Inset: Micah Smith and his wife (GoFundMe). Background: The Broads Fork Trail trailhead in Salt Lake County, Utah (Google Maps).
A father of three in Utah is behind bars after intentionally leading his three children on a perilous and arduous hike through death-defying conditions last month, Beehive State law enforcement say.
Micah Smith, 31, stands accused of three counts each of child torture and aggravated child abuse, according to the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office.
The underlying incident occurred in early October at Big Cottonwood Canyon — a deep gorge in the Wasatch Mountain Range located roughly 12 miles southeast of Salt Lake City.
There, several trails are available for hikers of all experience levels, according to hiking guide website AllTrails. But, law enforcement officials claim, Smith took his three young children — ages 2, 4, and 8 — on the Broads Fork Trail, which is a trail rated "hard" by the hiking community, and an estimation echoed in a criminal information obtained by Law&Crime.
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"What seemed like an innocent hike with his three children quickly turned into a nightmare when the defendant chose to summit a mountain over the safety of the kids," the charging document reads. "The defendant refused to turn around when their mom told him to turn around and get the children home. He also refused to turn around when [his daughter] said to him that she was scared and that they should go. During the 24-hour ordeal, the victims expressed that they were cold, tired, and wanted to go home. The defendant, who is supposed to be the protector of his children, was ill-prepared and extremely selfish."
On Oct. 11, the Smith family left home for what the defendant variously told his daughter would be either a "9-mile" or "9-hour" hike, but "wasn't sure which," according to the charging document.
In preparation for the hike, the father purchased his children new socks and shoes and brought along supplies including "jerky, cans of tuna, five waters, pretzels, cliff bars, candy, and a Gatorade," Smith said in an interview he gave after receiving his Miranda rights, according to the information.
Almost immediately, however, things took a turn for the worse, authorities say.
Smith's daughter told law enforcement the snacks were eaten "at the beginning of the hike" and she was tired — shortly after their 10 a.m. arrival at the trailhead. The girl went on to say the quartet "climbed about two miles from the top" and had to "climb rocks" and "grab onto bushes."
Then, near the top of the mountain, the girl saw a storm amassing and suggested leaving — an allegedly unreceptive request.
"[H]e shook his head 'no' and said, 'This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing,'" the charging document recounts.
As the little girl pleaded with her father to leave again and again, he told her: "[Y]ou shall not pass," according to the information.
And then the storm came in.
By 6 p.m., the mist on the mountaintop turned to fog, the fog turned to rain, and the rain turned to snow and hail, according to various accounts of the evening contained in the charging document.
As the storm progressed, the daughter said she was "worried about living," and Smith replied they "were okay," authorities say.
Hours passed as the storm raged and eventually the family decided to try and make its way back down the mountainside.
Smith estimates they got about "600 feet down" before seeking shelter for the night at around 8 p.m., according to law enforcement.
From the 8-year-old girl's account, at length:
[The daughter] described that it was a "really hard night" and she was "freezing cold." She described that she had to "keep [her 4-year-old brother] warm" and SMITH had to "keep [her 2-year-old brother] warm." [The daughter] described that their teeth were chattering and their clothes were wet. [The daughter] stated that one of her brothers had hypothermia, and she ran to her brother with hypothermia and "hugged him tight to try and make him a little warmer," and she "had to breathe into his mouth" and "push on his chest."
During the initial descent, the 2-year-old fell, hit his head, and "appeared dazed" and later stopped breathing as he became "unconscious" and "unresponsive," Smith allegedly admitted.
The older boy apparently did not fare much better.
He became "very, very cold" and would "not warm up" over the course of the night, Smith allegedly said, and eventually "had difficulty breathing." The 4-year-old repeatedly required CPR — from his father, then from his sister — overnight as Smith finally left his children in the early morning hours, authorities allege.
"Search and Rescue (SAR) team members encountered Smith on the trail and noted that Smith was behaving oddly and did not appear to be concerned about the children," the information reads. "Smith also told SAR team members that one of his children was dead."
In fact, all of the children were still alive — one just barely.
When the rescue team made its way to the children via helicopter, the 4-year-old "was mostly exposed, unconscious, and 'appeared lifeless,'" according to the charging document. The boy lacked a pulse and, en route to the hospital, required intubation and "25 minutes of CPR." At the hospital, he required multiple rounds of epinephrine, CPR, and "suffered a stroke, which required a portion of his skull to be removed and an external ventricular drain to be placed."
A review of Smith's phone by investigators showed his wife repeatedly texting him about the safety of the children — with the defendant seemingly admitting "everyone is starting to fail" and complaining: "It's tough with three children and no second parent," according to the charging document.
Investigators say they also found a video on the defendant's phone in which Smith's daughter, pointing out the fast-approaching nature of the clouds asked: "Are we going to freeze to death, daddy?"