FREMONT COUNTY, Idaho — More than four years after he was killed and more than three years after his body was found, Joshua "JJ" Vallow's family will finally be able to lay him to rest.
An Idaho judge signed an order Monday that releases the 7-year-old's body to his next of kin. It was not specified whom that would be; among his surviving family are his adult brother Colby Ryan, his grandparents Larry and Kay Woodcock, his uncle Brandon Boudreaux, and others.
JJ's mother, Lori Vallow Daybell, was convicted of murdering him and his sister, Tylee Ryan. During her trial, it was revealed that the boy died from asphyxia caused by a plastic bag being placed over his head and duct tape over his mouth.
Tylee's and JJ's bodies were found buried on the property of Chad Daybell, who married Lori about two months after her kids' murder, and just weeks after the death of his wife, Tammy Daybell, for whom Lori was found guilty of conspiracy to murder.
A timeline for returning Tylee's remains to her next of kin was not immediately known.
Chad's trial for the three murders is set for April 1, 2024. Lori has been sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole, and she also is facing a trial in Arizona for the alleged murder of her then-estranged husband, Charles Vallow, in July 2019.
