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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Harriet Sinclair

‘Doomsday mom’ Lori Vallow is committed after being found unfit to stand trial for murder of her two children

Photograph: ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Idaho mother accused of murdering her two children as part of a Doomsday cult has been committed to a psychiatric facility for treatment.

Lori Vallow, whose friends claim she was part of a cult that wanted to rid the world of zombies, will be under the custody of Director of Idaho Department of Health and Welfare,

According to documents concerning her psychiatric evaluation, which took place on 8 March: “The complete assessment determined that at this time the Defendant is not competent to proceed, and recommends restorative treatment.”

The move to commit Ms Vallow comes after she was indicted for the murder of her children Tylee Ryan, 16, and Joshua Vallow, 7, but was found not currently fit to stand trial.

While she is committed, for a period of no more than 90 days, she will be assessed periodically with reports to state whether or not she is fit to proceed with the trial.

Ms Vallow’s husband Chad Daybell has also been indicted on murder charges in the deaths of the two children, who are believed to have been killed in September 2019.

The two children went missing in the fall of 2019 before being found on their stepfather’s property on 9 June 2020, prosecutors allege.

Police began asking questions about the children in November 2019, after relatives raised concerns. Police say the couple lied to investigators about the children’s whereabouts before quietly leaving Idaho. The couple were found in Hawaii months later.

Mr Daybell had initially been indicted on murder charges over the death of his first wife, Tammy Daybell, and was later charged in relation to the deaths of Ms Vallow’s children. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

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