Tagged: Policy

A few years ago, state leaders got the idea to promote Idaho to the outdoor industry, including gun manufacturers.  After all, Idaho is a more firearms-friendly place than most.  More than half of Idahoans own guns, and state law shields firearms manufacturers from liability.

In Salem, Oregon a former Army staff sergeant named Jarrid Starks has run out of the medications that keep him stable. He has severe Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental and physical wounds of war. But he’s currently not eligible for veterans’ health benefits that would include prescription refills. That’s because Starks was kicked out of the Army for bad behavior. He’s far from alone. 

Employees at the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections claim state and federal laws are being violated within the agency.  They filed a whistleblower lawsuit in federal court Monday.

In 1985, a jury convicted Richard A. Leavitt of the brutal first-degree murder of Danette J. Elg a year earlier.  Elg of Blackfoot, Idaho had been stabbed more than a dozen times and her body was mutilated.  The state will execute 53-year old Leavitt Tuesday by lethal injection unless there’s a last minute stay.  

The execution of Idaho inmate Richard Leavitt Tuesday will differ in two ways from the last lethal injection in November.  The state will use one lethal drug instead of three, and media members who are witness to the execution will watch the entire process from start to finish.   Reporters think that second change will help the public have an informed debate on the death penalty. 

Occupy Boise protestors have until Wednesday to move their tents temporarily. 

A federal judge decided today the state of Idaho can assess and repair damage to the lawn of the Old Ada County Courthouse where Occupy tents have been up since November.

Judge B. Lynn Winmill ruled that although Occupy Boise has the right to maintain a symbolic tent city, the state has a legitimate need to repair and maintain its property. 

Idaho inmate Richard Leavitt is scheduled for lethal injection on June 12th.  That will come seven months after the state used a mixture of three drugs to execute Paul Rhoades.  Idaho Department of Correction officials said today based on what they learned from that execution, they’ll now use just one drug.

Last week, the Air Force held public hearings on possibly basing its newest fighter jets in Mountain Home.  They drew about fifty people from the Treasure Valley. The search for a suitable home for the F-35A is now in its second year, but it’s unlikely the jets will actually end up in Mountain Home.   

A bill to protect victims of domestic violence comes up for a vote this week in the U.S. Senate.  Some Senate Republicans oppose the legislation because it expands prosecutorial powers for native American tribes, and adds protection for battered illegal immigrants, gays, and lesbians. 

U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID)  is a co-sponsor of the bill.  He says the provisions that have been criticized aren’t central to the legislation.   “I believe these are critical programs that need to be re-authorized and I’m going to be a strong advocate for it.” 

A report released today by the Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy questions whether the state is meeting its constitutional duty to "maintain a general, uniform and thorough system of public, free common schools."

The report is authored by the center's director Mike Ferguson, who was also Idaho's chief economist for 25 years.