Idaho Supreme Court rejects death row inmate Creech’s cruel and unusual punishment argument

This story was first published by Idaho Reports on Nov. 27, 2024.

The Idaho Supreme Court has ruled that a second attempt to execute an Idaho death row inmate would not violate his Eighth Amendment protections against cruel and unusual punishment.

The Wednesday decision affirms an earlier district court decision, rejecting an appeal by Thomas Creech.

Creech, 74, survived his first execution attempt in February after the execution team failed to establish vein access and called off the execution. A November death warrant expired due to a separate stay from the federal court.

After the February attempt, the Idaho Department of Correction established a new policy that would allow the execution team to access a central vein for lethal injection administration.

A central vein is a major vein in the body, usually in the chest, neck or groin. Access to a central vein requires the insertion of a catheter. A peripheral vein, like those located in the arm or hand, is closer to the skin’s surface and is commonly used for tasks like a blood draws or establishing an IV line on a patient.

Creech is on death row for the 1981 beating death of fellow inmate David Jensen in Ada County. He claimed another execution attempt would amount to cruel and unusual punishment, violating his Eighth Amendment constitutional rights.

The Idaho Supreme Court unanimously sided with the district court, writing “Creech has not alleged that the state will inflict unnecessary pain during an execution using central line IV access. Instead, he provides anecdotal evidence of difficulties encountered by other states during central line insertions.”

The state has not yet issued a new death warrant for Creech, as the federal stay is still in place.