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Idaho releases protocol for execution by firing squad
KXLY ^ | June 12, 2026 | Melissa Luck

Posted on 06/23/2026 4:02:18 PM PDT by Morgana

BOISE, Idaho - Idaho Department of Corrections released its plan this week for how it will carry out executions by firing squad.

July 1st, firing squad will become the primary method for carrying out the death penalty. It's the first state to have the firing squad as a primary form; four other states have firing squad as a secondary option.

The state passed legislation making this change, after encountering several issues carrying out executions by lethal injection.

In 2024, the execution of Thomas Creech had to be stopped because of failure to establish an IV line through which to administer the lethal drugs.

Previously in Idaho, firing squad was a secondary method, to be used only if lethal injection was not an option.

Idaho is one of only a handful of states to have the firing squad as an option, and had to retrofit areas of the state's maximum security prison to prepare for the change.

According to the protocol released this week:

* The firing squad will consist of three team members who are volunteers from law enforcement agencies and have specific certifications for firearm accuracy

* The condemned will be given a mild sedative before being moved to the execution area

* The condemned will be restrained in an execution chair

* The firing squad will position 10 yards away from the condemned

* The Firing Squad Team Leader loads one live round into three separate magazines for each firearm

* The Team Leader issues a firearm and three magazines to each member of the firing squad

* The medical team leader will adhere a target to the person's chest

* The condemned person may request an eye cover

* Each team member will load a weapon and standby for direction to fire

* The firing squad leader will begin the cadence and when directed, the team members will fire simultaneously


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1 posted on 06/23/2026 4:02:18 PM PDT by Morgana
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To: Morgana

Un La Paloma Blanca must play beforehand or at the time of execution.


2 posted on 06/23/2026 4:04:21 PM PDT by posterchild
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To: Morgana

* The Team Leader issues a firearm and three magazines to each member of the firing squad

Why does each member need three magazines?...............


3 posted on 06/23/2026 4:04:23 PM PDT by Red Badger (Iryna Zarutska, May 22, 2002 Kyiv, Ukraine – August 22, 2025 Charlotte, North Carolina Say her name)
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To: Morgana

4 posted on 06/23/2026 4:04:34 PM PDT by dfwgator ("I am Charlie Kirk!")
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To: Morgana

Ready aim fire. Practice for about two minutes.


5 posted on 06/23/2026 4:04:35 PM PDT by Libloather (Why do climate change hoax deniers live in mansions on the beach?)
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To: Morgana

No ne gets executed in Idaho. They die from old age on death row first.


6 posted on 06/23/2026 4:10:03 PM PDT by The Sentient Sheep
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To: Morgana

What do you guys think they use? 30-06?


7 posted on 06/23/2026 4:11:04 PM PDT by Psalm 73 ("You'll never hear surf music again" - J. Hendrix)
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To: Morgana

I have to say that if I was going to be executed, I’d probably pick the firing squad. Much better than the gas chamber or electric chair. And with the recent misfires with lethal injection, probably cleaner than that too. If you still are alive after the first shot, someone walks up to you and puts a bullet in your head and that’s it. You’re gone.


8 posted on 06/23/2026 4:12:03 PM PDT by Opinionated Blowhard (When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.)
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To: Morgana
Adios, MoFo!

9 posted on 06/23/2026 4:15:35 PM PDT by budj (Combat Vet, second of three generations.)
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To: Morgana

Woody Allen firing squad despite the threat of an angry letter to the Times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5U72xvlbn-k


10 posted on 06/23/2026 4:17:56 PM PDT by frank ballenger (There's a battle outside and it's raging. It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls. )
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To: Psalm 73

Follow the North Korean protocol...20mm cannon


11 posted on 06/23/2026 4:21:30 PM PDT by HombreSecreto (The life of a repo man is always intense)
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To: Opinionated Blowhard

Socrates was condemned to death for impiety. He died by drinking poison hemlock that was given to him. This would seem to be the calmest method of execution of them all.

But then again, it’s technically a suicide. And that’s a sin. (?)


12 posted on 06/23/2026 4:22:26 PM PDT by Leaning Right
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To: Leaning Right

I don’t think it’s the picnic you envision.

What are the symptoms of hemlock poisoning?
Ingestion of the hemlock plant can take 30 minutes to a few hours to give rise to the poisoning symptoms. The severity of the symptoms depends on how long the plant has been in your system.

The common signs and symptoms of hemlock poisoning include:

Shivering (tremors)
Burning sensation in the abdomen
Increased salivation
Dilated pupils
Muscle pain
Paralysis of muscles
Lack of coordination in movements
Rapid, weak pulse
Inability to speak
Convulsions
Unconsciousness
Coma
Respiratory failure
Kidney failure


13 posted on 06/23/2026 4:45:10 PM PDT by Beowulf9
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To: Morgana

Sell lottery tickets to be on the firing squad. Think of the fundraising money that could bring into the state coffers.


14 posted on 06/23/2026 4:50:04 PM PDT by Dacula
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To: Beowulf9

> What are the symptoms of hemlock poisoning? <

It beats many other methods of execution: being burned at the stake, being drawn and quartered, etc. And you’ve got a bit of time to steady yourself. Nobody is dragging you anywhere.

But yeah. Those who were with Socrates at the time of his death wrote that it was a bit messy. Any modern method of execution along those lines would have to employ a better poison.

(Himmler and Goering would probably recommend cyanide.)


15 posted on 06/23/2026 4:54:41 PM PDT by Leaning Right
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To: Opinionated Blowhard

What about the Canadian MAID option? The Canadian seem to like it alot. Many Canadians are dying to try it.


16 posted on 06/23/2026 4:54:52 PM PDT by TheDon (Remember the J6 political prisoners! Remember Ashli Babbitt!)
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To: Morgana
If the first two shots do not kill the condemned, the riflemen will be ordered to fix bayonets and charge.
17 posted on 06/23/2026 4:54:55 PM PDT by KarlInOhio (If the Islamic Republic government is in power in Iran when the war is over, we will have lost.)
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To: Beowulf9

Is hemlock related to tequila? Those symptoms sound familiar.


18 posted on 06/23/2026 4:55:51 PM PDT by KarlInOhio (If the Islamic Republic government is in power in Iran when the war is over, we will have lost.)
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To: Leaning Right
Steve Martin: "The Death of Socrates"
19 posted on 06/23/2026 5:05:32 PM PDT by Ciaphas Cain
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To: dfwgator

That’s one of my favorite episodes.

“My pump got caught in my trouser leg.”


20 posted on 06/23/2026 5:24:24 PM PDT by Disambiguator
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