USA - Idaho. Idaho's execution secrecy bill is dead - at least for now

Idaho's execution secrecy bill is dead - at least for now. Idaho lawmakers will not hear a state-sponsored bill to bring more secrecy to executions due to concerns about the measure's language, IdahoReporter.com learned today. Sen. Marv Hagedorn, R-Meridian, said he plans to use his privilege as chair of the Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee to hold SB 1005 - effectively killing it for now. "There were some concerns about the language," Hagedorn said. "There's more homework to be done on the issue." The measure would have shielded from public disclosure the names of companies that provide execution chemicals to the state. The bill also would have allowed the Idaho Department of Correction the authority and power to hide "any information" that would prevent the state from carrying out executions. Idaho administrative rules, regulations with less force than law but plenty of power, already block reporters and residents from garnering access to the names of executive chemical companies, Jeff Ray, the agency's spokesman, told IdahoReporter.com last week. Still, the agency sought to embed the protections into law to give them additional weight and strength. Though Hagedorn's move takes the plan off the table for now, it could come back before lawmakers finish business this year. The senator asked the department to try again after changing the bill to account for lawmakers' concerns about overly broad wording. Unlikely allies raised concerns about the measure before Hagedorn shut it down. The American Civil Liberties Union, the Idaho Freedom Foundation and Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty each criticized the bill’s open-ended language, as well as the state’s desire to hide even more execution information from Idahoans.