In a shocking turn of events, an Idaho jury has convicted Sarah Brady, 33, of the murder of two children and a romantic rival. Brady was found guilty of multiple charges, including first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and destruction of evidence.
The trial centered around the deaths of 8-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow and 17-year-old Tylee Ryan, whose bodies were found on the property of Brady’s husband, Chad Daybell, in June 2020. Both children had been missing for months, and their disappearance had attracted national attention. Authorities later discovered that Daybell and Brady were members of a doomsday cult that believed in the end of the world and the resurrection of the dead.
Brady’s conviction was based on evidence that she and Daybell conspired to murder the children and Daybell’s previous wife, Tammy Daybell, who died under suspicious circumstances. Prosecutors argued that Brady believed she was a “sacred” and “chosen” member of the cult, and that she and Daybell believed the children were “zombies” who had been possessed by evil spirits.
The trial lasted for nearly two months and featured testimony from over 40 witnesses, including family members and former friends of Daybell and Brady. During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that included text messages and recordings of conversations between Brady and Daybell, as well as the discovery of the children’s bodies.
Brady’s conviction comes after Daybell was found guilty of similar charges in November 2021. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The case has attracted widespread attention and has been the subject of numerous documentaries and true-crime podcasts. The verdict is sure to bring some sense of closure to the families of the victims, although the tragedy of their deaths will never be fully resolved.