POCATELLO — Hundreds sang and prayed along the half-mile walk from St. John’s Catholic Student Center to Caldwell Park on Thursday. Residents stopped what they were doing — walking dogs, mowing grass, watering lawns — to look on as the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage passed through Pocatello en route to the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis.

The Pilgrimage’s stop in Pocatello began with a visit to the St. John’s Catholic Student Center on the Idaho State University campus. More than 100 worshippers representing parishes from eastern Idaho and beyond filled the church and an overflow room.

But, as Bishop Peter Christensen of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise said, Idaho was not on the original pilgrimage path. And, despite its late addition, the Gem State has seen the greatest number of people register to be involved of any state along the four routes, he said.

According to the pilgrimage’s website, four groups of pilgrims took to four separate preplanned routes, working their way through much of the Continental United States toward Indiana.

Christensen said the St. Junipero Serra Route, which began in San Francisco, was altered to add several stops in Idaho, including Fruitland, Emmett, Glenns Ferry and Pocatello, before continuing on to Salt Lake City.

Nancy Bevins, a resident of Hamilton, Montana, drove into town to be part of the pilgrimage.

“This is the closest it’s going to be to Hamilton,” she said. “I mean, I’m getting goosebumps just being here. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

Following a brief stop inside St. John’s, the pilgrims, members of the St. John’s clergy and some 200 participants walked behind a cross-bearer and Christensen, who carried the Monstrance, a vessel used to carry the sacramental body of Christ during devotional ceremonies. They went about half a mile to Caldwell Park, where even more participants waited.

Lydia Noble, a Pocatello resident and former City Council candidate, was present at Caldwell Park. A member of the Catholic faith, Noble told EastIdahoNews.com how rare it is to see the Monstrance.

Noble also spoke about how important it is for people of the Catholic faith to take part in things like the Eucharistic Pilgrimage.

“It’s very important, that’s why I’m here,” she said. “It is a symbol of our faith, it is a special event, and the Monstrance is not usually displayed except for these events — that’s a big part of our faith.”

The Eucharistic Pilgrimage, according to its website, is “a beautiful fusion of the journey TO Jesus and the journey WITH Jesus.” Pilgrims began their separate journeys from California, Texas, Massachusetts and Minnesota and, as Bevins said, created a symbolic cross over the center of the nation with their routes.

Noble said she was momentarily surprised by the turnout, as she waited with what was around 50 people for the arrival of the procession.

“I’m very pleased (with the turnout),” she said. “When I first came — I was in Idaho Falls, so I didn’t make it at 4:30 — I cam straight here (to Caldwell Park), and there was hardly anybody here. But when the procession came around the corner there, it was a big relief.”

Bevins said she was not surprised by the turnout either, though she was surprised by how many people fit inside the St. John’s church.

“I didn’t know there were this many people inside,” she said. “I got here, and I was outside, I thought, ‘Oh, this isn’t many people.’”

The pilgrims prayed at Caldwell Park for blessings of love, grace and mercy, and both mental and spiritual direction on their journey.

Then, accompanied by their hosts from the Diocese of Boise and local churches, they continued to St. Anthony’s Catholic Church for a Holy Adoration, then to St. Joseph’s Chapel, where they worshipped until mass at 7 a.m. Friday.

Following Friday mass, the pilgrims were escorted to Preston, where they were joined by their hosts from the Salt Lake City Diocese.

According to the website, the Eucharistic Pilgrims will travel more than 6,500 miles — between the four routes — and be joined by more than 1,000 hosts and over 100,000 participants.

[BOISE] – Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador, along with attorneys general from North Dakota, Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska, South Carolina, and South Dakota, sued the EPA and the Biden Administration to protect state rights over their water and wildlife resources.  Idaho and North Dakota are leading the coalition of states, which filed their complaint in the U.S. District Court in the District of North Dakota. 

The EPA’s new rule—dubbed the Tribal Reserved Rights rule—forces states to prioritize tribal claims over the rights of their citizens. The EPA claims authority under the Clean Water Act to require states to protect so-called “tribal reserved rights”—a concept that the federal government has never been able to consistently define—in designating uses for state waters and setting water quality standards. But as the name implies, the Clean Water Act is about preventing water pollution; it has nothing to do with guaranteeing alleged tribal rights involving state waters, like the right to ceremonial practices or the right to fish or hunt for preferred species at preferred levels.  The Final Rule clearly exceeds the authority established by Congress.

”The Biden Administration’s EPA must be held accountable for their unconstitutional overreach into the management of state resources and relationships,” said Attorney General Labrador.  “Idaho has 3100 miles of navigable waterways—more than any other state in the lower 48 and the CWA does not strip Idaho of its right to manage our rivers effectively. In fact, contrary to the EPA’s new rule, the CWA preserves state authority over its water resources.”  

The states are aggressively defending their rights and are asking the federal court to enjoin, and ultimately vacate, the new rule. Litigation is ongoing in this matter, so stay tuned.

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It’s been nearly 12 years since Idaho last successfully executed someone on death row. With the Chad Daybell verdict delivered, Idahoans now wait to see if he will join the other eight inmates that have received the death penalty. 

After less than six hours of deliberation, a jury of 12 Idahoans found Chad Daybell guilty of all conspiracy, first-degree murder and insurance fraud charges connected to the deaths of his first wife, Tammy and current wife’s two children, JJ Vallow and Tylee Ryan. With the death penalty on the table, the trial now moves on to sentencing. 

Judge Boyce is wasting no time. He gave the jury a one hour break after delivering the verdict before bringing them back in to explain the process and sentencing phase schedule. They’ll begin hearing impact statements on Friday, May 31 at 8:30 a.m. The same jury that found Daybell guilty will decide whether he spends the rest of his life in prison like his wife, Lori Vallow or is condemned to death. 

Idaho’s Last Execution Happened in 2012

You may have noticed that we said it’s been nearly 12 years since Idaho last successfully executed someone on death row. It seems like a weird statement to make, but the state botched the execution of Thomas Creech in February. The medical team administering the lethal injection drugs tried and failed to start an IV line eight times before the execution was called off. 

Naturally, after Idaho made news by reinstating a firing squad as a means of capital punishment while the state struggled to obtain lethal injection chemicals, many wondered why it wasn’t used for Creech or any of the other death row inmates. The Department of Correction has explained that they don’t have the facility to carry out a firing squad ready yet. 

The last Idaho inmate who was executed was Richard Albert Leavitt, who was sentenced to death after stabbing and mutilating a woman in 1984. He was executed by lethal injection in June 2012. 

Who Are Idaho’s Current Death Row Inmates?

As we await Daybell’s sentencing, there are the seven men and one woman on Idaho’s death row. Here’s a look at who they are and how they ended up there.

KEEP READING: 5 Twisted Idaho True Crime Stories That Made National TV