Idaho is poised to break new ground in capital punishment policy when a revised execution protocol takes effect July 1, making the firing squad the state’s primary method for carrying out death sentences — a distinction no other state currently holds.

The Idaho Department of Corrections released the new protocol this week, outlining procedures under which condemned inmates would face a firing squad rather than lethal injection as the default means of execution. Four other states allow the firing squad as a backup option, but none have made it the first choice.

A Policy Shift Rooted in Lethal Injection Problems

The change stems from difficulties Idaho encountered with its previous primary method. In 2024, the planned execution of Thomas Creech was halted after medical staff were unable to establish a viable IV line, leaving officials unable to administer lethal drugs. That failed attempt prompted lawmakers to reconsider the state’s approach and pass legislation authorizing the transition.

Before the legislative change, the firing squad was only available in Idaho as a secondary fallback. Under the new protocol, it moves to the front of the process, with lethal injection presumably available as an alternative rather than the default.

To prepare for the shift, the state retrofitted sections of its maximum security prison to accommodate firing squad executions. The modifications were completed in advance of the July 1 effective date.

Who Is Affected

Eight people currently sit on Idaho’s death row — seven men and one woman. The state has carried out three executions since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976, with the most recent taking place in July 2011, when Richard Leavitt was executed by lethal injection. The more than fifteen-year gap since that last execution underscores how rarely the sentence has been carried out in Idaho, even as the death row population has persisted.

What Comes Next

With the protocol now public and the effective date approaching, attention turns to whether any legal challenges will emerge before July 1. Capital cases frequently attract constitutional litigation around execution methods, and Idaho’s position as the first state to designate the firing squad as its primary method could draw additional scrutiny from courts or advocacy groups.

The state’s Department of Corrections will be responsible for implementing the new procedures. Whether any of the eight people currently on death row will face execution under the revised protocol in the near term depends on the status of individual cases and any pending appeals.

Idaho’s move reflects a broader national conversation about lethal injection reliability, with several states revisiting their execution methods after encountering supply chain issues with pharmaceutical drugs or procedural complications similar to what occurred in the Creech case. Idaho now stands at the forefront of that reconsideration, entering territory no other state has formally occupied.