BOISE, ID – Nathanael Michael West, 23, of Kimberly, Idaho, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 36 months in federal prison for mailing threatening communications, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced today. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered West serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence. West pleaded guilty to the charge on July 13, 2020.
According to court records, West admitted that on August 22, 2019, he knowingly sent a threatening letter through the United States Postal Service to a Twin Falls County Deputy Prosecutor. This prosecutor had successfully prosecuted West for crimes he previously committed. In profane and graphic terms, West wrote that he was going to get out of prison and kill the prosecutor and her family. West also threatened to kill a witness from a prior prosecution.
According to court records, after the prosecutor received the letter, law enforcement officers interviewed West. During the interview, West admitted to sending the letter. West sent the letter from an Idaho Department of Correction facility where he is currently housed for other crimes. The 36-month sentence imposed for mailing threatening communications will begin after West has served his existing state sentence.