Idaho Lawmaker John Shirts Appointed U.S. Attorney for District of Idaho
State Representative John Shirts of Weiser has been appointed as Idaho’s next U.S. attorney for the District of Idaho, stepping into the top-ranking federal law enforcement position following the retirement of former U.S. Attorney Bart Davis, according to a U.S. Department of Justice press release.
Private Swearing-In Ceremony Sets Effective Date
U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche appointed Shirts to the federal post, with the appointment taking effect on Sunday. U.S. Chief District Judge Amanda K. Brailsford administered the oath of office to Shirts during a private ceremony, according to the Department of Justice release.
“I am honored to serve as Idaho’s next U.S. Attorney,” Shirts said in the DOJ release. “Our office will remain focused on upholding the rule of law and protecting the rights of citizens by prosecuting terrorism, drug trafficking, violent crime, human trafficking, illegal immigration offenses, and fraud.”
Prosecutorial Reach Across Forty-Four Counties
As the primary federal law enforcement official in the state, Shirts holds prosecutorial responsibility spanning Idaho’s 44 counties. That jurisdiction covers more than 83,000 square miles and serves a population of nearly 1.5 million residents.
He manages three staffed offices located in Boise, Coeur d’Alene, and Pocatello. The operations involve 65 employees, which includes 33 attorneys handling cases related to public corruption, child exploitation, firearms, narcotics, immigration, and terrorism, alongside defending civil cases and collecting debts owed to the United States.
Shirts Remains on the November General Election Ballot
Shirts represents Legislative District 9 and serves as the vice chairman of the House’s Agricultural Affairs Committee. During the May primary election, he won against a Republican opponent with 75% of the vote and is running unopposed in the November 3 general election.
The Department of Justice press release did not address whether Shirts has resigned from his seat in the Idaho House of Representatives. However, a spokesperson from the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office confirmed that the legal deadline to remove his name from the upcoming general election ballot has already passed.
Shirts Served as a Lawyer and Air Force Officer
A fifth-generation Idahoan, Shirts grew up on his family’s ranch in Weiser, where his great-great-grandfather homesteaded in Washington County in the 1880s. After graduating from Weiser High School and the University of Idaho, he earned his law degree from the University of Colorado Law School.
His legal career includes clerking for Idaho District Court Judge Jonathan P. Brody in Rupert, followed by serving as an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Idaho in Boise and Pocatello from 2018 to 2024. He also accepted a commission as a U.S. Air Force JAG officer, advising the 51st Fighter Wing in Korea at Osan Air Base and prosecuting sexual assault cases worldwide within the Air Force’s Special Victims Unit. He maintains service as a prosecutor in the U.S. Air Force Reserve and is married to high school teacher Mercedes Shirts.