2023 Idaho Code › Title 6 - ACTIONS IN PARTICULAR CASES › Chapter 35 - IDAHO WRONGFUL CONVICTION ACT › Section 6-3503 - COMPENSATION.

6-3503. COMPENSATION. (1) In an action brought pursuant to section 6-3502, Idaho Code, damages awarded shall be:
(a) (i) Sixty-two thousand dollars ($62,000) for each year of imprisonment actually served, including time spent awaiting trial; or
(ii) If the claimant was imprisoned on death row, seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000) for each year of imprisonment actually served related to the charge giving rise to death row imprisonment, including time spent awaiting trial; and
(b) No less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each year the person was on parole or no less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each year the person was required to register as a sex offender, whichever period of time was greater.
(2) Compensation awarded under subsection (1) of this section shall be computed on a pro rata basis, with damages computed according to the number of days the claimant spent awaiting trial and was imprisoned, on parole, or required to register as a sex offender due to the conviction that is the subject of the action. For purposes of the pro rata calculation, three hundred sixty-five (365) days equals one (1) year. The burden is on the claimant to establish the number of days he was imprisoned, on parole, or required to register as a sex offender.
(3) The claimant must establish the damages he is seeking under subsections (1), (2), and (4) of this section and the basis for those damages. Awards shall be paid from the innocence fund created pursuant to section 6-3505, Idaho Code. Any award of damages shall not accrue post-judgment interest, and the provisions of section 28-22-104, Idaho Code, shall not apply to such damages. A court shall not award, and a claimant shall not receive, compensation for any period of imprisonment during which the claimant was serving a sentence for a conviction of another offense for which the claimant was lawfully convicted and imprisoned. The claimant shall not receive compensation for any period of time that he was on parole or required to register as a sex offender during which the claimant was paroled or required to register as a sex offender for another offense for which the claimant was lawfully convicted.
(4) In addition to the damages awarded pursuant to subsection (1) of this section, the claimant may be entitled to the following:
(a) Reasonable attorney’s fees and costs incurred in the action brought pursuant to this chapter not to exceed a total of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), unless a greater reasonable total is authorized by the court upon a finding of good cause shown; and
(b) Reentry services offered through the department of correction, as applicable.
(5) If a claimant in a separate civil action related to the wrongful conviction has won a monetary judgment against, or entered into a settlement agreement with, the state or any political subdivision, the amount of any such award or settlement collected by the claimant, less attorney’s fees and litigation costs, shall be deducted from the sum of money to which the claimant is entitled to under this section. If a claimant first receives compensation under this section and then in a separate civil action wins a monetary judgment against, or enters into a settlement agreement with, the state or any political subdivision related to the wrongful conviction, the claimant shall reimburse the state. The reimbursement shall be for the sum of the monetary payment awarded under this section, less attorney’s fees and litigation costs, up to the amount of the award or settlement in the civil action. If a claimant first receives compensation under this section and then in a separate civil action related to the wrongful conviction wins a monetary judgment against, or enters into a settlement agreement with, the state or any political subdivision, the claimant shall notify and reimburse the state of such compensation.
(6) Any damages awarded pursuant to subsection (1) of this section shall be tax-exempt in the state of Idaho.
History:
[6-3503, added 2021, ch. 17, sec. 1, p. 39; am. 2021, ch. 304, sec. 1, p. 910.]