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July 31 (UPI) -- An Idaho judge on Monday sentenced Lori Vallow Daybell to life in prison without parole after being found guilty of murdering her two children as part of what prosecutors called a "doomsday cult." Judge Steven Boyce of Idaho's 7th Judicial District passed the sentence on Vallow Daybell after an Idaho District Court jury found her guilty on May 12 of murdering her two children in 2019.
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In passing the life sentences, Boyce said aggravating factors in the bizarre and sensational case far outweighed any mitigating factors, chiefly because Vallow Daybell had not displayed any contrition for the killings and instead insisted they were justified by her religious beliefs.
"You simply have no remorse for what you did," Boyce said. "You haven't said you're sorry."
"It is a loss for everyone," he added. "It is the most shocking thing that I can imagine. A mother killed her own children, and you have no remorse for it."
Vallow Daybell was found guilty of first-degree murder in the deaths of Joshua "J.J." Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 16, whose remains were found on a property belonging to Vallow's husband, Chad Daybell.
The 50-year-old woman also was convicted on one felony count of conspiracy to commit murder in the death of Tammy Daybell, the then-wife of Chad Daybell, who was found dead on Oct. 19, 2019. Her death was originally ascribed to natural causes but later found to be caused by asphyxiation.
She received a life sentence on that count, as well.
Both Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell, who is being tried separately, faced possible death penalties in connection with the children's slayings. Both are members of an offshoot sect of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Chad Daybell is the author of more than a dozen apocalyptic-themed novels, which have been described as religiously extreme.
During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that the two belonged to a Christian fundamentalist "doomsday cult" in which they expressed beliefs that dark spirits can possess bodies and should be cast out and that Vallow believed she would help bring about "the end of days."
The pair also were participating an in extramarital affair, and Vallow saw Tammy Daybell as a romantic rival, they said.
Lori Vallow Daybell also faces charges in Arizona, where prosecutors accused her of conspiracy to commit murder in the death of her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, who was fatally shot by her brother in 2019.
She is expected to be extradited to Arizona following her sentencing in Idaho.
Before Monday's sentencing, dozens of people camped out overnight outside of the courthouse in St. Anthony, Idaho, in hopes a getting a seat at the hearing, KSL-TV reported.
Before the sentencing, the court heard a victims' impact statements, including one from Tammy Daybell's aunt, Vicki Hoban, who addressed Vallow Daybell directly by saying, "You are now going to pay the price. Although not sufficient in this life, it's all that we can do."
Vallow Daybell, herself, also spoke before the sentencing, marking the first time she had done so during the proceedings.
"Jesus Christ knows that no one was murdered in this case," she said. "Accidental deaths happen."
Boyce, however, noted their bodies were found in a shallow graves "dead, burned, mutilated, dismembered, and buried like animals."
