Oct. 17 (UPI) — An Idaho judge has scheduled the execution of the state’s longest-serving death row inmate following a botched attempt to administer his sentence earlier this year.
Fourth Judicial District Judge Jason Scott on Wednesday issued the death warrant for Thomas Eugene Creech for 10 a.m. on Nov. 13.
The Idaho Department of Correction then served Creech, 74, the death warrant at 10 a.m. Wednesday. He was immediately moved to the Idaho Maximum Security Institution’s F Block, where his execution will take place.
IDOC Director Josh Tewalt confirmed in a statement that Creech will be put to death by lethal injection and that the department has procured the chemicals necessary to administer his sentence.
The announcement came a day after the IDOC said it had completed modifications to its F Block necessitated by the state’s botched Feb. 28 execution of Creech.
With the septuagenarian strapped to a gurney, the medical team was unable to establish an IV line to administer the lethal cocktail, and his death was called off.
The IDOC said in a statement Tuesday that it had lacked “the appropriate environment to conduct the procedure” but over the summer, the F Block “was renovated to create an execution preparation room to establish venous access.”
It also revised its execution protocols “to reflect how the new space affects the protocols and sequence of procedures,” it said.
Creech has been convicted of killing five people, four in 1974 in Portland, Ore., and Sacramento, Calif., for which he received life sentences. The death penalty was handed down after he pleaded guilty for beating a fellow inmate to death with a sock filled with batteries in 1981.
However, Creech has confessed to killing more than two dozen people, claiming he was 15 years old when he killed his first victim.
Following its failure in late February to kill Creech, the state’s attorney general, Raul Labrador, described it as a delay of justice.
“Today is a sad day for the families of his victims, and a continuation of the pain they have endured for almost five decades,” Labrador said in a statement. “Our duty is to seek justice for the many victims and their families who experienced the brutality and senselessness of his actions.”
Following the issuance of the death warrant Wednesday, Creech’s attorney, Deborah Czuba, said she was “heartbroken and angered” that the state would try again to execute her client before conducting an official review of what caused the state’s initial failure.
“The level of recklessness puts Idaho in a class by itself, as other states that botched executions took significant steps to examine what went wrong before trying again,” Czuba, supervising attorney for the Capital Habeas Unit of the Federal Defenders of Idaho, said in a statement to local media.
“Idaho has now made itself the first state in the history of the country to try to use lethal injection a second time on the same inmate after failing the first time.”
According to the IDOC, there have been three executions since Idaho enacted its death penalty statute in 1977.
There are nine people on Idaho’s death row, including Creech, who was sentenced to death in 1983, making him the state’s longest-serving death row inmate.
PAYETTE — A Payette mom’s bond was revoked Tuesday after she was charged with suffocating her twin children earlier this month and is believed to pose a danger to the life of her newborn child.
The case, which has drawn national headlines, concerns Andrea Renee Shaw, a 23-year-old Payette mother who in May 2025 said her 18-month-old fraternal twins died the same day, after receiving routine childhood vaccinations. In January, Shaw joined as a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit filed by Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine organization founded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., with several other plaintiffs claiming vaccine injury or death.
Kennedy, who now serves as secretary of Health and Human Services, is no longer part of the group after taking on the cabinet position, as was reported by the Associated Press.
In Idaho, the twins’ deaths prompted a 14-month investigation by the Payette County Sheriff’s Department. On June 29, the investigation yielded a grand jury indictment of Shaw on two counts of first-degree murder by suffocation. If convicted, Shaw can be punished by up to life in prison or the death penalty, and the court would have the ability to order the penalties be served consecutively, or back to back.
Tuesday’s arraignment at the Payette County Courthouse was primarily attended by Shaw’s relatives and members of the media. Payette County Judge Kiley Stuchlik, who serves Idaho’s Third Judicial District, presided.
A key consideration for Stuchlik on Tuesday was a request from Joseph Filicetti, the legal counsel for Shaw, to have her bond reduced from $2 million to $100,000. Filicetti said this would allow for Shaw to care for a newborn girl, who, according to court documents, was born by caesarean section on June 25, four days prior to Shaw’s grand jury indictment.
State prosecutors objected to the motion for bond reduction, noting at hand was a potential death penalty case and asserting, unlike her husband, Shaw’s story repeatedly changed during questioning. Prosecuting Attorney Mike Duke said releasing Shaw would ultimately put the newborn’s safety at risk.
“That child is the most at risk. We do not think she should be allowed to be anywhere near any children, let alone her own children,” Duke said.
Stuchlik decided to revoke bond entirely, stating Shaw posed a “risk of safety” to the newborn child that was not known to Stuchlik or prosecutors when the $2 million bond was initially set.
Also for consideration Tuesday was a request to have grand jury transcripts of witness testimony provided to prosecutors and defense counsel to prepare their respective cases.
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – A controversy is brewing as the City of Idaho Falls reviews its alcohol ordinance.
The goal is to consolidate four existing ordinances for beer, wine and liquor into a single law and ensure compliance with state code.
However, at its meeting last Thursday, the Idaho Falls City Council unanimously voted to remove the proposed ordinance from its agenda, in order to receive and consider additional public comment.
The proposed ordinance would:
1. Require commercial establishments selling, dispensing or permitting consumption of alcohol – including beer, wine or liquor – to have an alcohol license, alcohol catering permit or a charitable event permit.
2. Business events with 20 or less employees consuming alcohol at the business would be allowed.
3. Require alcohol servers to complete training every three years.
4. Individuals who violate the law could be charged with a misdemeanor.
Idaho Falls City Council President Jim Francis said the changes were the culmination of months of collaboration between law enforcement, business owners and city attorneys.
“We wanted to provide a safe environment – the primary point here – for public gatherings,” Francis said. “We recognize that certain antiquated elements of the current code are overly restrictive and needed to be addressed. We wanted to make the code more accessible to the public. We needed to address over-pouring issues. We wanted to reduce penalties where possible for violations, particularly the first offenses, and yet make the code clear enough to be enforceable consistently by law enforcement.”
But City Council Member John Radford said the changes represent an overreach by city government.
“I believe it’s a bad policy. What problem are we solving in the name of trying to solve a non-problem?” Radford said. “We’re becoming big brother around alcohol in your private property. I’m concerned that landlords will be at risk of being charged with a misdemeanor if they knowingly, which I made sure that was in there, because that is what we’ve been talking about, allowed people to drink in our business. We will be outside the norm of Idaho cities. This is a big step, and I don’t think the public has weighed in on this.”
At a City Council Work Session on June 1, Idaho Falls Chief of Police Bryce Johnson cited an increase in alcohol-related crime – particularly downtown – as a reason for the changes.
“DUI is there, but this would include sexual assaults, assaults, batteries, disturbances, urination, public vandalism, shooting – all sorts of crimes,” Johnson said.
But business owners are concerned about the potential impact on commercial enterprises.
“The ordinance doesn’t address the real problem – which is people drinking … at one event and then showing up in a bar or restaurant already hammered and causing problems anyway,” ” said Terri Ireland, representing the Idaho Falls Downtown Merchants Association. “The industry is really well-regulated by state and local laws already.”
The City of Idaho Falls began the process of updating its alcohol ordinance in January 2026, seeking input from community stakeholders.
Multiple community members spoke out about the ordinance.
For more in-depth information, you can read the full 39-page proposed alcohol ordinance here.
Supervisors urge California to expand S.F. speed-camera program
Five teens injured after crashing carjacked vehicle during Dallas police chase
Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza is coming to Miami, led by legendary pizzaiolo chef Bun
SEE THE GOOD: Roxbury center reminds young adults ‘You got this’ – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News
Five Points affordable housing building honors Dr. Justina Ford | Rocky Mountain PBS
Seattle weather: Hot and sunny day Wednesday, highs in the 80s
Gibraltar ushers in a new era as British territory’s border fence with Spain is removed
City funding awarded for redevelopment at 2618 N. Milwaukee
