The arrest of Utah father Micah Smith has prompted widespread shock as investigators outline a series of choices that turned a family mountain outing into a life-threatening ordeal for three young children. Once briefly praised as a courageous parent who brought his missing children through a night on a mountain during a violent storm, Smith now faces serious charges of aggravated child abuse and child torture.
The details emerging from charging documents describe not a tragic accident but a sequence of decisions that authorities say placed the children in grave danger, ultimately leaving two of them unconscious in freezing conditions and requiring extensive lifesaving interventions.
The case has raised questions about safety, parental responsibility, the line between adventure and recklessness, and the troubling behavior that prosecutors argue preceded the October incident on Broads Fork Trail in Big Cottonwood Canyon. As officials recount the events, the situation reveals a deeply complex narrative involving physical peril, emotional distress, and a father whose judgment appeared increasingly unstable in the weeks leading up to the hike.
A Strenuous Trail and Worsening Conditions
Broads Fork Trail, though relatively short at around five miles round-trip, involves a steep elevation gain and exposure to unpredictable mountain weather. According to investigators, Micah Smith embarked on the hike with his three children—ages 8, 4, and 2—despite deteriorating weather conditions and the children repeatedly expressing that they were cold, tired, and frightened. Charging documents state that Smith continued to ascend, prioritizing his goal of reaching the summit even as the storm intensified.
Authorities report that the children were wearing light clothing unsuitable for the dropping temperatures, a fact that would later have critical consequences when rescuers located them. In the course of the hike, Micah Smith recorded video of the children, including a moment in which his daughter, distressed and shivering, asked him, “Are we going to freeze to death, daddy?” Investigators say he pressed forward, dismissing the children’s pleas to turn back.
As conditions worsened, the trail became increasingly treacherous, and the group was ultimately found sheltering behind a boulder, using only a few sticks to block the wind. By that point they were about 600 feet from the summit—well above a safe elevation for young children in a storm. Rescue teams who located the family reported that two of the children, the four-year-old and the two-year-old, were unconscious and not breathing when found. The older child had collapsed on top of the youngest, their bodies dangerously cold after prolonged exposure.
A Utah father has been arrested for torturing and abusing his three children following a canyon hike. 31-year-old Micah Smith was arrested on Tuesday, over a month after he took his three children on a trek through the Broads Fork Trail in Big Cottonwood Canyon. The children were pic.twitter.com/uGRdv9cZD7
— N' Cuffs (@NCuffs1) November 26, 2025
Micah Smith performed CPR before rescuers arrived, but first responders still had to continue lifesaving measures, with the four-year-old requiring 25 minutes of CPR before stabilization. The youngest child also needed emergency care. Both were transported to the hospital in critical condition, and the four-year-old later suffered a stroke that necessitated part of his skull being removed due to swelling. Medical staff documented an alarming body temperature of just 62.6 degrees Fahrenheit upon arrival, indicating a severe and prolonged hypothermic state.
When rescuers encountered Micah Smith, they observed behavior they described as unusual and concerning. Reports indicate that he did not appear outwardly alarmed about the children’s condition and demonstrated a lack of appropriate urgency given their deteriorating state. That response, paired with the circumstances of the hike, formed part of the foundation for the charges brought against him.
Disturbing Details From the Investigation
As investigators reviewed the incident, a clearer portrait of Micah Smith’s decision-making emerged. Authorities allege that he knowingly placed the children in a dangerous situation, continuing a steep and hazardous climb despite clear risks and repeated requests from the children to turn back. The daughter later told investigators that she had begged her father several times to descend as the storm worsened, yet he refused each time. At one point, she recalled Smith telling her, “You shall not pass,” blocking her from retreating down the trail. She also said her father spoke of the hike as a “once-in-a-lifetime” experience and insisted they move ahead.
Investigators also found evidence that Micah Smith attempted to prepare the children for the worsening situation in deeply inappropriate ways. One particularly disturbing detail noted in the charging documents was that Smith taught his daughter how to perform CPR on her younger siblings while they remained on the mountain in freezing temperatures. Officials allege that he even left the children alone at one point while he tried to head down the trail by himself, though he eventually returned.
Inconsistencies in Micah Smith’s explanations further raised concerns. For example, the daughter reported that he told them the hike was either nine miles long or nine hours, though the actual trail is significantly shorter. Prosecutors argue that the children’s exhaustion and distress were evident long before conditions became fatal, yet Smith remained fixated on reaching the summit.
Compounding the evidence from the events on the mountain were details from Micah Smith’s recent history. A month before the incident, police encountered him in a separate situation in which he was found with two firearms and an axe after expressing suicidal thoughts and a desire to climb a mountain. Though he denied intending to harm himself at that time, the episode was cited in charging documents as part of a concerning behavioral pattern. Prosecutors wrote that his actions in the weeks leading up to the Broads Fork hike suggested that his mental state was “clearly spiraling” and that he posed a risk to himself and his children.
Micah Smith also faced unrelated accusations shortly after the hiking incident. On November 10, he was reported to have trespassed at Primary Children’s Hospital, where his critically injured son was being treated. Hospital staff alleged that he interfered with medical care and tampered with equipment, resulting in another police intervention. He was later arrested again in a domestic violence case, further intensifying concerns about escalating behavior.
Initially, after the rescue, Micah Smith had been portrayed by some as a heroic father who kept his children alive through a terrible storm. A GoFundMe page was created to support the family during the hospitalization period, portraying Smith as a devoted parent who had fought through the night to protect his children. That fundraiser has since been deleted, and authorities have stated that early praise was based on incomplete information that did not yet reflect the full scope of the investigation.
Legal Charges and Ongoing Concerns
Following a thorough review of witness statements, video evidence, and rescue reports, Micah Smith was arrested and charged with aggravated child abuse and child torture. Prosecutors allege that his conduct demonstrated a clear disregard for the children’s safety, resulting in extreme suffering and life-altering injuries. The indictment points to his persistence in climbing despite worsening weather, the children’s pleas, and readily observable danger signs. His refusal to turn back, prosecutors argued, directly contributed to the hypothermic conditions that left two of the children unconscious and one facing long-term medical challenges.
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Micah Smith is being held in the Salt Lake County Jail, where he remains on bond according to available records. The charges against him reflect both the immediate danger the children faced on the mountain and the broader pattern of instability documented through previous police interactions. Prosecutors described him as posing an ongoing danger to himself and to the victims, emphasizing that the events of the hike were part of a larger trajectory of erratic and alarming behavior.
The children’s recovery—especially the four-year-old who suffered a stroke—remains a significant concern. Medical professionals have indicated that the long-term impact of severe hypothermia and neurological trauma can be extensive, and the child’s condition will require ongoing monitoring and treatment. The two-year-old, while stabilized, also experienced life-threatening exposure and will be followed for potential complications.
Authorities have not publicly disclosed the custodial arrangements for the children following Micah Smith’s arrest, but standard protocol suggests they are under medical supervision and likely in the care of family members or state protective services. The daughter’s cooperation with investigators was a critical part of the case, as her firsthand account provided detailed insight into the unfolding events and her father’s behavior on the mountain.
As the legal proceedings progress, the case has prompted renewed discussions about the responsibilities of parents to evaluate risk when undertaking outdoor activities with young children, particularly in challenging environments. The Broads Fork Trail, while manageable for adults with proper gear and preparation, requires careful consideration when attempted with young hikers, especially in remote conditions and unpredictable weather. Authorities emphasize that the danger here was not inherent to the trail but to the decisions made in defiance of clear warnings, both environmental and emotional, from the children themselves.
Smith’s case serves as a stark reminder of the potential consequences when judgment falters in high-risk situations involving vulnerable individuals. The allegations against him depict a cascade of poor decisions against a backdrop of escalating personal instability. While the full legal process will determine his culpability, the details released thus far outline a profoundly troubling series of events that brought three children into danger none of them could have understood or prevented.
The coming months will likely reveal more as investigators continue to analyze the sequence of events and the factors contributing to Smith’s mental and emotional state at the time of the hike. For now, the focus remains on the children’s recovery and the legal accountability of the father whose actions prompted one of Utah’s most distressing rescue and criminal cases in recent memory.
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