Author: KIFI

Kevin Richert

Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on March 13, 2026

By: Kevin Richert and Ryan Suppe

BOISE, Idaho — A bill to criminalize violations of Idaho’s bathroom law is headed to the Senate.

The House-passed bill would make it a misdemeanor to use a bathroom “that is designated for use by the (user’s) opposite biological sex.”

The bill would apply to schools and any government or public buildings. A 2023 law already requires schools to regulate bathrooms and locker rooms, based on gender assigned at birth.

“(This is) consistent with Idaho’s recent policy direction,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Cornel Rasor, R-Sagle. “Single-sex facilities have long existed to safeguard females.”

The bill would apply to anyone who “knowingly or willfully” uses a bathroom not aligned to their “biological sex.” A first offense would be a misdemeanor, but a second offense would be a felony.

“We are about to criminalize fear as opposed to actual harm,” said Rep. Chris Mathias, D-Boise. Mathias added that the bill poses a threat to transgender people, who would have to use bathrooms and facilities that make them uncomfortable.

Rep. Dale Hawkins said the rest of the population should not have to accommodate transgender Idahoans, who make up 0.4% of the population. “I don’t know how we got here,” said Hawkins, R-Fernwood. “This is about men in women’s spaces.”

With the 54-15 vote, House Bill 752 now heads to the Senate.

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CNN Newsource

Originally Published: 16 MAR 26 18:06 ET

By Emma Benson

Click here for updates on this story

    SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (KSL) — At a time when owning a home seems out of reach for many, a group of friends is trying to make the American dream possible.

Sky Evans, along with his wife Lily and friend Sawyer Reidelbach, started what they call the Homerun Project. They are renovating a 1920s house in Salt Lake City and, once it’s finished, plan to give it away — no mortgage, no rent, just a fresh start, in a drawing.

“We cannot fix the housing crisis for everybody, it’s such a disaster. But we wanted to fix it for someone,” Lily Evans said.

Evans said they are renters themselves and even sold one of their investment properties to help make the renovation possible.

“That’s really how passionate we are about this — to be able to bring such a dream to somebody else,” Sky Evans said.

The transformation is already well underway.

“What’s cooler than being able to give away a house?” Reidelbach said. “Every day I wake up, it’s all I think about. I lay in bed, and I think about it — getting to work on this makes me so happy.”

Once the renovation is complete, they say the goal is simple.

“Somebody is going to get keys to a home, and that’s really the moment that this whole project is for,” Sky Evans said.

They hope to expand this project in the future, giving even more people a place to “run home” to.

“We love it. We’re so excited about it, and we think it will change someone’s life,” Lily Evans said.

The giveaway ends Aug. 23, and the winner will be randomly chosen after that. Each dollar spent on merchandise through their website counts as entries. For more details, visit TheHomerunProject.com. Updates on the renovation are also available on their Instagram page.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

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Seth Ratliff

UPDATE 6:40 p.m. PARK CITY, Utah (KIFI) — A jury found Kouri Richins guilty of murdering her husband on Monday evening. She was accused of poisoning her husband, Eric, with fentanyl in 2022.

The jury found the defendant guilty on all 5 counts, which included aggravated murder, attempted criminal homicide, two counts of fraudulent insurance claims, and forgery.

The verdict came in just after 6:30 p.m. after deliberation on Monday afternoon.

Richins is scheduled to be sentenced on May 13, 9:30 a.m.

PREVIOUS STORY:

PARK CITY, Utah (KIFI) — Closing arguments began Monday in the high-profile murder trial of Kouri Richins, the Utah mother accused of fatally poisoning her husband, Eric Richins, then writing a children’s book about coping with grief.

The case now moves to the jury for final deliberations.

The Prosecution – ‘The sound of a black-widow.’

In the state’s closing arguments, Summit County prosecutor Brad Bloodworth painted a picture of a woman driven by a desperate need for status and privilege. According to the state, Kouri’s motive was a mix of failing finances, control over her husband’s $4 million estate, and her affair with Robert Josh Grossman.

Monday, Bloodworth opened by detailing Kouri’s background, alleging she sought to distance herself from a troubled childhood by projecting a life of privilege and success. Bloodworth says Kouri achieved this goal when she met and married Eric Richens, a successful business owner. However, prosecutors argue that after three children and several years of marriage, Kouri wanted out but refused to leave the wealth behind.

“All the while, Kouri Richins was more interested in spending time with Josh Grossman than Eric,” said Bloodworth. “She dreams of living in the Midway mansion with Josh, running it as an event center, farming it, and raising kids. But she did not have the money to leave Eric.”

The state alleges that Kouri siphoned $250,000 from Eric’s accounts to fund her own failed business ventures, hoping to earn enough money to leave him. Witnesses testified that she asked for illicit drugs before ultimately getting hold of the fentanyl used in the murder. Furthermore, prosecutors revealed Kouri had already booked a future vacation with Grossman for a date she knew Eric would not live to see.

The state argues that Kouri spiked Eric’s Moscow Mule with five times the lethal limit of fentanyl. To close his argument, Bloodworth replayed the first minute of the 911 call Kouri made the morning Eric was found dead. Bloodworth stated that the recording was not the sound of a wife becoming a widow, but instead “the sound of a wife becoming a black widow.”

The Defense – “Kouri Richins’ world collapsed.”

Defense attorney Wendy Lewis countered by painting Kouri as a caring mother and attempting to discredit the prosecution’s star witness, the Richens’ former housekeeper Carmen Lauper.

Lewis opened her arguments by revisiting the night of March 3rd, 2022, when the couple was celebrating the closing of the Midway Mansion. She described a mother tending to a crying child before returning to her bedroom to find her world had collapsed.

“Something feels wrong,” said Lewis. “[Kouri] turns on the light, and when she looks at her husband, really looks at him, she realizes something is terribly wrong. In that moment, Kouri Richins’ world collapsed.”

She also attacked the credibility of Carmen Lauper, who claimed to have sold Kouri the drugs, saying that Lauper changed her story numerous times. Lauper was already in a drug court program as an alternative to incarceration on other charges when authorities arrested her in connection with the Richins case, according to the Associated Press.

“She’s not a truthful person,” argued Lewis, framing Lauper’s testimony as a “get out of jail free” in the face of a long prison sentence.

While acknowledging Kouri’s affair and how she’d deleted certain text messages, Lewis speculated her client may have deleted texts due to an affair or drug purchases.

The closing arguments capped three weeks of testimony where the defense rested its case without calling any witnesses. If convicted of the charge of aggravated murder alone, Kouri Richins faces a potential sentence of life in prison.

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Seth Ratliff

UPDATE:

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) — The Bannock County Coroner’s Office, in coordination with the Idaho State Police ISP, has released the identity of the man killed in a motorcycle accident on I-15 last week.

Coroner Torey Danner confirmed that Tyeson Iverson, 31, of Pocatello, died from his injuries at the scene.

The crash took place just after 2:50 PM near milepost 67 in Bannock County. According to ISP, Danner was riding a 2021 Indian Motorcycle Co. Chieftain motorcycle on northbound I-15 when he lost control, hit a guardrail, and came to rest on the right shoulder.

“My heart goes out to Tyeson’s family and friends, and I’m so very sorry for their loss,” said Coroner Torey Danner. 

The incident remains under investigation by the Idaho State Police.

ORIGINAL:

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) — A 31-year-old McCammon man is dead after his motorcycle collided with the guardrail of I-15 near Bannock County on Friday afternoon.

The crash took place just after 2:50 PM near milepost 67 in Bannock County. The man was riding a 2021 Indian Motorcycle Co. Chieftain motorcycle on northbound I-15 when he lost control, hit a guardrail, and came to rest on the right shoulder.

The Idaho State Police say the rider was not wearing a helmet and succumbed to his injuries at the scene.

The crash is under investigation by the Idaho State Police. 

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Seth Ratliff

BLACKFOOT, Idaho (KIFI) — For the second time, a jury has failed to reach a verdict in the case of Brandon Cook, a local contractor accused of defrauding homeowners of hundreds of thousands of dollars. The two-day trial ended Thursday, March 12, after a hung jury forced the judge to declare a mistrial.

Cook, operating through his company Re-Lived Construction, was charged in 2024 following a wave of complaints from former clients. The Trial centered specifically on a contract with homeowner Cody Hawker, whom Local News 8 interviewed in February 2024 before Cook was charged.

Hawker hired Cook in February 2023 to add an extention on his home. He says he paid him $33,000 upfront, only to be left with a massive, exposed hole in his backyard leading to his basement. A year later, when we interviewed him, Hawker had been forced to board up the excavation and run a pump 24/7 throughout the winter to prevent his home from flooding.

In Bonneville County, Jennifer Bennent claims to have hired Cook in 2023 and was left with gutted walls and severely compromised support beams. At least 10 other homeowners claim to have lost money to the contractor, and the local non-profit LIFE Inc. (Center for Independent Living) reportedly lost $200,000 to Cook’s business dealings.

Despite the evidence against Cook, after three hours of deliberations, the jury remained deadlocked. The future of the case remains uncertain, as the court has not yet set another jury trial. However, Jennifer Bennet and her fellow homeowners remain hopeful.

“We are going to beg [deputy prosecutor] Fred Wheeler to try one more time, but whether he declines or not, we are going to see if we can assist in the Bannock County case and also talk to Randy Neal about trying him in Bonneville,” said Jennifer Bennent. “Additionally, I think I want to appeal to the Attorney General and state legislature for law reform so that we can get a conviction. Because the intent piece is the hardest to prove.”

While another criminal trial is a possibility, Jennifer Bennett tells Local News 8 that, as Cook has declared bankruptcy, there is little chance she or anyone else will get their money back.

In our initial investigation, Bonneville County Prosecutor Randy Neal told Local News 8 that malicious parties or contractors would sometimes close their business or declare bankruptcy as a way of “avoiding civil liability.” In those cases, Neal said victims were left with few options.

The simplest answer is “don’t get in this situation in the first place.” For what we learned on how to vet a contractor, click HERE.

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Par Kermani

ROBERTS, Idaho (KIFI) — Painter Bob Ross once said, “You need the dark in order to show the light.” For 12-year-old Caellum Hebdon, who is battling brain cancer, that light is now coming in the form of encouraging news about his treatment.

The update comes days after Hebdon’s story first aired on Local News 8, highlighting the Idaho Falls middle schooler’s battle with brain cancer and his passion for drawing prehistoric creatures. 

Brain scans show encouraging results. Courtesy Hebdon family.

Caellum Hebdon and his family recently received results from a follow-up MRI that showed his chemotherapy and radiation treatments are working better than doctors expected.

“We just see minimal cancer in there now — just two little spots left,” said his mother, Kaylene Hebdon. “So much has cleared up. It’s just amazing.”

Hebdon was diagnosed in 2025 after he suffered a stroke. He was life-flighted to Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, where doctors discovered a bleeding tumor in his brain and performed emergency surgery to save his life. 

The stroke temporarily took away his ability to speak and move the right side of his body. This became an obstacle that Caellum had to overcome, because he was right-handed and art is his passion in life. 

When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, Hebdon had a quick answer. “Artist.”

Months of therapy helped him regain those abilities — including the ability to draw. His artwork has since earned him national attention as a finalist in the “Bob Ross presents: America’s Most Artistic Kid” competition.

Following the Local News 8 story, his family says the community support helped push Hebdon back into first place in his contest group.

“He’s back at number one in his group of about 60 people,” said father JayC Hebdon. “All the extra votes people have been giving have made a really big difference.”

Doctors say the radiation therapy Hebdon completed last fall will continue working over the next year as his body clears damaged cancer cells.

His family says the latest scan results have given them something they’ve been waiting months to feel.

“Before, we didn’t know what was going to happen,” said his mother, Kaylene Hebdon. “Now we know the treatment is working. There’s hope.”

To celebrate the encouraging news, the family took a spring break trip to California, visiting Legoland and SeaWorld before heading to Universal Studios.

Caellum, who remains quiet but appreciative of the support, offered a simple message to the community, helping him stay in the contest.

“Thanks for all the votes,” Caellum said.

If Bob Ross taught generations that painting can bring calm in difficult moments, Caellum is Eastern Idaho’s living proof. 

Voting for Hebdon in the national art competition remains open, with the top contestants advancing to the next round.

If you want to help Caellum bring home that national title and help his family with those medical bills, there are a few ways to get involved. The “America’s Most Artistic Kid” contest relies on community support. You can cast one free vote every 24 hours by heading to the contest website.

https://artistickid.org/2026/caellum-3f31

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CNN

Originally Published: 16 MAR 26 13:53 ET

By Brenna Donnelly

Click here for updates on this story

    SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (KSL) — A Utah mother is raising awareness about the heightened suicide risk among military veterans after losing her own son, Private First Class Bowden Hunter of Saratoga Springs.

Utah currently ranks second in the nation for veteran suicide (adjusted for population), with 78 deaths reported last year, according to the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs. Because the state has a smaller-than-average veteran population, the numbers are especially alarming to families like the Hunters.

The statistics have motivated Janaea Hunter to launch “Bowden’s Brigade,” a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating safe, community-centered spaces for veterans returning to civilian life.

Hunter said her message is especially important as more American military members are heading overseas. The United States is in the midst of its largest Middle East deployment since 2003, according to Center for Strategic and International Studies statistics. This week, military officials confirmed 5,000 more marines will deploy and join the 50,000 American soldiers already in the Middle East.

A memorial held Friday in Bluffdale honored Bowden with a “Battle Vest” ceremony — an event designed both to remember his life and to spotlight the ongoing crisis of veteran and emergency responder suicide. James Collins, president of “Heroes in the Sky,” explained the vest displays 19 names of service members who died by suicide, including seven from Utah.

It is one of several similar vests traveling the country thanks to “Heroes in the Sky.” The one dedicated in Bluffdale Friday will remain in Utah with “Bowden’s Brigade.”

“Veterans need to be around other veterans,” Hunter said. “There are so many organizations people don’t know about, and we want them to know there’s a place they can go when they get home — where they can still be with their veteran brothers and sisters. So they don’t have that sense of loss; it’s like moving to a different base.”

Bowden’s Brigade, together with Heroes in the Sky, hope to shift public understanding of post‑traumatic stress disorder, describing it not as a weakness but as a nervous system injury that results from trauma. Through awareness and increased access to resources, both groups aim to reduce veteran suicides in Utah.

“This just so happens to come right at a time where there’s international conflict that sits heavily on a lot of us combat veterans’ minds as we process what’s happening overseas right now,” Collins said. “Whether or not you deployed or not, the commitment of veterans or first responders service involves significant sacrifice.”

Hunter said she also hopes to see a behavior change in the community members the soldiers will return home to.

“My biggest concern, honestly, is the political stance that people have, and they hold it against the veterans,” she said. “They’re just doing what they’re told. They signed up because they love our country and they want to protect us. And whether you agree with the conflict or not, you shouldn’t hold it against them.”

The organization’s next major effort is a Salute to Service Gala on May 9 at Club Paddock in American Fork. The public is invited to attend and contribute to the group’s ongoing veteran meetups, which are designed to build connection and prevent isolation among Utah veterans

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

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News Team

FORT HALL, Idaho (KIFI) — A string of juvenile vandalism over the weekend has left a local training facility and several tribal vehicles damaged, according to the Fort Hall Police Department.

The incident began Sunday afternoon, March 15, when police were alerted to a break-in at the Fort Hall Fire Department’s training house on Shoshone Drive.

Later that evening, police received reports of a group attempting to scale the fence at the tribal fleet yard near the BIA irrigation office. Upon arrival, the officers caught four teenagers at the scene along with two tribal trucks with several windows and mirrors smashed in.

During the investigation, the teens admitted to both the damage to the Fire Department’s training house and the damaging of two tribal trucks. All four suspects were cited and subsequently released into the custody of their guardians.

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News Team

SALT LAKE, Utah (KIFI) — The Department of Homeland Security has officially purchased a massive warehouse on the west side of Salt Lake City, confirming months of speculation and marking the establishment of the first ICE detention center in the state of Utah.

The federal government purchased the nearly 25-acre property for $145 million. According to CNN, the deed of sale identifies the seller as the holding group R-REEF CPIF.

In a formal statement, ICE confirmed its intentions for the site, stating:

“These will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards. Sites will undergo community impact studies and a rigorous due diligence process to make sure there is no hardship on local utilities or infrastructure.”

Federal officials are leaning heavily into the economic benefits of the project. ICE projections suggest the facility’s construction and operation will generate nearly 10,000 local jobs, contribute $1.1 billion to the regional GDP, and bring in approximately $239 million in tax revenue.

However, local leaders remain staunchly opposed. The facility, an 833,000-square-foot warehouse located near the Salt Lake City International Airport, is rumored to house up to 7,500 beds, according to ABC4 in Utah.

Friday, Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson issued a sharp rebuke following the confirmation of the sale.

“I am deeply disturbed to learn that a 833,000-square-foot warehouse… has reportedly been purchased by the federal government to what would likely become a massive ICE detention facility,” Wilson said. “The idea of 7,500 detainees being held in the heart of our capital city is simply unacceptable and must never be realized.”

The purchase follows a wave of “Beehive State” protests that began earlier this year when rumors of a potential federal site first surfaced.

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Seth Ratliff

CHALLIS, Idaho (KIFI) — An unnamed person is recovering Monday after a weekend shooting in Challis sent them to the hospital.

According to the Custer County Sheriff’s Office, the shooting took place on Friday, March 13th, around 11 PM in the Hot Springs area of Challis. Sheriff’s Deputies rushed to the area where they found the victim suffering from a gunshot wound, but otherwise in stable condition.

Few details are available surrounding the shooting. But the Sheriff’s Office has confirmed that one person was taken into custody without incident.

Authorities secured the scene overnight and assured residents that there is no threat to the public.

No further details have been released at this time. Local News 8 will provide additional updates as new information becomes available.

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