Thursday 12:30 p.m.
Hatch C
”Understanding the Idaho Commission on Pardons & Parole”

Christine Starr began serving as the Executive Director of the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole in October 2024. Just prior to her gubernatorial appointment to the Commission, she served for almost five years as Deputy Director/Chief of Staff for the Idaho Department of Correction.

For many years Christine has dedicated herself to improving public safety for Idahoans and providing transparency and efficiency in government. Christine’s public safety career started during law school while working in the Legal Aid Clinic in Latah County. During that time, she also worked in the Court Assistance Office and helped to create a small claims mediation clinic in Nez Perce County.

Upon graduation and passing the Idaho Bar, she served as the Chief Deputy Public Defender in Elmore County. Later, she shifted gears and began working as a prosecutor in Canyon County, where she helped with the start-up of the Family Justice Center. Christine eventually found her way to the Boise City Attorney’s Office, where she served as a prosecuting attorney, Public Safety Division Manager, and Civil Division Manager.

During her nearly 15 years at the City, she worked as a trial attorney, provided legal counsel and analysis to various leaders, and drafted ordinances, policies, rules, and statutes on a variety of topics. She helped to rewrite the City’s Public Records Manual and worked with a team to completely overhaul the City’s public records request process to provide more efficiency and transparency for requesters and employees.

Christine is a strong advocate of specialty courts and helped to start a DUI court in Ada County, where she served as the primary prosecutor for several years. Her experiences and the outcomes she observed in DUI, domestic violence, and mental health court solidified her belief in the value of alternative forms of justice and the importance of finding pathways to address the root causes of criminal behavior.

Christine earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Idaho and a Public Administration Master’s Degree from Boise State University. As a POST-certified instructor, she has spent years training and advising law enforcement officers throughout the state.

In her free time, she loves to be out on the lake, wakeboarding, surfing, and swimming with her family and friends.