Mandatory minimum drug sentencing bill heads to Senate

Idaho’s House has advanced a proposal that would remove mandatory minimum sentences for drug trafficking cases despite some critics warning the bill will increase crime activity throughout the state.

House members on Monday voted 46-20 to send the bill to the Senate. A hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Reps. Ilana Rubel, a Democrat from Boise, and Christy Perry, a Republican from Nampa, say the bill will give judges more discretion in sentencing and does not halt drug trafficking cases from being tried in court.

Perry, who is running for Idaho’s 1st Congressional District seat, added that some of the convicted are addicts and not the high-level dealers the law was designed to target.

However, Republican Rep. Luke Malek – who is also running for the open congressional district – countered that drug dealers will flock to Idaho if the bill is enacted.