Idaho transitions to firing squad as primary means of execution

Don't get all worked up about a stream of grisly state sponsored killings -- Idaho has executed three people in the last 50 years 

Trained members of Idaho law enforcement with demonstrated firearms proficiency are expected to fill slots for carrying out the death penalty by firing squad as the state prison system transitions to the controversial execution method next month, reported the Idaho Statesman

Don't get all worked up about a stream of grisly state sponsored killings.  Idaho has executed three people in the last 50 years. Six volunteers certified for no less than three years apiece through Peace Officer Standards and Training, or POST, will be recruited to ensure the Idaho Department of Correction is ready to comply with a state law that prioritizes shooting prisoners to death over lethal injection starting July 1.

No one on the team may have faced disciplinary action over firearms, use of force or related conduct over the prior year, according to new execution protocols the prison system released this week.

State prison leadership has sought to avoid needing to rely on volunteers among corrections officers to pull the triggers in an execution, IDOC Director Bree Derrick previously said. The agency explored the possibility of a remote-operated system as Idaho becomes the only U.S. state with a firing squad as its lead execution method, but one did not come to fruition.

That left IDOC to instead devise a human firing squad, the agency said. “The Idaho Department of Correction recognizes the gravity of carrying out a court-ordered execution and the responsibility that comes with it,” Derrick said in a statement to the Idaho Statesman. “The department is committed to fulfilling this responsibility with professionalism, respect, and strict adherence to the law. Our procedures are designed to ensure that any execution is conducted in a secure, orderly, and dignified manner while safeguarding the rights of all individuals involved and maintaining the safety and security of staff, witnesses, and the public.”

The firing squad will consist of three primary shooters and two alternates, with a team leader who will check, maintain and load a live round into each of the IDOC-owned rifles used for executions. None of the team members may have a blood or legal relationship to the condemned prisoner or their family, or the victims or their relatives. The identities of all firing squad members will be confidential, per state law. 

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