LIVE UPDATES | Tool expert, anthropologist, Tylee Ryan’s friend and others take the stand in Chad Daybell murder trial

LIVE UPDATES FROM THE CHAD DAYBELL TRIAL

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Please excuse the typos. These are live updates from the courtroom.

2:30 p.m. Attorneys are back at their tables. The state says their witnesses have gone more quickly than they anticipated, so they are concluding court for the day. They will pick up in the morning with Dr. Marsden. Nate will be doing Courtroom Insider at 6:30 p.m. MDT.

2:25 p.m. Wood is done questioning. Prior has no questions, and Ballance will remain under subpoena. Wood has asked for a sidebar, and Boyce is meeting with the attorneys.

2:24 p.m. Lots of back and forth with the dates and times of phones and text messages. On Oct. 15, Alex Cox was near Chad’s house around 1:41 and 1:52 p.m.

2:23 p.m. Ballance says Lori and Tylee’s phone were “consistently together after (Tylee) was believed to be deceased.”

2:22 p.m. Tylee and Lori’s phones were used days later in Arizona, then on Nov. 4 in Hawaii.

2:20 p.m. Ballance was asked to look at Tylee Ryan’s phone and for any instances in which it was used in the same place Lori Vallow’s phone was used. Lori and Tylee’s phones were both used in northeast Kansas. On Oct. 16, Lori and Tylee’s phones were both used in Rexburg.

2:19 p.m. Chad’s phone was near a cemetery and a Holiday Inn on the day of Tammy’s memorial. He was texting Lori that day.

2:17 p.m. Alex Cox’s phone was last near the Salem church around 10:45 p.m. Tammy Daybell died either late that night or early the next morning.

2:15 a.m. There was also a 16-minute call between Alex and Lori around the same time. Lori’s phone was in Hawaii.

2:13 p.m. Looking closer, Alex’s phone was near the Salem church between 10:07 and 10:45 p.m. Chad was texting Lori around the same time.

2:11 p.m. The next slide shows the Google location history of Alex Cox between 10:05 and 10:07 p.m. He moved from Rexburg up to the Salem church near Chad’s house.

2:10 p.m. The next slide shows more texts and calls exchanged between Lori, Chad and Alex.

2:09 p.m. Lori and Chad were texting on the day Tammy Daybell died. Lori was also texting Alex Cox.

2:08 p.m. On Oct. 19, Ballance heard Tammy had been found dead. Chad’s phone was at his house between 10:40 a.m. and 11:22 a.m. Chad texted Alex Cox around 10:40 a.m. He later called Lori Vallow around 11 a.m. Between 11:21 a.m. and 12:11 p.m., Chad’s phone made an outgoing call to a number Ballance does not know. On Oct. 18, Alex’s phone was at Lori’s apartment between 11:02 a.m. and 12:20 p.m.

2:06 p.m. There are multiple texts between all three people that night. There are 4 texts sent between Chad’s and Alex’s phones between 5:28 and 8:43 p.m. At 9:30 p.m, there are texts between Chad and Lori. There are then more texts between Chad and Lori.

2:05 p.m. Ballance says Chad’s phone and Alex’s phones were both activated between Oct 8 and 9, 2019.

2:04 p.m. Chad, Lori and Alex are all exchanging text messages around 5 p.m. that night.

2:02 p.m. Alex’s phone is at his own apartment between 5:16 p.m. until 11:53 p.m. that night.

2:01 p.m. The next slide shows that Alex’s phone was on Highway 20 at 4:57 p.m., then was driving westbound at 5:03 p.m, ending at the Salem church near Chad Daybell’s house. The church and Chad’s house are about 2.5 miles apart.

1:59 p.m. Around 4:47 p.m., Alex’s phone was tracked around U.S. Highway 20 toward Chad Daybell’s house.

1:58 p.m. Alex’s phone then was seen at Sportsman’s Warehouse in Idaho Falls between 3:42 and 4:12 p.m.

1:57 p.m. Alex’s phone then traveled from Lori’s apartment to his own apartment. His phone then traveled northwest, away from his apartment, then around 3:14 p.m., the phone went from Rexburg to Idaho Falls.

1:55 p.m That day, Alex Cox searched for “Auburn, Alabama zip code.” Ballance says this is significant because the Tracphone he was using had an Auburn, Alabama area code.

1:53 p.m. The next slide shows more Google location history on Oct. 9, 2019. between noon and 1:23 p.m., Ballance says Alex Cox’s Google account showed him at Lori Vallow’s residence during those times. Ballance says he was asked to look at this due to an attempted assault on Tammy Daybell that occurred that day.

1:52 p.m. Ballance is showing how cell phone towers work and describing a slide showing the overlap in cell phone tower coverage in Rexburg.

1:50 p.m. Ballance says there was an incoming call received at 1:11 p.m. from Lori to Chad. The call was 513 seconds, which is about 10 minutes. There were then text messages between Chad and Alex Cox on October 9, 2019.

1:49 p.m. Two phones associated with Lori Vallow were being used southeast of Chandler, Arizona, around this time.

1:48 p.m. Ballance says Verizon did not include the cell site and sector associated with the text messages. This means if a customer sends a text message, you’re not able to see what tower was used to send it.

1:46 a.m. At 10:27 a.m, There was an outgoing call from Chad to Lori. Chad’s phone later received a call from a number that Ballance says he doesn’t recognize.

1:45 p.m. The following text was sent at 10:26 a.m.: “I will call right now from a 401 number.” They were sent to a cell phone associated with Lori Vallow.

1:44 p.m. We now see text messages from a cell phone with an Idaho area code (208). Ballance says these were returns from Verizon, showing the text messages that are associated to Chad Daybell. The text says, “Gonna stop by the store right now to get that other number working. Hopefully won’t take long.”

1:42 p.m. The phone was at Walmart between 2:59 pm and 3:37 p.m, according to WiFi GPS data. Ballance says this does not include all of the activity of the phone because there is a margin of error.

1:41 p.m. The homerjmaximus email account, Alex Cox’s email account, was associated with the Tracphone. We now see a map of the Walmart in Rexburg, showing the location of the phone.

1:39 p.m. Ballance says the phone was purchased from Walmart in Rexburg. The number was attributed to Alex Cox.

1:37 p.m. The receipt is from AT&T from October 8, 2019, for changes made to an account. Ballance says this shows a return from Tracphone, a company that provides wireless service. They don’t have towers, so they rely on a larger provider with a cellular infrastructure to carry calls on their network.

1:35 p.m. Wood asks Ballance about Sept. 9 and Sept. 23. He brings up two dates on the screen – Oct. 8 and 9, 2019. We now see the screen a receipt provided to Ballance that is associated with “Boyd Dial.” Ballance says this was attributed to Chad Daybell.

1:34 p.m. Wood will be questioning Ballance.

1:32 p.m. The state has called FBI CAST Agent Nick Ballance to the stand. Ballance has previously testified.

1:31 p.m. Court is back in session. Jurors are being brought in.

1:03 p.m. Kaitlyn Hart here with EastIdahoNews.com. Nate is feeling a little under the weather, so I will be taking over the live updating duties for the rest of the afternoon. Nate is planning to be back for Courtroom Insider tonight.

12:26 p.m. Prior has nothing further. Wixom has a brief re-direct. He asks if there is no question that some type of tool was used to injure Tylee and her bones. He says absolutely. That is correct. Lunch break until 1:30 p.m.

12:23 p.m. Prior asks about Halepaska not being able to make source determinations. He says he couldn’t do any source determinations – tracking the marks back to an individual tool. Halepaska says individual characteristics are critical.

12:21 p.m. Lunch for the jury is late – so Prior is going to cross-examine now.

12:18 p.m. Overall, the majority of the injuries came from a chopping-type action. Halepaska says if he had been provided tools, he would have been able to make test marks to narrow down the tools, but he would not have been able to conduct the second level of the exam. Wixom has nothing further.

12:17 p.m. Most of the injuries to the hip came from the front side – not the back, Halepaska testifies.

12:14 p.m. A small channel was formed in one part of a bone that was consistent with an ice pick being used.

12:13 p.m. The next image shows tool marks that were generated on bones using excessive force. Another mark was caused by a stabbing-type motion.

12:08 p.m. The jury now sees a photo of a bone that was fractured and shattered. Halepaska says the tool that was used cut into the soft tissue. It was consistent with being from a cleaver, machete, hatchet, etc.

12:06 p.m. Halepaska continues to describe more chopping and stabbing-type actions on the bones.

12:03 p.m. Halepaska describes the next item on the screen – a portion of the hip bone that was black and burned. A number of tool marks were located on the item.

12:01 p.m. Halepaska goes on to describes more injuries on the bones that were caused from chopping type actions. He was unable to determine if the injuries matched individual characteristics of a specific tool.

11:56 a.m. Another photo is shown of the hip bone. Halepaska says there was a stabbing action performed on the bone, and it was so hard, it caused a fracturing on the back side. The hip bone cracked.

11:53 a.m. This particular injury could have come from a cleaver, machete, etc. Halepaska describes more bones that have fracture marks caused by tools.

11:51 a.m. All of the bones were labeled when they came into the FBI office. Wixom shows another photo of fracture marks caused by a tool with a chopping action.

11:49 a.m. Halepaska describes a zoomed-in image of fracture lines and cracks on the hip bone. You can see the fracture of the bone caused by the tool.

11:48 a.m. The marks were such that even if he had the tools used to produce the marks, he couldn’t 100% say which tools were used.

11:45 a.m Another tool mark is pointed out and Halepaska says it was a chopping type action. This could have come from a machete or another type of similar tool.

11:43 a.m. Halepaska says the tools consistent with producing this type of mark was a single-bladed knife or a comparable tool. Other possibilities can not be ruled out.

11:39 a.m. Halepaska generated a digital box around each of the tool marks and labeled them. The first one was from a stabbing action. Halepaska says he uses a casting substance, puts it on top of the tool marks and then removes it. He can then compare to tools that may have caused the action.

11:37 a.m. Halepaska describes an image showing tool marks that were on the hip bone. They are action-type tool marks – stabbing and chopping.

11:35 a.m. Wixom moves to admit an exhibit showing a photo. Halepaska says they images of two portions of a hip bone and an intact portion of a spine.

11:33 a.m. Wixom asks what a pattern examination is. The exam process is broken into two separate levels – doing the first, he makes observation using a low-level magnifying glass. He is making notes and documenting what he sees. The second half is make the identification. He uses a comparison microscope and looks at two samples under the same viewing field.

11:32 a.m. We are back. The photos will be shown to the jurors and parties but not on the livestream or to those of us in the courtroom.

11:15 a.m. Boyce says we will take a brief recess while the courtroom is shifted around because the photos are graphic.

11:12 a.m. Wixom moves to admit photos of Tylee Ryan’s remains. Boyce calls for a sidebar.

11:07 a.m. Halepaska performed a tool mark analysis on the tools found on Chad’s property. He says there are two types of tool marks: impressed and striated. Impressed are like a hammer hitting a surface. A striated tool mark is produced when a tool is placed against another object and moved parallel to and across the object with pressure applied.

11:06 a.m. Halepaska says evidence often arrives via Fed Ex. Sometimes law enforcement drop it off. It is inventoried and entered into an evidence management system.

11:05 a.m. Halepaska says the majority of cases he works concern firearms but over the year, he has worked a number of tool mark cases too.

11:04 a.m. Doug Halepaska is an FBI forensic examiner in the firearms and tools division.

11:02 a.m. Wood has nothing further. Next witness will be called and questioned by Rocky Wixom.

10:58 a.m. Wood shows the satellite image from Sept. 9, 2019. He flips back to Sept. 2, 2019. Wood points out a small bush/tree, a standalone fence, the fire ring and the hitching post. On the Sept. 9 image, there are clouds that obscure some features. Wood points to the hitching post. There was no discoloration in the previous two photos on this spot.

10:57 a.m. Prior asks about an email between Chad and Tammy regarding burning some limbs. Prior has nothing further. Wood will re-direct.

10:53 a.m. We now see a satellite image showing snow on the property. Prior asks Kunsaitis to point out the fire pit and the location of Tylee’s remains.

10:52 a.m. Prior shows another satellite map and asks about a round circle north of the tree. It’s the fire pit. Prior asks where the remains of Tylee were found. Kunsaitis points it out on the map.

10:50 a.m. Prior asks Kunsaitis to point out a few things on the map and asks what they are. There is a standalone section of fence and the fire pit.

10:48 a.m. Prior shows a satellite map on the screen. He asks Kunsaitis to point to the white barn. He asks what a dark mark is near the barn. Kunsaitis says it’s a hitching post. He asks for his glasses.

10:45 a.m. Prior asks Kunsaitis about the number of images from Apollo. He says there were four. Prior asks if the area Kunsaitis pointed to was close to the fire pit. Kunsaitis says it was about 10-15 yards from the fire pit.

10:43 a.m. Kunsaitis says he personally removed the remains of Tylee Ryan as he wipes tears from his eyes. He points to the area of discoloration on the map. We now see an image from Oct. 25, 2019. Wood has nothing further. Prior will now cross-examine.

10:41 a.m. Wood displays the first image on the screen – the one from Aug. 22, 2019. We see a picture of Chad’s property from a satellite. Wood then shows the image from Sept. 2, 2019. The third image is from Sept. 9, 2019. On the third image, Kunsaitis uses a laser to point out the area where Tylee was discovered. There is a discolored mark on the map. The previous two photos did not have the discoloration.

10:39 a.m. The last image was taken on Oct. 25, 2019 at 12:42 p.m.

10:36 a.m. Wood moves to admit an exhibit. There were four photos of satellite images. The first one was taken Aug. 27, 2019 at 12:33 p.m. The second image is from the same satellite company. It’s a high-resolution image of Daybell’s property. The third image is from Sept. 9, 2019, a high-resolution image was taken at 12:32 p.m. That’s the day Tylee was buried.

10:33 a.m. Kunsaitis has worked at Rexburg police for 34 years. Wood asks Kunsaitis if he reviewed satellite imagery of Daybell’s property. He did. He monitored social media and found an image of a satellite photo of Chad’s land. Kunsaitis followed up on it and reached out to Apollo Mapping, the company that did the satellite photo.

10:30 a.m. State calls Rexburg Det. Chuck Kunsaitis to the stand. He previously testified in the trial. Wood will question him.

10:29 a.m. Wixom has nothing further, and Prior has no questions. Sincerbeaux is free to go.

10:28 p.m. The can contained gasoline and compounds indicative of decomposing flesh.

10:26 a.m. Sincerbeaux has been involved in 50-100 cases where he had to determine the accelerant of a fire. He worked on the Tylee Ryan case. He received a can from law enforcement and asked if he could find any ignitable liquids on the inside of the can. The interior contacted decomposing flesh and debris.

10:24 a.m. Sincerbeaux explains how products were tested to see if they had ignitable liquids. He says a special oven was used.

10:22 a.m. Sincerbeaux was responsible for investigating suspected arson cases. Cans would come in to his office containing burned stuff and they he would do his analysis on it to determine if it contained an ignitable liquid.

10:20 a.m. Next witness is David Sincerbeaux. He will be questioned by Rocky Wixom. Sincerbeaux is retired from Idaho State Police and was a forensic chemist. He did that type of work for 26 years.

10:19 a.m. Prior has nothing else. Batey has no re-direct.

10:17 a.m. Prior asks how many times Ashlynn saw Alex interact with Tylee. She says more than six times because Alex was living with them. Prior asks if JJ relied on Tylee for a lot of his basic needs. “I would say he wasn’t relying on her, but she was there for him. He was going for anybody who was going to provide for him, but Tylee was the one who would always show up,” Ashlynn says.

10:16 a.m. Ashlynn says Tylee moved to Texas and then returned to Arizona. She then said they were moving to Idaho. Ashlynn tried to stay in touch with Tylee after she moved to Idaho but it was for only two weeks. Batey has nothing further. Prior will now cross-examine.

10:15 a.m. Ashlynn might see Alex once every six months. Alex and Tylee joked around a lot, and Alex offered her a place to stay when she needed it. She felt comfortable with Alex.

10:14 a.m. Ashlynn visited Tylee a few times a week. She met Charles, Lori, Tylee, JJ and Alex. Ashlynn says Tylee’s relationship with JJ was maternal. She was always caring for her little brother.

10:11 a.m. Next witness is Ashlynn Rynd. She will be questioned by Ingrid Batey. Ashlynn lives in Chandler, Arizona. She knew Tylee. “We were best friends in high school,” she says. They met in 2016.

9:46 a.m. Morning break. Back in 20 minutes.

9:45 a.m. Some parts of the body were more thermally altered than others. Wixom has nothing further.

9:44 a.m. Prior has nothing further. Wixom has some brief re-direct. He asks if some of the bones had been severely damaged. She says there was a number that were so thermally damaged that she couldn’t tell if they were human or not.

9:43 a.m. Christensen says a number of parts of the skull were missing. She does not know why they are missing. Portions of the bones had burn marks on them.

9:41 a.m. Christensen says what she and Bartelink do is highly specialized. Prior asks about the carnivore marks. Christensen says typically it’s postmortem – after someone dies. She does not know where the carnivore animal made the remarks on the bones.

9:39 a.m. Prior will now cross-examine. Christensen says she has published a book with Dr. Eric Bartelink. He is the defense expert. She has reviewed his report and says there were no significant discrepancies with her report.

9:36 a.m. Wixom moves to admit the FBI lab report issued by Christensen. This is a summary of her findings. Wixom has nothing further.

9:35 a.m. Christensen prepared a report after she received and evaluated Tylee’s remains. Christensen turned her report over to the Idaho medical examiner.

9:32 a.m. Christensen did remove tissue from the ankle and foot but none of the bones we have seen so far.

9:31 a.m. Wixom asks if it’s common for tissue to still be attached to the bones when they are received. Christensen says it’s not common, but it happens. Christensen did not remove the soft tissue from the bone because she could see everything she needed to see.

9:30 a.m. We now see photos of the sacrum – the bottom of the spine – which is still attached to some vertebrae.

9:28 a.m. The next exhibit shows a sharp trauma from the previous bone. The photo also shows the bone was in a fresh state.

9:26 a.m. There is thermal damage on this bone consistent with fire or heat.

9:24 a.m. We now see photos of the right hip bone. There are six sharp trauma locations on the bone.

9:23 a.m. Christensen gave an item number to every bone. There was thermal alteration to the top part of the hip bone.

9:22 a.m. More than 100 bones were submitted to Christensen. Some were more broken and thermally damaged than others.

9:21 a.m. None of the marks were consistent with dismemberment, Christensen says. You wouldn’t see sharp trauma on the pelvis area if someone was trying to dismember.

9:20 a.m. Wixom asks if the sharp trauma could have occurred naturally or because of disease. Christensen says no – sharp trauma happens from an external force. Wixom asks Christensen if she has experience identifying injury to bone that could occur from dismemberment. She does.

9:19 a.m. The next photos document detailed views of the same sharp trauma locations we saw on the previous slide. The bone was in a fresh state, Christensen says. She does not know whether the trauma occurred before or after death. The marks are consistent with both.

9:17 a.m. We now see a CT scan of the pelvic bone and Christensen points out sharp trauma locations. There are several spots.

9:15 a.m. Wixom asks Christensen to describe trauma as photos of the left upper hip bone are shown on the screen. They are brown and black. Christensen says there were numerous sharp traumas on Tylee’s bone. On the photo on the screen, there are five blunt and sharp trauma locations.

9:13 a.m. I’m aware there is no sound on the live feed. We have told court staff. We see part of the upper and lower jaw on the screen. There are signs the bones have been burned.

9:09 a.m. Wixom shows a diagram of a skeleton. Christensen points out where the femurs are on the graphic. The bones are burned, and Christensen says that is consistent with thermal damage – it’s discolored, black and gray. Christensen is not able to say whether the burns happened before or after Tylee’s death, but she says burning normally happens after death. One of the femurs have evidence of carnivore scavenging.

9:05 a.m. Boyce back on the bench. The photos will be shown to jurors and those of us in the courtroom, but they will not be shown on the livestream. The first picture shows Tylee’s left femur and right femur.

9:02 a.m. Wixom moves to admit photos of Tylee’s remains and a demonstrative exhibit. Boyce asks for a quick sidebar. The attorneys leave the courtroom with the judge.

9 a.m. Christensen did an analysis of Tylee’s remains. She examined the remains visually, microscopically, by taking measurements and by using X-rays.

8:58 a.m. Bio-mechanically fresh bones still have the bending quality. Older bones fracture in different ways. She compares it to a fresh twig versus a dry branch, Christensen says.

8:56 a.m. Wixom says the skeleton can be analyzed visually and under microscope to determine if they were damaged. Thermally altered means bones have been damaged by heat or fire. Signs include discoloration and easily fractured.

8:54 a.m. Christensen works at the FBI laboratory in Quantico, Virginia. She analyzes human skeletal remains.

8:50 a.m. Angi Christensen, FBI forensic anthropologist, is called to the stand. Wixom will be questioning her. Boyce asks for a brief sidebar.

8:48 a.m. Blake follows up by asking if both Chad and Lori were looking for malachite when their spouses were still alive. Heideman says they did. Nothing further.

8:47 a.m. Prior asks if people who Chad and Lori knew joined them at the temple. Heideman only looked at the temple records of Chad and Lori. Prior has nothing further.

8:45 a.m. Heideman says she could not tell if Chad’s intent was to write a book. Prior asks about Chad searching for malachite in March 2018. He didn’t know Lori Vallow at that time. Prior asks if Lori Vallow did most of the Google searching for malachite. Heideman says she would need to check her records. Heideman says Chad regularly attended the temple “regardless of his infidelity or affair.”

8:44 a.m. Prior asks Heideman if she could determine whether there were chapter breaks in the Chad and Elena story. She says in the emails that were sent, it appeared there were chapter breaks in some but not others. Prior asks if this could have been another book Chad was writing. “I don’t know if he intended to publish it,” Heideman says.

8:43 a.m. Blake has nothing further. Prior will now cross examine.

8:42 a.m. Heideman reads more messages between Lori and Chad. “I love you more. That’s so hot. I just need you more than ever,” Lori writes to Chad. On Aug. 10, 2019, Chad sends Lori, “You are amazing. Please save that segment. I want to read it with you naked and then relive it all.”

8:41 a.m. “Elena’s magic hand has gripped the storm and they stare into each other’s eyes as intense waves wash over them,” a text reads. Blake asks Heideman what storm meant. “It appeared to be a name for Chad’s penis.” Chad is smiling.

8:38 a.m. “He kissed her deeply as their breathing slow. He held her tightly before they began another round of pleasurable bonding,” reads one of the texts from Chad to Lori. “That is pretty incredible,” followed by fire emojis. On Aug. 9, 2019, “The intensity of each encounter on my mind. Each one greater than the last (Fire emoji, fire emoji),” from Chad to Lori. Chad says, “I completely agree. We were definitely in new territory in your bedroom.”

8:35 a.m. Heideman found additional text messages regarding the James and Elena story. Blake has them on paper for her to review. The messages are from the lollytime iCloud. The contents of the lollytime iCloud account have been admitted for evidence. Blake asks Heideman to review some of them.

8:34 a.m. Heideman is on the stand. Blake will be questioning her.

8:32 a.m. Judge Steven Boyce is on the bench, and the jurors are being brought in.

8:27 a.m. Chad Daybell is wearing a light checkered dress shirt with a tie and is sitting next to John Prior, his attorney. Rob Wood (Madison County prosecutor), Lindsey Blake (Fremont County prosecutor), Rocky Wixom (Fremont County deputy prosecutor) and Ingrid Batey (AG special attorney) are at the prosecution table.

8:20 a.m. We are entering week six of Chad Daybell’s murder trial and FBI Tactical Specialist Nicole Heideman will be back on the stand this morning continuing her testimony about the James and Elena love story. You can get caught up on what she said on Friday here.