Coroner involved in Daybell case speaks on camera for the first time, says it still gives her ‘nightmares’
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ST. ANTHONY – Brenda Dye says she still has nightmares about the Chad and Lori Daybell case.
The 46-year-old Island Park woman is in her second term as Fremont County coroner. She was involved in the death investigation of Chad Daybell’s wife, Tammy, and Lori’s kids, 16-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow.
Dye tells EastIdahoNews.com it’s “by far the most difficult” case she’s ever been involved in.
“It’s just hard to imagine someone doing that to someone they care for and love,” Dye says. “I have kids and I just can’t imagine what the family has had to go through.”
Many were horrified by the images of Tylee and JJ’s bodies presented in court during Lori’s murder trial. Both bodies were found buried in Chad’s backyard in June 2020. JJ was wrapped in plastic and bound by duct tape, while Tylee was dismembered and burned.
A jury found Lori guilty of murder in May. She is serving three life sentences at the Pocatello Women’s Correctional Center. She was extradited to Arizona earlier this week to answer for the alleged murder of her fourth husband, Charles Vallow. She made her initial court appearance in Maricopa County on Thursday in front of Judge Tracy R. Nadzieja.
Officials determined Tammy died of asphyxiation. Bruises found on her arms and chest suggest she may have been restrained.
Throughout this ordeal, Dye says many people have asked her about the case. One of the questions she’s asked most often is how she’s dealt with it.
The ability to emotionally detach is a skill Dye says is critical in maintaining professionalism. Despite years of training, she struggled and had to seek professional help to deal with her emotions.
“I still have nightmares,” says Dye. “(Chad’s) trial is coming up next spring, and I have to relive everything again and all those emotions come back. A lot of cases are harder than others, but this has been really hard for me.”
Dye was months into her first term when Tammy died and the kids disappeared. Her first two cases in office involved people she knew, which made dealing with the Daybell case even more difficult.
Another case around the same time involved the death of a family friend.
“I have two sons and one of their friends ended his life,” she says.
The timing of these situations made 2019 one of the most difficult years of her life.
WATCH OUR INTERVIEW WITH DYE IN THE VIDEO ABOVE.
