Skylar Meade sentenced to life in prison after violent escape from custody

31-year-old inmate Skylar Meade recently submitted a guilty plea for his charges stemming from a violent escape from custody at Saint Alphonsus in Boise on March 20, 2024.

Meade and his accomplice Nicholas Umphenour fled the scene after a brazen attack to free Meade from custody. They were arrested in Twin Falls on March 21, 2024.

On July 19, Meade was in the Ada County Courthouse for sentencing after he pled guilty to possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession, introduction or removal of contraband, and persistent violator charges relating to the escape.

Meade was sentenced to life in prison with a fixed term of 30 years for the escape charges. He also received another 5 years for secondary charges, for a final fixed term of 35 years in prison for Meade.

At the time of the escape, Meade was serving a 20-year sentence for shooting at a Twin Falls sheriff's sergeant during a high-speed chase in 2017.

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Meade is expected to appear in court soon after he and Umphenour were both formally indicted in Nez Perce County for their suspected involvement in the murder of 83-year-old James L Mauney of Juliaetta, Idaho following the escape. The case remains under investigation, and so does the case of the murder of 72-year-old Gerald "Don" Henderson near Orofino which officers believe may involve Meade and Umphenour.