‘Ready to snatch a life’: Man sentenced in Boise ambush that helped prisoner escape

The man who shot at Idaho Department of Correction officers while helping an inmate escape at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise was sentenced to life in prison Friday.

Nicholas Umphenour, 29, could be eligible for parole in 40 years, though. Fourth District Judge Nancy Baskin recommended that he receive educational programming, rehabilitation and mental health counseling while incarcerated.

“You are a persistent violator. You are a career criminal,” Baskin told Umphenour, who sat in a yellow jumpsuit with Ada County Jail on the back. “It’s up to you to take advantage of that treatment.”

Umphenour helped Skylar Meade escape in an ambush at Saint Al’s in March while Meade was there receiving treatment, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting. Both are members of the white supremacist prison gang called the Aryan Knights, according to authorities.

Umphenour pleaded guilty in September to three counts of assault or battery upon certain personnel, as well as unlawful possession of a firearm, escaping and use of a deadly weapon during a felony, court records showed.

The judge told Umphenour that she considered some mitigating factors, including that his childhood wasn’t good, he struggled with a substance abuse problem and he had mental health diagnoses.

Prosecutors sought to show Umphenour as someone with no remorse who had taken concrete steps to help Meade with the plan. They presented text messages in court showing that he bought clothes and a knife for Meade, as well as a water bottle and zip ties. In one message, Umphenour wrote to Meade, “I’m ready to snatch a life.”

In recorded jail calls played by the prosecution, Umphenour told his stepmother that Meade had his back and didn’t treat him badly, even when others did. But in two separate calls, Umphenour also joked about this case versus one in which he was convicted for the unlawful taking of game.

“I only got a year for poaching a moose and the moose died,” Umphenour said. “Then I shot two pigs and they didn’t die. So I’m thinking probation?”

Idaho Department of Correction Officer Daniel Lopez told the the court that while he viewed Meade as worthy of redemption, he viewed Umphenour as without remorse.

“Umphenour was already free and at home,” Lopez said. “He chose to come back and attempt to kill people.”

The defense said it was difficult to talk about the case because of other legal situations involving the defendant. Both Meade and Umphenour were indicted by a Nez Perce County grand jury in June in the death of 83-year-old James Mauney, according to previous reporting.

Attorney Brian Marx said Umphenour had taken responsibility by pleading guilty in the escape. He told the court that Umphenour had shown emotion when he learned that the officers he shot at were alive. He asked for Umphenour not to be sentenced more harshly than Meade, who received a life sentence, with parole eligibility after 35 years, for his crimes in the escape.

Ultimately, Baskin waived the fines associated with the case because she believed the restitution would be “significant.” However, a final restitution figure is not yet available because two people are still receiving treatment. A restitution status conference is now scheduled for Jan. 8, 2025.