Paris to serve 22 years for Smelterville murder

WALLACE — Admitted murderess Stephanie Paris will serve at least the next 22 years in prison following her sentencing this week in Shoshone County.

Paris was arrested in June 2022 on charges of first-degree murder, failure to notify authorities of a death and obstruction of justice.

However, a resolution was agreed upon after a full mediation between the defendant and counsel, the victim’s family, Shoshone County Prosecuting Attorney Benjamin Allen and Senior District Court Judge John Luster.

“Both sides agreed to follow along with the proposal which saw that in exchange for the benefit in sentencing that the defendant would receive, the victim’s family would obtain surety of closure without waiting years for a jury trial or living with the fear of the case resurfacing after sentencing as a defendant exhausts their rights to appeal in contested criminal matters,” Allen said.

As per the agreement, Paris pleaded guilty to second-degree murder — which carries a maximum life sentence. She received a life sentence, with 22 years of it being fixed. The remaining charges were dismissed by the prosecutor.

Paris’s mental health played a large part in the proceedings. In March, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare made the determination that she was mentally fit for the proceedings to move forward and the mediation took place the following month.

Allen said the use of the mediation and subsequent agreement made the most sense for all parties.

“Plea agreements can provide a number of benefits to both sides in a criminal case. First, they take into account the defendant’s willingness to accept responsibility in a case, which can result in a less severe punishment for a defendant,” he said. “Said acceptance of responsibility enables resolution of a case without unnecessary contested court proceedings, which saves public resources and can mitigate institutional trauma on victims.”

Paris’s charges stem from an incident in June 2022, when the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office attempted to conduct a welfare check on Aaron Peterson, a Smelterville man who was in a reportedly violent domestic relationship with his girlfriend, Paris.

On the day of the welfare check, Paris met the deputy at the door to the residence in Smelterville, but wouldn’t allow entry. She told the deputy Peterson was in the shower and would be headed to work at the Bunker Hill Mine soon.

Shoshone County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Jared Bilaski left the residence and returned with backup from both SCSO and the Kellogg Police Department, where he informed Paris that he would be obtaining a search warrant for the property — to which Paris allegedly replied by saying, "If you kick that door open, you're going to be dead. I'll shoot you."

Once the search warrant was granted, Bilaski searched the house and located Peterson’s body in the bedroom of the residence — where it was determined that he had been killed via multiple gunshots to his back.