Daybell family reportedly ‘refused’ autopsy, according to police recordings
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REXBURG — A phone call between an Arizona detective and a Fremont County police dispatcher sheds new light into what happened in the weeks following Tammy Daybell’s death.
The recording, obtained by Fox 13 Utah, details a 17-minute phone conversation about Daybell’s death. The Gilbert, Arizona detective says he is calling for the police report and the dispatcher tells him she was the one who took the original call.
“The family did not want an autopsy, so they just went straight to the funeral home and the family refused an autopsy,” she says.
The detective responds, “The family said they don’t want an autopsy, therefore… the coroner just signed off, then and there? And then the funeral home took Miss Daybell? Is that how that works?”
“Yes,” the dispatcher responds. “That’s, that’s pretty much how it works.”
The call does not have a date or time stamp, according to Fox 13.
Daybell died at her Salem home Oct. 19. Fremont County Sheriff deputies responded to the scene and Sheriff Len Humphries told EastIdahoNews.com there was nothing suspicious about the situation.
“As we do with most unattended deaths, they (deputies) took pictures, looked it over, contacted our detectives,” Humphries said. “They contacted the coroner and the coroner responded. The body was transported to the funeral home and the coroner went there also for a further examination. She determined there was nothing out of the ordinary.
Humphries said Chad Daybell, Tammy’s husband, was acting “like anybody whose spouse had just passed away” and that’s why investigators did not suspect anything suspicious.
Within weeks of Tammy’s death, Chad married Lori Vallow as detectives in Arizona were in the midst of investigating her husband, Charles Vallow’s, death. He was shot by Lori’s brother, Alex Cox. Cox died in December and an autopsy is currently being performed on his body.
In the call recordings, the Fremont dispatcher is puzzled why an Arizona detective is calling.
“So why is someone from Arizona wanting to know?” the dispatcher asks. “That’s crazy.”
“Yeah, isn’t it funny how everything ties together?,” the detective answers. “We just have some cases down here, that… that got our attention with Miss Daybell.”
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Tammy Daybell’s body was exhumed Dec. 11 from the Springville Evergreen Cemetery in Utah. An autopsy is currently being performed and Humphries says the results could be released any day.
Click here to read and watch the entire report from Fox 13 Utah.
