The Murder Trials of Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow Daybell Series
Book 1
Book 2
Book 3
I have been many things in my life. All kinds of construction, property investor and now attempting to be a writer, but mostly, I am a father, husband and grandfather. The highlights for me have been the years I spent coaching, working with kids and raising my own kids.
In all of the years I spent in school including 4 years of college, I focused on technical studies and never liked studying english or creative writing or anything like that.
The spring of 2023 I found myself in a very unfamiliar situation. I still can’t explain how it happened but, I ended up being a juror for the Lori Vallow Daybell trial. When it was over, I knew 2 things. I wanted to tell the story of what I had been a part of and I wanted to try to get something good out of the terrible events perpetrated by Chad and Lori Daybell.
So, now I guess I’m a writer. We’ll see.
INSIGHTS INTO HOW WE CREATED LORI VALLOW DAYBELL
Tom Evans has spent over two years trying to understand not why, but how a mother can brutally murder her husband, her lover’s wife and her own children. It’s the question that he was left with when he finished his jury service in Lori Vallow Daybell’s trial in Idaho.
He knew it was a complex question with a complex answer, but that the answer was important. Tom said at the end of her trial: “If we just put her away and pat ourselves on the back for a job well done, we are missing the point.”
Sitting through her trial in Idaho as a juror, Chad Daybell’s trial in Idaho as an observer and Lori Vallow Daybell’s trials in Arizona has convinced Tom that there are connections between their crimes and other fundamentalist religious forces at work in our country.
Crimes against innocent children are being committed continually and very little is being done to stop it. Children are raped, trafficked and enslaved all in the name of religion and it’s happening right under our noses.
To answer the burning question of how, Tom goes all the way back to the 1820s and works his way through to the present. After writing three books on the subject and immersing himself into researching religious zealotry, Mormon fundamentalism and cults, he is finally satisfied with the answer.
Tom believes that what we do with the answer will define our times. Can we accept that our culture created Lori Vallow Daybell and that we must take responsibility for her? Or, will we be offended by Tom’s idea that it’s our history that led to her crimes?
It’s a controversial question. No one is left out of his critique. Religious zealots, narcissistic power-hungry men, the media, the justice system, our government, Christianity and yes, even you and I, have to be able to look at ourselves and ask how we created Lori Vallow Daybell.
The answer to that question will determine how we proceed into the future and deal with people like Warren Jeffs, Lori Vallow Daybell and Sam Bateman. Yes, those people are all in prison and will be for the rest of their time on earth, but others have filled the void and on it goes. The roots of the problems are still with us and will be until we expose them and have the courage to make changes to stop them.
Tom hopes that this book and his two previous books in the trilogy will contribute to the solution.
.A former juror in the Lori Vallow Daybell murder trial delves into the case of Chad Daybell, exploring the disturbing beliefs and events that led to his conviction. Tom Evans, who served asJuror #18 in Vallow’s trial and later attended every day of Daybell’s proceedings, provides firsthand insights into the courtroom, key players, and the overwhelming evidence that led to six death sentences for Daybell.
The book is divided into two parts: Part I examines Daybell’s life, his deep involvement in extremist Mormon beliefs, and the influences that shaped his worldview—including the apocalyptic ideologies that he and Vallow used to justify their horrific crimes. Part II offers a detailed account of the trial, including exclusive interviews with prosecutors, law enforcement, and individuals close to the case.
With rigorous research and personal experience, the author paints a chilling portrait of how Daybell and Vallow orchestrated the murders of her two children and Daybell’s wife, Tammy, in pursuit of their twisted religious visions. This book not only sheds light on one of the most shocking true crime cases in recent history but also serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked extremism.
Tom Evans is a husband, father and grandfather who has devoted a good part of his life dedicated to causes promoting the well being of children.
When Tom Evans reported for jury duty, he had no idea he would be assigned to one of the biggest and most notorious cases in Idaho history, if not the nation. The Lori Vallow Daybell trial turned his life upside down. By the time the trial was over he was changed in ways he’s still struggling to understand. He knew two things for sure: He was overcome with the need to find some way to make something positive out of his involvement as a juror, and he needed to tell his story. Money, Power and Sex does both of these things.
Tom’s jury experience started out being dark, heavy, and downright depressing. By the end of the trial, other, more positive emotions overcame the darkness. Despite all the horror he was exposed to and all the victims, living and dead, who he empathized with, by the end of the trial, he was filled with pride in the judicial system and honored to have done his part.
As this book covers the horrible events as they were presented to Tom in the trial and the history that led to those events, he offsets the disturbing nature of the case with his firsthand exposure to the dedication and hard work on the part of the police, the FBI, the prosecution, the defense, the court, and the bravery of the survivors and their family.
After the trial was over, Tom was given exclusive access to some of the key people in the trial. This book follows Tom’s journey through the trial and the unexpected good he found along the way.
Proceeds from this book will go to Hope House, an organization that helps children in need.
Tom Evans is a first-time author, and plans to follow this book up with part two, which will include new information the prosecution has promised to expose in the upcoming Chad Daybell trial.
Tom has ben interviewed on podcasts, news stations as well as YouTube channels. Check out
for interviews, and a deep dive into the case.
Visit to Hope House
On August 8th a group of Lori Vallow Daybell Jurors, along with Lauren Matthias from Hidden True Crime, traveled to Hope House with Tom and Susan Evans to present the first Royalty check from the proceeds of Tom’s book, Money Power and Sex. It was a great day and the culmination of a year and a half of work on the project. Check out the video of the visit that Lauren put together. Tom is very proud of what he was able to accomplish.