Emma’s husband, is called to the stand.

2:10 p.m. Mid-afternoon break. Back in 20-30 minutes.

2:09 p.m. Blake asks if it was his understanding if it was the same grand jury with additional questions. He believes so but isn’t sure. Fischer says he provided legal counsel to his client and there were no charges against Garth. Blake is done, Prior has nothing further.

2:07 p.m. Prior asks if Fischer told Garth this was a trap designed to trick him. Fischer doesn’t recall exactly but wouldn’t have been surprised if he did because Garth had already testified in the previous grand jury and this grand jury was about Garth possibly committing perjury. Prior has nothing further. Blake will now cross.

2:06 p.m. Fischer recalls Garth having questions. Fischer told him to answer only the questions being asked, and if he wasn’t sure, Garth could consult with Fischer. Fischer wasn’t in the room for the grand jury but was outside and told Garth he could come and talk with him if he had questions. Fischer told Garth not to talk to the media.

2:04 p.m. Fischer works in Driggs and was asked to travel to Fremont County to provide legal services for Garth Daybell during grand jury proceedings. The focus of the grand jury was on Garth. Fischer says Garth had previously testified in front of the grand jury, and the jury had follow-up questions so Fischer was called in to assist.

2:02 p.m. Attorneys are back. Garth is released from his subpoena. Next witness is Forrest Fischer, Garth’s attorney.

1:51 p.m. Boyce says there is a matter that needs to be taken up outside the presence of the public and jurors. Boyce asks that we remain in the courtroom while this issue is taken care of. So brief break before the next witness.

1:49 p.m. Blake asks Garth if he changed his testimony between the first and second grand jury. He says he did not. Nothing further from Blake. Attorneys now in a sidebar.

1:47 p.m. Blake has nothing further. Prior will now re-direct. Prior says the second grand jury was convened to find out if Garth should face perjury charges. He was not aware. He says he felt Madison and Fremont Counties were threatening and intimidating him to change his testimony. Prior has nothing further and asks for a sidebar. Blake asks for a brief re-cross.

1:45 p.m. Blake asks Garth if he is aware the second grand jury was conducted based on the request of the first grand jury. Garth was not aware of that. Blake asks about Joseph Smith and a casting. Garth says the person being casted on in the story continued to live on and live his life. Garth had not heard that his mom was possessed. He had not heard about JJ or Tylee being possessed. Blake asks if his mom is still alive. Garth says no.

1:44 p.m. Blake asks if he recalls telling Kara and/or Emma about finding his mom on the couch. “I did not tell them she was on the couch,” Garth says. Garth says the night before, he had seen her on the couch as she said goodbye to them. Blake asks, “If they were to say something different, would that surprise you?” Garth replies, “I’ve heard that before.”

1:42 p.m. Garth says Det. Kaaiakamanu and an FBI agent went to his classroom one day after school and told him the results of his mom’s autopsy. Blake asks Garth about talking to a person about finding his mom dead in bed and his dad gone. Garth doesn’t recall.

1:41 p.m. Garth says he was “extremely” close with his mom. Blake asks about the day in May 2021 when Garth went to the police station. She asks if he recalls that the officers left the door open in the interview room. Garth says the police bought him McDonald’s. His attorney came for questioning.

1:40 p.m. Nobody else was in the house when he got home. Blake asks what woke him up on the morning of Oct. 19. “I thought I heard a thump, and then my dad said, ‘Garth, come help.'” Garth went into the bedroom and saw his mom halfway off the bed with her legs still entangled in the blankets. “I immediately thought, ‘She needs my help,’ so I lifted her immediately into the bed.”

1:38 p.m. Garth ran outside to try and see who shot at his mom but it was so dark, he couldn’t see anyone. Prior asks about the day Tammy died. Garth got home a little after 1 a.m., got ready for bed and watched YouTube videos. He didn’t see either of his parents – he said they were both in bed. “I saw their shapes in the bed as I passed by their room,” Garth says. He did not go in and talk to them – he assumed they were asleep.

1:37 p.m. Garth learned an autopsy was going to be performed on his mom. “Even with an autopsy being performed, you didn’t think law enforcement would want to know (about Tammy being short of breath)?” Garth says he assumes they would find it. Garth never shot paintball guns with his mom, never saw her with a paintball gun, etc. Blake asks if it would surprise him that Det. Cannon never saw a picture of a paintball gun that night. Garth says it would surprise him because the deputy was there.

1:36 p.m. Blake asks about the raccoon that was shot on Sept. 9 and where it was buried. Garth says it was buried behind the silver shed. He was not there when the raccoon was buried. Blake asks about Tammy getting winded and if Garth ever shared those concerns with police or the coroner. “I don’t recall,” he says.

1:35 p.m. Blake asks about the Dodge Dakota and which parent drove it. His recollection is his dad drove it in the later years. Blake asks why Joseph Murray referred to the truck as Tammy’s. Garth had not heard that. Garth says Tammy drove the truck on occasion.

1:34 p.m. Prior has no further questions. Lindsey Blake will now cross-examine Garth.

1:32 p.m. Garth said his parents put light and dark numbers on people “every now and again.” Prior asks about a casting recorded in a book. Garth says Joseph Smith was casting a devil out of Newell Knight. Garth says he isn’t sure the story would be shared as often anymore. Garth says Knight did not die after the demon was expelled from him – he went on to do great things.

1:30 p.m. Garth was aware his father had beliefs about the 144,000. Prior asks Garth for differences between his father and his dad’s faith. “I teach and believe in evolution. I teach that to my students. I teach the earth is 4.5 billion years old as opposed to 6,000,” Garth says. He says he partially shares his father’s views on light and dark. Garth says it could mean good and evil, good and bad, opposing forces.

1:29 p.m. Prior asks if Garth is LDS. He is. Garth says he interprets his faith different than his father’s. He describes his dad’s faith as more traditional – closer to the way it was 100 years ago.

1:27 p.m. Garth hired Forrest Fischer as an attorney. Garth testified in front of the second grand jury. He had previously testified in another grand jury regarding his father. “I was feeling extremely pressured by the prosecutors,” Garth says. He says the second grand jury was for him. Garth was never indicted.

1:26 p.m. Garth says he asked to have an attorney. Garth was released and he was never charged. Prior asks if there was another occasion where he was asked to change his story. “I was summoned to two separate grand juries,” he says. Prior wants to talk about the second grand jury. “It was made pretty plain that I needed to change my story to fit theirs,” Garth says. “They had a list of charges that they were threatening me with.”

1:24 p.m. Prior asks which officers showed up at his house. Garth names a few. Garth asked if they had a warrant. They said no but told him he needed to go with them. Garth says he felt like he had no choice. He went to the police station and his phone was taken. Garth says his wife had also been detained and they were kept in separate rooms for 5-6 hours. “They were telling me my story was untrue and I needed to change it,” Garth says.

1:22 p.m. Garth learned his mother had been exhumed from Emma. Nobody contacted them ahead of time – “it was a complete surprise.” Prior asks about May 7, 2021. Garth said it started as a normal school day – meaning he was going to go and do his job. He went out to the driveway to his car and there were several law enforcement vehicles across the street. “Several officers got out and surrounded me and insisted I go with them.”

1:21 p.m. Prior asks about the trip to Knott’s Berry Farm. Garth, his dad, Emma and Joe, Adam and Leah all went on the trip. Lori Vallow was not with the group. They drove to Salt Lake and caught a flight to California. During this testimony, Chad is leaning forward on the table looking at his son.

1:20 p.m. Garth said if there had been a struggle or fight, he would have heard it. He says he heard nothing. Garth was present when his family met with the funeral home. Garth said the funeral director said they could have the funeral on Tuesday or Saturday.

1:19 p.m. Garth was awakened a few hours later from his dad saying, “Garth, Garth get up. I need help.” Garth went into his parents’ bedroom and observed his mother rolled out of bed with her feet tangled in the sheets. Garth went to grab his mom and help her into bed. “I felt she was cold and stiff and gray. I realized she’s not been breathing.”

1:17 p.m. Garth left around 7 p.m. His mom said, “Have a good time. I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll let you sleep in.” Garth got home from the haunted attraction around 1 a.m. “As I passed their bedroom, I heard my father snoring,” Garth says. Garth didn’t see any sign of a struggle or fight – as far as he knew, it was a normal night. Garth then watched YouTube in his bedroom until around 3 a.m.

1:15 p.m. Prior asks Garth about the evening of Oct. 18, 2019. Garth was working at a haunted house in Teton – about 20-30 minutes away from his house. He dressed up in a costume and scared people. Garth got home from his first job. Tammy got home before him and said, “I don’t feel good today. I don’t want to cook. Can you go get some McDonald’s for us?” Garth drove to Rexburg and picked up food for himself, mom and dad. Tammy got her favorite meal – the quarter pounder with cheese. Prior says, “A healthy meal.” Garth responds, “Depends.”

1:14 p.m. Garth said he, his mom and dad Googled a picture of a paintball gun to see what a hopper is. Dep. Colter Cannon showed up, and Garth says they showed him a photo of a paintball gun on the computer.

1:12 p.m. Prior asks about Oct. 9 – the day of the paintball gun incident. Garth was on the couch watching TV. Chad was working on the computer. When Tammy got home, she came in really panic-stricken saying someone had attacked her with a paintball gun. “When she said that, I was filled with rage and I wanted to go find whoever had done this, but before I chased after someone, I said, ‘Are you sure it was a paintball gun?’ She said, ‘Yes, it had the thing on top.'”

1:11 p.m. Garth often worked with his mom in the yard. “She had a hard time doing heavy things. I was her muscle,” he says. Garth says it became increasingly more difficult for Tammy toward the end of her life. “She would have fainting spells.” Garth said the spells happened after Tammy had been kneeling for a while.

1:10 p.m. Garth says all the raccoons were buried behind the silver shed. Garth was concerned that his mom was getting tired extremely easily, she would work hard all day and just come home and collapse. “She had hurt her arm, and I wanted her to go get it looked at. She was trying to rub this bruising ointment on it. She refused to go,” Garth says. Tammy did end up going to the doctor.

1:08 p.m. Garth is an eighth-grade science teacher at Madison Junior High School. In October 2019, he also worked as a scare person in a local haunted house. On Sept. 9, 2019, Garth says he got home in the late afternoon. As he pulled in, Chad came up to him wearing yard work clothes. “He sounded very excited,” Garth says. Chad told him he killed another raccoon. Garth believes it was the raccoon that kept breaking out of a cage they were trying to catch. Chad showed Garth he had buried the raccoon behind the silver shed.

1:05 p.m. Prior asks how many times, before today, have they spoken to each other. Garth says no more than three including today. Garth says Prior did not tell him what to say. The only advice Prior gave him was to tell the truth.

1:03 p.m. We are back in the courtroom. Several people waiting in line in the hall all day were able to get into the courtroom this afternoon because others left from this morning. Garth Daybell is back on the stand.

11:50 a.m. Boyce says we will break for lunch. Back in an hour.

11:48 a.m. Garth says there were a lot of raccoons. Boyce wants to bring up an issue on sidebar.

11:46 a.m. The raccoons went after the rabbit food, and they were worried they would start going after the rabbits. In the summer of 2019, they caught 3-4 raccoons. They were buried them in the compost heap behind the silver shed. Prior asks if other animals were buried on a different place on the property. Animals that were pets were buried by the raspberry patch.

11:45 a.m. Garth now says his mom drove the Dakota before 2017 and then began driving the Chevy Equinox. Prior asks about the summer of 2019 and raccoons. “That summer I was testing out a new tent in the back field and I heard a rustling. I went out and looked up into the tree, and there was a raccoon there. I ran inside and told my dad, and it was very close to where our rabbits were being kept. I told my dad. He grabbed the shotgun and he shot the raccoon,” Garth says. This was around 10 p.m.

11:43 a.m. Prior asks who drove the Dodge Dakota before 2017. It was Chad. After 2017, Garth says his dad was not driving the truck – his mom was the primary driver. Garth now says he has it backward. At the time of his mother’s death, Garth says his dad was driving the Dodge Dakota. Prior asks Garth if he’s nervous. He says he is and considers himself pretty shy.

11:41 a.m. Garth is Chad’s son and is the oldest child. Prior asks who was living at the home when Tammy died. It was Tammy, Chad and Garth. Garth’s bedroom was at the end of the hallway, and his parents’ room was across the hall.

11:40 a.m. Next witness is Garth Daybell.

11:39 a.m. Prior asks about the exhumation of Tammy and has nothing further. Emma Murray is released from the stand but Prior wants to keep her under subpoena.

11:36 a.m. Prior back at the podium and displays the insurance form. He asks what the line “spouse’s signature if applying for coverage” means. Emma says either her dad applied for coverage or her mom didn’t understand. Prior asks about Chad discussing with Emma about where the children were. Emma says her dad never knew where the children were.

11:35 a.m. Blake asks about the upstairs room with a mattress. Emma says people typically didn’t live up there and Chad had just moved it up there. Blake asks about the $8,000 deposit Chad made into her account. Emma says it happened. Blake asks about two bodies being located. “Whose bodies were those?” Emma responds, “Tylee Ryan and JJ Vallow.” Blake has nothing further. Prior will now re-direct.

11:33 a.m. Chad tells Emma to move out of her house and move into his. “This is essentially your house and we’ll talk to John Prior about the financial arrangement but you should be fine for a while.” Blake stops the clip and asks Emma if she recalls the conversation with her dad. She does. Chad didn’t ask Emma if she knew why he was arrested.

11:32 a.m. “I’m not coming back,” Chad says. “All that stuff in the baby room is Lori’s and mine. The suitcases – you’ll see – just put it in the garage. Take that mattress from upstairs, do what you want.” Chad says, “We’re going to make it through. I’m glad we could talk.”

11:30 a.m. Chad says, “Cooperate with them as much as you feel.” Emma says, “They have been kind to us today.” She says she texted John Prior so he has her number. Chad tells Emma that a lot of the accounts are on autopay. “It sounds like you’re not going to be out for a little while,” Emma says. Emma is crying and says she will take care of her and Joe and Mark. Chad tells her to keep paying the mortgage.

11:29 a.m. Chad tells Emma how to use the card for Telemate to talk with Lori. He tells her how to sign in and Emma says she has an account that she’s been talking to Lori on. Chad tells her to use a particular card to put money on and to give her commissary money. He usually puts $30 a week on there.

11:27 a.m. Chad is asking Det. Ball about his wallet and Ball says Emma can take the wallet with the credit cards. Chad tells Emma there is about $9,000 in two white envelopes in the middle drawer of Mark’s dresser in his room. Chad says they will talk more about car payments and they begin discussing bank account information.

11:25 a.m. Blake begins playing the video. Chad is in the backseat of the car wearing a baseball cap. Emma opens the door and says, “I love you so much.” Chad responds, “I love you. Glad you came over.” Emma says, “I thought they took you downtown already.” Chad says, “I almost made it to the county line.” Emma says she saw the police chase Chad down.

11:19 a.m. The exhibit is the body camera footage that was previously admitted. Blake asks to publish a portion of the video. This is the conversation Emma had with her dad as police were searching the property for JJ and Tylee.

11:18 a.m. Blake asks about June 9, 2020 and requests an exhibit from the court.

11:16 a.m. Blake says she was unwillingly to sit down with law enforcement. Emma says, “In that instance, yes.” Blake asks if it was common for her dad to be in control and in charge. “Yes, as the patriarch of our home.” Blake asks about how Chad seemed when Tammy died. “Did your dad ever share with you a text to Lori that was sent less than 24 hours after your mother’s passing?” Emma responds, “My dad never shared text messages with me.”

11:14 a.m. Emma repeats again the didn’t want her mom to get an autopsy. Blake says once the autopsy was done, did Emma want to know the results. “I told them I didn’t want to interview with them. I wanted to see the results and I did not want to discuss it with them,” Emma says. Blake says police told her she did not have to do an interview, they were just going to share the results with her. Emma says they never said that.

11:13 a.m. Blake asks Emma if she provided any statements about her mom’s health when her mom died. Emma doesn’t remember. Blake asks if, at any point, Emma reached out to law enforcement about her mom’s medical conditions. “It wasn’t a crime, so no.”

11:12 a.m. Emma said during an interview in 2021 that Chad’s affair was not physical. She says she later learned it was physical. Blake asks Emma if she was present at the home when 911 was called the day Tammy died. She was not.

11:10 a.m. Emma says she has read all of her dad’s books. In Chad’s autobiography, he says the visions he had experienced are all true. Blake asks about priesthood blessings and the statement Emma made about a man “living the covenant” could give a blessing. Blake asks if committing adultery is living the covenant. Emma says no. Blake asks when she learned Chad was having an affair with Lori. “After he was arrested,” Emma says. “I heard about things in the news after Lori was arrested in February 2020 but I learned more after he was arrested – very shortly after. Once again the news.”

11:09 a.m. Blake asks if when her dad caught her about castings, he told her anything about the body having to be destroyed or had to die. Emma says no. Emma says her dad never talked to her about Alex Cox. He never spoke to her about Lori Vallow before Tammy died.

11:06 a.m. Blake asks Emma if she happened to be searching for south, southwest wind the day before Tylee was last seen alive. Yes. The day before her dad sent her mom a message about a raccoon on the property. Emma says yes. Emma says her dad taught her about castings and her mom did them too. “Are you still alive?” Blake asks. Emma responds, “Yes.” Emma says her dad taught her about multi-creations but didn’t teach her about zombies.

11:05 a.m. Blake asks Emma if she ever asked her dad where JJ Vallow was. “Yes. He told he he was in a safe place.” Same question about Tylee. “Yes. He told me she was in a safe place.” Blake asks where the kids were found. “In the backyard. My dad’s property.”

11:03 a.m. Blake asks Emma if she ever saw her mom with a paintball gun, rifle, assault rifle, any gun. Emma says no. Emma says she learned her mom had been exhumed on Dec. 13. Blake asks about Emma’s meeting with Det. Hope. Emma says Hope told her they were concerned about JJ’s whereabouts and they were still looking for him. Blake asks Emma when she saw Hermosillo at the gym. She says it was after Chad was arrested in 2020.

11:02 a.m. Blake asks if her parents could access each other’s accounts because they shared passwords. Emma says yes. Blake asks if her dad could block access or delete emails on Tammy’s accounts. “If he knew how,” Emma says.

11:01 a.m. Blake shows the form on the big screen. She asks what company the insurance is through. It’s through LifeMap and the amount is for $80,000. Blake shows the signatures on the form to the jury.

11 a.m. Emma is given the insurance form. Blake asks whose signatures are on the insurance form. Emma says Tamara Daybell and Chad Daybell. The dates is 9/8/19. This was only insurance for Tammy.

10:57 a.m. Emma says Tammy was not training for a 5K. “Would it surprise you that other people said she was?” Blake asks. Emma says, “No.” Blake asks if Emma was privy to all her parents’ conversations. Emma says no. Blake asks about her mom taking out the insurance policy and why Chad’s signature would have been on the form if Tammy filled it out alone. Emma says Tammy took our insurance on Chad. Blake asks for an exhibit.

10:56 a.m. Blake asks why her husband had to get the keys to the truck from Tammy. Emma says he wanted to borrow the truck for potato harvest and Tammy had the keys and was the closest to it. Blake asks Emma about Tammy playing on the Wii. It was an exercise game. Emma says she did it a lot in 2018 and earlier. “Fair to say your mom enjoyed physical activities?” Blake asks. Emma responds, “She enjoyed video games.” She also liked farming and Pokemon games.

10:54 a.m. Blake asks if Emma would visit with her mom when she was going to bed. Blake asks if she knew what Tammy would do with the FitBit every night. Emma says she saw her several times with the FitBit. Blake asks if it would surprise Emma to learn on Oct. 18, there was activity on Tammy’s phone past 10. Blake asks Emma if she was there that night. Emma says she only knows what she was told about Tammy being sick and throwing up that night. She was not there.

10:53 a.m. Blake asks if it would surprise Emma to learn there was no mention of the anemia in her medical records. She visited the doctor in 2019 and no mention of anemia or sleep apnea. Emma says she isn’t surprised that there is no mention in her medical records.

10:52 a.m. Blake asks if Emma recalls talking to her dad about the 5K race and her dad saying certain things. Emma doesn’t recall. Blake asks about her dad telling Emma about Zumba. She says her dad has never told her to say anything.

10:50 a.m. Blake begins by reminding Emma that she promised to tell the truth. Blake tells Emma she has spoken with her dad almost daily. Emma says that’s true. Blake reminds Emma that in early June 2020, Chad told Emma not to cooperate with law enforcement. Emma no longer met with the FBI.

10:49 a.m. Prior is done. Blake will now cross-examine.

10:48 a.m. Prior asks her father’s emotions on the day of her mother’s funeral. “Typical for any grieving Latter-day Saint husband.” “Latter-day Saints believe we will be resurrected and with our families forever. A funeral isn’t saying goodbye forever – it’s a see you later, it’s a break,” Emma says. She says he cried but also laughed and smiled at times.

10:46 a.m. Prior asks Emma if she observed Chad leaving at a high rate of speed when he left the house that day. She says the speed limit is 50 mph and she saw him drive that speed. Prior asks who Chad was going to see. Blake objects on hearsay grounds. Prior suggests he was going to see a lawyer. Blake objects, judge sustains it and the question and answer are struck from the record.

10:45 a.m. Prior asks about June 9 – the day Chad was arrested. Prior asks about the police car footage that showed the conversation between Emma and Chad. Prior asks how the car was parked. He asks if someone was to look out the right side of the car window, what would you be looking at. Emma says the house. Prior asks if someone was looking out the other side, what would they be looking at. Emma says, “Whatever was behind the car” but she says not the property.

10:43 a.m. Prior asks if Emma met with Det. Hope at her school. Emma says yes, she met with him one time. “I wanted to ask him what was going on – why he was contacting members of my family. He was asking where my dad was. We gave him my dad’s phone number and told him he was in Hawaii but they said they had no way of contacting him. That seemed untrue.”

10:42 a.m. Emma says a detective from Madison County confronted her in the hallway at church and it was really uncomfortable. She says after the incident, she never went back to the congregation.

10:41 a.m. Prior asks if Emma felt like she was under scrutiny as part of this case. She says yes – “any interaction with law enforcement.” Emma went to exercise with her sister-in-law and they were in a section of the gym when Det. Hermosillo came to start exercising near them. “It seemed like a part of the gym that would have been too easy for him,” Emma explains. “He was standing closer to us than felt comfortable and it felt like he was trying to listen in to our conversation.”

10:39 a.m. Emma asks Hope about her mother being exhumed. He told her it had already happened and it was the first time she had heard about it. Prior asks Emma if she was ever misled about the exhumation. Emma says no. Prior asks the same question. Emma says she doesn’t understand the question.

10:37 a.m. Prior asks Emma is her father owned a dog. “My father did not own a dog. He doesn’t like dogs,” Emma says. Emma had a dog across the street. Prior wants to talk about Emma’s feelings with law enforcement. “I was aware of an event that had happened with my brother and I wanted to learn more about it so I contacted the same detective that had contacted him,” Emma says. Emma says the detective was Dave Hope.

10:35 a.m. Prior asks if Emma has encountered animals on the property and if those animals were buried after being shot. Prior asks if she has knowledge about animals being shot on her dad’s property. Prior asks what animals would visit her dad’s property. “There were a lot of cats. We live right by a busy highway so all throughout there’s stray cats that get hit. My mother would feel bad for them and they won’t even out cat and they would get buried,” Emma says. Dogs, chickens, ducks, raccoons, sometimes sparrows too, Emma says, were buried in the pet cemetery.

10:33 a.m. Emma says if anything was modified in the pet cemetery, Tammy would know. Prior begins to ask about an email “that’s been all over the news” and Boyce asks for a sidebar. Sidebar over and Prior asks about the raccoon text message. Emma says she is aware of it.

10:32 a.m. Emma says the decision to have the funeral in Springville seemed natural because Tammy lived there most of her life and there was a family gravesite plot. Emma says Tammy loved to nurture things – gardening, taking care of plants, etc. She liked ducks, rabbits, chickens.

10:30 a.m. Prior asks about the planning of Tammy’s funeral service. Emma says they met with someone at Flamm Funeral Home. “They gave us the choice of Tuesday or Saturday. There were other customers the funeral home was helping. Those were the only days available for the funeral home to help,” Emma says. Emma says there was a family discussion over whether to have the funeral on Tuesday or Saturday.

10:24 a.m. Emma walks into the courtroom to the witness stand. Jurors walk in. Prior continues to question about Lori traveling separately to California. Prior asks if the location of the children was ever discussed. Emma says yes. “From my understanding, I was told that the children were in a safe place,” Emma says.

10:20 a.m. Both sides argue their positions and calls this an “interesting issue.” Suddenly the jurors start walking in and Boyce asks that they leave – court isn’t ready for them yet. Boyce sustains Blake’s objection about statements made by Lori Vallow unless they are within very narrow exceptions. Prior asks if the court is excluding Emma from testifying about what Lori Vallow told her. Boyce says his ruling is limited to the line of questions that came up so further objections/exceptions would need to be taken up as they arise.

10:17 a.m. Judge Boyce is back on the bench. He is taking up an issue outside presence of the jury – whether the statements Vallow made on the trip to California with the Daybell family constitutes hearsay or not.

10:14 a.m. We are back in the courtroom. Green tickets were distributed to those of us in the courtroom this morning so we have a seat. They are letting in around 12 more people who have been waiting all morning. Don’t think I mentioned it, but my wife Erica is with me in court today. Our EastIdahoNews.com comment moderator, Peggy, is also here so don’t be a jerk in the comments while she’s away.

9:57 a.m. We are out in the hallway waiting to get into the courtroom. The Trial Court Administrator just announced that the ticket reservation system will be brought back next week. This is, by far, the most people who have shown up to try and get into the courtroom.

9:40 a.m. Lori Vallow was also on the trip. Emma doesn’t know where Lori left from but she arrived in California by vehicle later on. Defense and prosecutors arguing over an issue. Morning break time. Back in 20 minutes.

9:38 a.m. Prior asks about the trip to California over Thanksgiving break. Chad, Emma, her husband, their son, Leah, her husband, their son and Garth were on the trip. They left Rexburg and drove to the Salt Lake airport. They then flew to California and went to Knott’s Berry Farm. The trip was just a few days. Chad was then going to life temporarily in Hawaii, Emma says.

9:37 a.m. Emma says her dad was emotionally out of control and she has never seen him so upset. “I know the grief he felt was real. He may not have had the same romantic relationship with my mother that he had in the past, but I knew he valued her as a person and seeing her die was very traumatic,” Emma says.

9:35 a.m. Emma says her dad was very distressed and not speaking at the moment. Emma told the coroner she did not want an autopsy. Emma says her dad nodded. Prior asks if Chad ever expressed an opinion on whether he wanted an autopsy or not. “He never expressed an opinion,” Emma says. She says her dad was more distressed than she has ever seen him “in my entire life.”

9:34 a.m. Prior asks Emma when she arrived at her parents’ home the day Tammy died. She arrived before 7 a.m. “Coroner Dye was inspecting my mom’s body and she asked us some questions about our wishes. She offered an autopsy and the area where we lived in, the body would have to be taken to Boise which is about five hours away. It would delay the funeral,” Emma says. “I don’t think autopsies should be done on anyone. The idea of my mother’s body undergoing that was very distressing to me.”

9:32 a.m. Prior asks Emma if her mom is familiar with paintball guns. Emma says it’s a common recreational thing. Her mom may not have enjoyed going but she did. Tammy had an older brother and uncle who liked to do adventuresome things. Prior asks about the events of Oct.9. Tammy dropped Emma off from her clogging class and then immediately went home that night. Tammy posted on Facebook about the incident so Emma called her immediately. “She was very sure it was a paintball gun,” Emma says.

9:30 a.m. Emma did not interpret her dad’s books to be scriptures. Emma says her dad is very introverted, like her mom. Prior asks if they were more “bookworm” type. Emma says yes. Her dad enjoyed speaking in front of groups and teaching but not necessarily talking one-on-one with people. Talking in front of people had a different energy about it, Emma says.

9:29 a.m. Emma says her dad wrote fiction and non-fictions books. He gained most of his inspiration from the “more traditional” Latter-day Saint church and his own ideas, Emma says. Emma says her dad wanted to teach about the future with fictional characters.

9:28 a.m. Emma says her mom learned about muscle testing and reflexology as a child from her parents. She learned more about it later in life. Emma says both her parents learned about it but Tammy was more skilled at it.

9:27 a.m. Prior asks about the Emotion Code and if her parents used it. Blake objects based on relevance. Boyce sustains. Prior asks Emma if she believes her mom and dad could sense whether a person was light or dark. Emma says yes.

9:26 a.m. Prior asks if after teh spirit was cast out, she died. Emma says no. “The goal is so you have your own body back and can be in control of yourself,” she says. Prior asks if she has ever heard the word zombies. Emma says just on TV. The jury is focused intently on this testimony.

9:25 a.m. Prior stresses it’s men who give blessings to other people. Emma says in the times of Joseph Smith, women gave blessings too. Emma says after her dad gave her the blessing when she was struggling, “I instantly felt better. I felt the individual that was trying to affect my body was gone,” Emma says.

9:23 a.m. Emma says any man who is an adult and make promises to keep teachings of the church with the power to serve other people can receive the priesthood – it wasn’t unique to her father. Emma says it’s common for people in her faith to give blessings as long as they are eligible and have the priesthood.

9:22 a.m. Prior asks about Emma learning her dad had a relationship with another woman. Emma says it was not an appropriate relationship. Prior asks if she would agree that nobody is perfect. Emma agrees – nobody is perfect.

9:22 a.m. Emma has struggled with anxiety for years and says it was feeling unmanageable. “I felt like there was a being that was with me. I talked to my parents about it, and my dad cast it out using the power of the priesthood. Then I felt better afterward,” Prior says. She says it was the power of God through the laying on of hands.

9:21 a.m. Emma says her mother would frequently assign numbers to people as to whether they were light or dark. Emma says her mom was more fundamental than her dad as far as religious beliefs.

9:19 a.m. Prior asks Emma is her brothers and sisters share their dad’s religious beliefs. She says there are elements they might feel drawn to but not others. Prior asks Emma her views on the concept of “light” and “dark.” Emma says good and evil would be talking about your actions while light and dark would be motivations. Light you’re acting like the Savior, dark you’re acting like Satan.

9:18 a.m. Prior asks Emma how she describes her father’s faith. “He wanted to stick to as close to the original form as he could. He was really interested in teachings from Joseph Smith and Brigham Young and other earlier leaders,” Emma says. She describes him as fundamental. Emma says she didn’t necessarily share her dad’s religious beliefs but shared some.

9:17 a.m. Emma says all the kids would play musical instruments in the Cozy Cone. Her sister Leah would go up to study sometimes. You have to go through the garage to get to the Cozy Cone. “It was really inconvenient” to get there, Emma says.

9:16 a.m. Prior asks about the house. It’s a brick-house and garage, and Prior asks if it’s one story. Emma says the previous owner constructed a building over the pump house. She says it’s unheated and is built from a different material. There isn’t much electricity that goes to it, she says. Emma says it’s called the Cozy Cone.

9:14 a.m. Prior asks about the roles of Chad and Tammy in the book publishing company. Emma says Tammy would help design book covers – she did most of them by herself – and she did the finances and taxes for the company. Chad would try and find authors to have their books published.

9:12 a.m. The day before Tylee died, Emma says she did a search on Chad’s desktop computer for south, southwest winds because they were planning an outdoor event. “I was trying to be an amateur meteorologist,” Emma says. Emma says there wasn’t a login or anything – she just jumped online. This is in reference to the search done the day before Tylee was buried on the property.

9:11 a.m. Prior asks Emma if Tammy consulted with Chad before she increased the insurance. Emma says they filled out the paperwork together. “We both signed to take out more life insurance on ourselves and did not consult with our husbands,” Emma says. Emma did not take out the maximum because she could not afford it, but Tammy checked the box.

9:09 a.m. Prior asks if Tammy had any self-defense skills. Emma says nothing formal, but occasionally there would be classes at church about self-defense. Prior asks about life insurance, and Emma says the insurance company came to the school one day to speak about increasing life insurance. “It was really cheap insurance, and they encouraged us to purchase some so both my mother and I purchased some.”

9:08 a.m. The clogging classes took place once a week on Wednesdays. Emma and Tammy went for about six weeks. They started going about six weeks before Tammy died.

9:06 a.m. Emma says the idea of the Zumba High Fitness class is you can participate to your comfort level. She describes the instructor being on stage and people in the class mimicking the instructor’s movements. Lights were dimmed, and party lights were turned on so nobody could see how you were doing. Emma and Tammy would be in the back of the room.

9:04 a.m. Prior asks Emma about her mom taking clogging and Zumba fitness classes. Emma says she and her mom were both overweight and wanted to exercise more. Some ladies at the school invited Tammy and Emma to come to the class at the local elementary school gym. They started going in April 2019.

9:02 a.m. Prior asks about Tammy training for a 5K race. Emma says she was training for a race and invited her mom to run the race, but Tammy said she would not do it. Joseph, Emma’s husband, organized a 5K for Operation Underground Railroad, and Tammy helped plan it.

8:59 a.m. Emma’s in-laws were having a step competition with Tammy to see who could get the most steps on FitBit. Tammy wanted to win. Blake objects to a question and asks Emma about a conversation with her father where Chad told Emma that Tammy would swing her arm off the bed to get steps. Emma doesn’t recall the conversation. Emma says her mom would often swing her arm to get steps.

8:58 a.m. The Dodge Dakota was sold to Emma and her husband. They still drive it. Prior asks about Tammy’s FitBit, which would count her steps. Tammy wore the watch during the day and charged it at night. Emma says her mom got the FitBit to increase her physical fitness. Emma says Tammy and Emma both had a FitBit, and Tammy bought one for Chad, but he wouldn’t wear it.

8:56 a.m. Emma says as her mom prepared for the book fair, she overloaded some boxes and carried them as she rested them against her arms. Emma noticed her mom needing help, so Emma stepped out of a meeting to help her. Tammy drove her parents’ Dodge Dakota to work that day. Emma says her dad was the primary driver of the Dakota. Tammy drove the Chevy Equinox.

8:55 a.m. Emma says she visited her mom in her classroom any chance she got. Emma says she never saw her mom talk about her health with co-workers. Emma says her mother was a very private person. Tammy didn’t want to miss work – she wanted to go every day. She was paid by the hour, so financially, it was important that she go to work.

8:53 a.m. Prior asks about Oct. 18, 2019 – the day before Tammy died. Emma says her mom was preparing for a book fair. She says her mom worked in a computer lab at the school and in the library. Emma says her mom was an introvert “at the core.” “She could be friendly and smalltalk with people but in general, she didn’t confide with people.”

8:51 a.m. Emma says her mom took colloidal silver, and Tammy would encourage others who were sick to take it. Emma says her mom bruised easy and used arnica gel to treat the bruises. “If she were bump her hip on the counter when she was walking by, she would get a massive bruise from that.”

8:49 a.m. Emma has sleep apnea and her grandfather does as well. She wonders if Tammy did too. Tammy also had anemia. She preferred herbal supplements and took the generic form of Prozac.

8:48 a.m. Emma lives at the house where her father used to live. She says she has made a financial arrangement with her father to live at the house, and she doesn’t know what Chad has arranged with Prior. Emma says her mother’s (Tammy Daybell) health started declining within the last year of her life. “She was always one to meet the demands of daily life without being exhausted, and she started going to bed before dinner some nights. It would be like 5-6-7 o’clock at night, and she would sleep in a lot.”

8:47 a.m. Emma says she has spoken to John Prior three times in preparation for the trial including last night. She says she is prepared to tell the truth.

8:45 a.m. Emma is married to Joseph Murray. Prior asks if she received a subpoena from the prosecutor or defense. She says she received one from both. Emma says she has not watched the trial.

8:44 a.m. Prior calls Emma Murray, Chad Daybell’s daughter, to the stand.

8:42 a.m. Prior says he is ready to call a witness. Jurors are being brought in.

8:40 a.m. Boyce says the clerical error on the indictment will be addressed with a jury instruction. Jurors can consider the date on the original indictment when they deliberate. Boyce says his staff attorney, Courtney Stallings, discovered the error on the indictment, and she is preparing the jury instructions. A jury instruction conference will be held before deliberations.

8:38 a.m. Judge Steven Boyce is on the bench. He says the state has concluded its case-in-chief, and the defense will now present its case. Boyce says he has one issue to address on the record before jurors are brought in.

8:31 a.m. Chad Daybell looks like he got a haircut over the weekend. He is sitting next to Prior. Prosecutors Lindsey Blake, Rob Wood, Ingrid Batey and Rocky Wixom at their table. “Courtroom Daddy” giving instruction to everyone in the gallery – turn phones off, no whispering, no symbolic wristbands or shirts, no hats.

8:30 a.m. We are in the courtroom, and there was a huge crowd of people hoping to get into the trial today. More than we have ever seen. Many are being turned away due to not enough seats.

8:20 a.m. It’s the start of week 7 in the Chad Daybell murder case (week 8 if you include jury selection). The defense will begin its case today after the prosecution rested Thursday. During opening statements in April, John Prior, Chad’s defense attorney, said he plans to call the following to testify:

• At least three of Chad’s children
• Greg Hampikian – DNA expert/co-Director of the Idaho Innocence Project/Director of the Forensic Justice Project at Boise State University
• Patrick Eller – Metadata CEO and digital forensisches examiner
• Dr. Kathy Raven – forensic pathologist – Raven Forensics

During testimony last week, Prior said Dr. Eric Bartelink, an anthropologist, is one of his expert witnesses. This is all subject to change based on Prior’s approach.