Idaho Bill To Make Firing Squad #1 Method Of Execution Close To Passing

A bill to make death by firing squad the primary means of execution in the State of Idaho has been scheduled for a vote on the Senate floor.

House Bill 37 (HB-37) passed out of the Idaho Senate's Judiciary & Rules Committee on Wednesday after passing out of the Idaho House on Feb. 6 by a vote of 58-11.

The legislation, which was introduced by Rep. Bruce Skaug (R-Nampa) and has 16 Republican co-sponsors, aims to replace Idaho's current main method of execution, lethal injection, which Skaug and the bill's supporters say presents too many potential legal appeal issues and failed administration attempts.

In 2023, Idaho passed a law allowing firing squads to be used as an alternative method of execution and several months later, an attempt to administer lethal injections to 74-year-old death row inmate Thomas Creech failed when the execution team was unable to find a vein in his arm.

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Skaug has said he believes the legislation would resolve the state's issue of obtaining the chemicals needed for lethal injections, and that death by firing squad is a more humane method of execution because it's "quick" and "certain."

Opponents of the bill, like Sen. Dan Foreman (R-Viola), have labelled it as "cruel" and "inhumane."

There are currently nine people on death row in the Gem State who could be subject to execution by firing squad if HB-37 gets signed into law.

Skaug's bill would go into effect on July 1, 2026 and also relegate lethal injection to the state's alternative for executions.

There are currently only four other states where firing squad is an option for state executions, including Mississippi; Oklahoma; South Carolina; and Utah.

According to a law review article published in 2016, there have been 144 executions carried out by firing squad in United States history, but since the death penalty's reinstatement in 1976, only Utah has used this method according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

Prior to the death penalty's abolishment in Washington in October of 2018, a total of 110 executions occurred in the state and its predecessor territories since 1849, with all but the most recent three being carried out via hanging.