Idaho could soon offer compensation for wrongful convictions
BOISE – More than 20 years ago, Chris Tapp was sentenced to life in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. On Tuesday, he sat in the House gallery a free man, watching as Idaho legislators unanimously passed a bill he helped push.
Tapp was wrongfully accused of the 1996 rape and murder of 18-year-old Angie Dodge in Idaho Falls. He served 21 years in prison until new DNA evidence led to Tapp’s exoneration and the conviction of another man. Tapp was released from prison in 2017.
Legislators said he and Dodge’s mother, Carol Dodge, were instrumental to legislation that could help those wrongfully convicted receive compensation from the state. House members Tuesday unanimously approved Senate Bill 1027.
Sponsored by Sen. Doug Ricks, R-Rexburg, and Idaho Falls Republicans, Sen. Dave Lent and Rep. Barbara Ehardt, the bill would offer individuals $62,000 for every year of wrongful incarceration or $75,000 for every year wrongfully on death row. Those wrongfully convicted of a sex offense would be entitled to another $25,000 for every year either on parole or on the registry, whichever time period was longer.
Ehardt on the House floor asked what 20 years of life would be worth to someone.
“How do you even put a price on that?” Ehardt said. “I believe it is incumbent upon us to try to make this right.”
Senators unanimously approved the bill early this month. It will need a sign-off from the governor.
Gov. Brad Little last year vetoed a similar bill after it overwhelmingly passed in both the House and the Senate. At the time, Little said he would approve future legislation that didn’t place the state in court as a first step. Ehardt on Tuesday said those concerns have been addressed.
Little’s spokesperson Marissa Morrison didn’t directly respond to a question about a veto Tuesday but said Ricks has been working closely with the governor on the bill.
How the bill would compensate exonerees
The damages would be awarded to individuals through an “innocence fund” set up through the state. The court would need to award individuals a certificate of innocence for all crimes of which they were convicted.
Claimants would not be automatically compensated and would need to seek the damages. Those who are awarded compensation through civil lawsuits or settlements would have that compensation deducted from the amount to which they’re entitled.
Six people have been exonerated for their crimes in Idaho since at least 1983, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. Four would be eligible for compensation under the bill, according to the bill’s fiscal note. Legislators estimate it would cost the state about $3.8 million to compensate those four exonerees, though three have already sought compensation through civil courts.
House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel, D-Boise, on the House floor addressed Tapp directly in the gallery to apologize for his experience.
“I suppose as some part of this system, I just want to say how sorry I am and how badly the system failed you,” Rubel said. “And I really appreciate you taking this terrible misfortune that befell you … to try to take that experience and turn it into a better justice system for Idaho.”