By Melissa McCall, J.D. | Legally reviewed by FindLaw Staff | Last reviewed December 31, 2024
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In the State of Idaho, the death penalty is one sentencing option for certain offenses. Idaho has a long history with the death penalty, dating back to its pre-statehood days when it was the Idaho Territory. Despite this, Idaho has executed 29 people since 1864, most of which (26) happened before 1973.
As mentioned before, capital punishment has been an option in Idaho since 1864, when the method of execution was hanging. Before 1901, most hangings took place publicly, often in the county where the crime took place. That changed in 1901 when Idaho executions moved to the Idaho State Prison.
Today, Idaho has an established execution chamber at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution (IMSI), which also houses male death row inmates. The Pocatello Women's Correctional Facility houses women's death row inmates. The Idaho Department of Corrections (IDOC) manages both facilities.
Idaho had a national moratorium on the death penalty ushered in by Furman v. Georgia. In Furman, the U.S. Supreme Court determined that the death penalty, as imposed by Georgia, was not constitutional. Georgia imposed a death sentence on Furman after he killed someone accidentally during a burglary. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court said that the death sentence violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The moratorium lifted in 1976 with the Court's ruling in Gregg v. Georgia.
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, since 1976, Idaho has completed three scheduled executions via lethal injection. In 2019, Idaho ran out of lethal injection drugs. This was due to a shortage created after pharmaceutical companies stopped selling these drugs to state departments of corrections.
Idaho law provides the death penalty as a sentencing option for the following crimes:
Idaho lawmakers recently introduced House Bill 515 before the Idaho Legislature. If House Bill 515 becomes state law, the death penalty could be a punishment for sex crimes against children 12 and younger, with aggravating circumstances.
Although Idaho is creating new death penalty crimes, they can't, constitutionally, enforce these laws, given the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Kennedy v. Louisiana. In Kennedy, the Court ruled that the imposition of the death penalty in cases where the victim did not die violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.
Idaho is one of many death penalty states facing shortages of the drugs needed to carry out death warrants. Many drug manufacturers face backlash for selling drugs used in lethal injections to states that carry out the death penalty. The Idaho Legislature passed House Bill 658 (2022) to shield the identity of Idaho's lethal drug suppliers and manufacturers.
Controversies over lethal injection drugs are one reason Idaho approved the firing squad as a new, last-resort method of execution in 2023. The firing squad gives an alternative if the state can't get the drugs it needs to carry out an execution.
The failed execution of Thomas Creech provides a second reason. Idaho tried to execute Creech using pentobarbital as its lethal injection drug. According to the Associated Press, the Idaho Department of Corrections failed to insert an IV line eight times. Idaho does not have a space to carry out executions via firing squad, so Creech narrowly avoided execution.
| Code section | Idaho Statute 18-4001, et seq.: Homicide Idaho Statute 19-2515, et seq.: Sentence in Capital Cases; Idaho Statute 19-2701, et seq.: Execution |
|---|---|
| Is capital punishment allowed? | Yes |
| Effect of defendant's incapacity | Idaho does not try, convict, sentence, or punish those who can't understand the proceedings against them. This applies as long as the incapacity endures. |
| Minimum age | 18 |
| Available for crimes other than homicide? | Kidnapping in the first degree; perjury that leads to the execution of an innocent person |
| Definition of capital homicide |
|
| Method of execution | Lethal injection; firing squad if lethal injection not possible |
Note: State laws are always subject to change through the passage of new legislation, rulings in the higher courts (including federal decisions), ballot initiatives, and other means. While we strive to provide the most current information available, please consult an attorney or conduct your own legal research to verify the state laws you are researching.
Death penalty cases differ from other criminal defense cases because of the possibility that the defendant may lose their life. An experienced criminal defense attorney with experience in death penalty cases can help you. Speak to a qualified Idaho criminal defense attorney today.
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