Idaho Militia Group Pushing Three Initiatives For ‘96 Ballot

The U.S. Militia Association is pushing to get three initiatives on Idaho’s 1996 ballot.

Leaders of the Blackfoot-based group, who share an apocalyptic philosophy critical of taxes, government intrusion and gun control, planned to file three ballot initiatives with the secretary of state Friday. But they needed to verify signatures with the county clerk first and were deterred when a bomb threat closed the City-County Building for two hours.

They will try again today.

The measures include:

An initiative aimed at allowing volunteer militia groups to train with weapons. Currently, the Idaho Constitution sets the National Guard as the only legal militia, although militia associations may exist.

An initiative that defines life as any time an individual or fetus shows “brain stem activity” or a “heart beat” and calls for capital punishment for anyone who ends such a life. This measure is intended to address abortion as well as euthanasia, militia leaders say. Typically, a heartbeat and brain stem activity can be detected in a human fetus at 10 to 12 weeks.

An initiative that prohibits the state from interfering with religious or moral conscience. Militia leaders say this would keep the government from trying to regulate behavior or religious practice.

It takes just 20 signatures to get the initiative process going. But militia leaders and their “Liberty of Conscience” political action committee will need to collect 41,335 signatures from registered voters on each measure to win a ballot spot.

U.S. Militia Association founder Samuel Sherwood said they may fall short on at least two of them.

But even if signature gatherers persuade 5,000 to 10,000 people to sign on, Sherwood said that will show that the group has “a political constituency,” and that will persuade the Legislature to act.