Idaho Supreme Court - Criminal Decisions

Browse Opinions From the Idaho Supreme Court - Criminal

Recent Decisions From the Idaho Supreme Court - Criminal
State v. Von Ehlinger  
Date: February 6, 2025
Docket Number: 50087

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2021, Aaron Von Ehlinger, a first-year member of the Idaho State House of Representatives, was accused of rape by J.V., a legislative intern. They had dinner together and later went to Von Ehlinger’s apartment, where…

State v. Smith  
Date: January 30, 2025
Docket Number: 49909

Justia Opinion Summary: Chadlen Dewayne Smith was convicted of sexual exploitation of a child by possession of sexually exploitative material. The case began when Smith was arrested for stalking a police dispatcher. Following his arrest, law…

State v. Ortiz  
Date: January 8, 2025
Docket Number: 50127

Justia Opinion Summary: Daniel Ruiz Ortiz was convicted of second-degree murder and violating a no contact order (NCO). Ortiz appealed, arguing that the district court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence obtained during a…

State v. Roberts  
Date: December 19, 2024
Docket Numbers: 48486, 48511, 49440, 49441, 49442, 49443, 49444, 49445, 49446

Justia Opinion Summary: Lance A. Roberts appealed the district court's decision affirming the magistrate court's denial of his Idaho Criminal Rule 35 motion in a misdemeanor DUI case, his Rule 35 motions in felony DUI cases, and the dismissal…

State v. Dills
Date: December 19, 2024
Docket Number: 52330
State v. Al Muthafar  
Date: December 6, 2024
Docket Number: 49435

Justia Opinion Summary: The defendant, Jameel Fakhri Al Muthafar, was convicted of aggravated assault and attempted strangulation. The case arose when K.S., the victim, called the police from a Rite Aid store in Boise, Idaho, expressing…

State v. Eaton  
Date: December 5, 2024
Docket Number: 51402

Justia Opinion Summary: The State of Idaho charged Lea Anne Eaton with felony burglary and petit theft after she used discarded Walmart receipts to return stolen items for a refund. Shortly after her arrest, a new statute creating the…

State v. Blazek / State v. Smith
Date: December 5, 2024
Docket Numbers: 51842, 52307
State v. Chavez  
Date: December 4, 2024
Docket Number: 49953

Justia Opinion Summary: Gerardo Raul Chavez was convicted of second-degree murder for the 2016 killing of Vason Widaman. While in custody for a probation violation, Chavez made incriminating statements to a cellmate, Manuel Acevedo, who was…

State v. Pulizzi  
Date: November 29, 2024
Docket Number: 49710

Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Anthony Pulizzi was convicted of felony possession of methamphetamine and destruction, alteration, or concealment of evidence. Pulizzi argued that the district court erred in denying his motion to suppress…

Creech v. Randy Valley  
Date: November 27, 2024
Docket Number: 52373

Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas Eugene Creech, sentenced to death in 1995, faced a failed execution attempt earlier this year due to the inability to establish reliable peripheral intravenous access. The execution team spent nearly an hour…

State v. Mansfield  
Date: November 26, 2024
Docket Number: 49742

Justia Opinion Summary: Dustin Mansfield was convicted of introducing contraband into a correctional facility. In January 2021, Mansfield was charged after suboxone strips were found in his mail at the Bannock County jail. The State filed an…

State v. Rodriguez  
Date: November 26, 2024
Docket Number: 50513

Justia Opinion Summary: Fernando Rodriguez, an inmate at an Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) facility, was involved in a disturbance in April 2021. During the incident, inmates threw objects, barricaded doors, and started fires. Rodriguez…

State v. Wilde  
Date: November 7, 2024
Docket Number: 51269

Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Kenneth Wilde was charged with two felonies, including trafficking in heroin, and one misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance. One felony charge was dismissed, and Wilde pleaded guilty to trafficking in…

Creech v. State  
Date: November 5, 2024
Docket Number: 52327

Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas Eugene Creech, sentenced to death in 1995, faced a failed execution attempt in early 2024 due to the inability to establish reliable intravenous access. Following this, Creech filed a petition for post-conviction…

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