Idaho does have the death penalty. The state authorizes capital punishment for first-degree murder and for aggravated lewd conduct with a child age twelve or younger, and eight people sit on Idaho’s death row as of March 2026. Only three executions have been carried out since Idaho reenacted its capital statute in 1977, with the most recent in 2012.1Idaho Department of Correction. Death Row
Crimes That Can Bring a Death Sentence
Two categories of offense expose a defendant to execution in Idaho. The first is first-degree murder, which covers premeditated killings, murders committed during felonies such as arson, robbery, rape, or kidnapping, and the killing of a law enforcement officer acting in the line of duty, along with other circumstances the statute spells out.2Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 18-4003 – Degrees of Murder The second is aggravated lewd conduct with a child twelve years old or younger.3Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2515 – Sentence in Capital Cases – Special Sentencing Proceeding – Statutory Aggravating Circumstances – Special Verdict or Written Findings
A conviction alone does not put a person in line for execution. The prosecutor has to file a written notice of intent to seek the death penalty before the case is treated as capital.4Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 18-4004A – Notice of Intent to Seek Death Penalty Without that notice, the ceiling is life in prison.5Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 18-4004 – Punishment for Murder
How a Death Sentence Is Actually Reached
Even after a capital-eligible conviction, Idaho requires a separate sentencing proceeding before the same jury. The prosecution must prove at least one of eleven statutory aggravating circumstances beyond a reasonable doubt, and the finding has to be unanimous. The listed aggravators include a prior murder conviction, more than one victim, knowingly creating a great risk of death to many people, murder for hire, especially heinous or cruel killings, utter disregard for human life, murder during a violent felony, murder during certain sex offenses against children, a pattern suggesting the defendant is a continuing threat, the murder of a public official such as a judge or officer because of their duties, and the murder of a witness.3Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2515 – Sentence in Capital Cases – Special Sentencing Proceeding – Statutory Aggravating Circumstances – Special Verdict or Written Findings
If no juror is persuaded that any aggravator applies, the death penalty is off the table and the court imposes life in prison with a fixed term of no less than ten years. If the jury unanimously finds at least one aggravator, the defense then puts on mitigating evidence, which can reach into the defendant’s background, mental health, upbringing, or role in the offense. The jury has to decide, unanimously, that the mitigation does not outweigh the aggravation. A single holdout at this stage defaults the sentence to life without the possibility of parole.3Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2515 – Sentence in Capital Cases – Special Sentencing Proceeding – Statutory Aggravating Circumstances – Special Verdict or Written Findings
Every death sentence then goes through automatic review by the Idaho Supreme Court, whether or not the defendant files an appeal. The court looks at the full trial record for legal error and for whether the sentence is appropriate given how similar cases have been handled since 1975.6Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2827 – Review of Death Sentences – Preservation of Records Beyond the courts, a defendant can seek clemency through the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole, but in capital cases the commission’s role is only advisory; the governor holds final authority over any commutation.7Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 20-1016 – Powers of the Commission
How Executions Are Carried Out
Idaho’s execution method is in the middle of a legal switch. Through June 30, 2026, lethal injection is the primary method, with the firing squad serving as a backup when the director of the Idaho Department of Correction determines the drugs are unavailable.8Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2716 – Methods of Execution
In March 2025, Governor Brad Little signed House Bill 37, which reverses that order effective July 1, 2026. The firing squad becomes Idaho’s primary execution method, with lethal injection available as the alternative. The bill cleared both chambers of the legislature by wide margins. The push came largely from the difficulty of obtaining lethal injection drugs, a problem that has stalled executions across the country.
The immediate catalyst was the February 2024 attempted execution of Thomas Creech. The execution team tried eight times over roughly an hour to establish an intravenous line before calling off the procedure. The Idaho Department of Correction is still developing protocols for firing squad executions, including exploring a remote-operated firing system that would limit direct staff involvement. Formal procedures had not been publicly released as of early 2026. Facility modifications have been estimated at roughly $950,000.
Who Cannot Be Executed in Idaho
Two categories of defendant are off-limits regardless of the crime. Federal constitutional law bars the execution of anyone who was under 18 at the time of the offense, and Idaho follows that rule. Idaho also has its own statutory ban on executing people with intellectual disabilities. If a court finds, by a preponderance of the evidence, that a defendant has significantly below-average intellectual functioning with an IQ of 70 or below, along with significant limitations in adaptive skills such as communication, self-care, or daily living that began before age 18, the death penalty cannot be imposed.9Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2515A – Imposition of Death Penalty Upon Mentally Retarded Person Prohibited
A defendant who plans to raise an intellectual disability claim has to notify the court and the prosecution at least 90 days before trial. The judge then holds a hearing outside the jury’s presence. Raising the claim waives any privilege over related evidence, so the prosecution gets access to the defendant for its own expert examinations. The jury is never told that the hearing took place or what the court decided.9Idaho State Legislature. Idaho Code 19-2515A – Imposition of Death Penalty Upon Mentally Retarded Person Prohibited
Idaho’s Death Row Today
Idaho holds eight people under a death sentence as of March 2026. Seven men are housed at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution south of Boise, and one woman is incarcerated at the Pocatello Women’s Correctional Center. Three executions have been carried out since the current statute took effect in 1977, with the last in 2012.1Idaho Department of Correction. Death Row
The long stretch since that last execution tracks the broader national picture. Drug shortages have made lethal injection unreliable, litigation over execution protocols has added years of delay, and the appeals process in capital cases is lengthy by design. Idaho’s move to the firing squad as its primary method is a direct response to the drug problem, though whether it shortens the timeline in any particular case is still an open question.