Law&Crime Sidebar - Utah Dad Ripped Apart for Ditching Kids on Hike from Hell

Starting point is 00:00:00 Wonderry Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondry Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Mr. Ross, what is the state's position on a request for a pretrial supervised release? That's a hard no, Your Honor. Utah father, Micah Smith, allegedly forced his three young children on a freezing nine-mile mountain hike, leaving two fighting for their lives. And now, for the first time since the charges were filed, he faced a judge. to decide could he go free or is he too dangerous to be released we have got an inside look at

Starting point is 00:00:36 that high-stakes-first hearing and we're going to break it all down for you right now welcome to sidebar presented by law and crime i'm jesse weber this is a case that we had to provide you an update on when it came in because it just broke our hearts it broke our hearts when you really think about what these young children reportedly went through what started with a Utah father, a family hike, a seemingly great adventure. It ended with three children fighting for their lives in a freezing mountain storm. We told you about Micah Smith, charged with six first-degree felonies, three counts each of child torture and aggravated child abuse

Starting point is 00:01:16 after allegedly taking his three young children on an extreme nine-mile mountain hike rated as difficult and hazardous for even experienced adults. The alleged details were harrowing, especially, by the way, his daughter's desperate question on video, asking, are we going to freeze to death, Daddy? His four-year-old son found with no pulse. It's a body temperature of 62 degrees. The prosecution called Smith's alleged actions ill-prepared and extremely selfish, arguing that he ignored every warning and plea to turn back.

Starting point is 00:01:49 Now, why are we talking about this again? Well, for the first time since that shocking information was released, that's the charging document in the state, Micah Smith has appeared before a judge, and this hearing was a critical first step where the court would decide a fundamental question. Should he wait for trial in jail or could he be released, right? Question of bail bond. Now, we have the footage from inside that courtroom where the arguments were made, and we're going to get to that because the prosecutor was asked directly about the possibility of letting Smith out. Here's a sampling of what he said. Mr. Ross, what is the state's position on a request for a pretrial supervised release? And that's a hard no, Your Honor.

Starting point is 00:02:27 And we were there for the judge's decision, and we are going to take you inside that crucial first hearing. But first, we've got to rewind, get everyone up to speed on exactly how this case unfolded, from the first steps on the trail to the shocking charges. Story starts in Utah on the fall on Friday, October 11th, 31-year-old father, Micah Smith, decided to take his three young children, his eight-year-old daughter, four-year-old son, two-year-old son, all on a hike. in and of itself, maybe not unusual. The problem was the hike that he chose was. He apparently picked the Broads Fork Trail in Big Cottonwood Canyon. This is a challenging steep hike with rugged terrain. It's not recommended for beginners or children.

Starting point is 00:03:07 They left around 9 a.m. Smith later admitted that he didn't check the weather. He was unfamiliar with the trail. Apparently bought snacks and socks and shoes, not survival gear. And as they climbed, the kids struggled. His daughter later told police that she was tired and scared. According to her, when clouds rolled in and she suggested turning back, her father shook his head and told her no. That's an allegation. The storm comes in, snow, hail, rain.

Starting point is 00:03:35 Smith was texting his wife, the children's mother telling her of the conditions, to which she responded that he needed to bring the kids home. Instead, apparently, they pressed on. Trap near the summit and freezing. condition, Smith later said that they tried to shelter under a rock, and he described just a horrific night. His two-year-old fell, hit his head, stopped breathing. His four-year-old became, quote, very, very cold, had difficulty breathing, too. Smith claimed that he had to perform CPR on both children repeatedly, and then came one of the most chilling allegations, that Smith reportedly taught his eight-year-old daughter how to do CPR and then, quote, gave

Starting point is 00:04:21 her instructions to do CPR on her brother while he was gone. Yeah, that he allegedly left, allegedly left his three children suffering, freezing children, alone on the mountain, and went down the trail by himself. Next morning, October 12th, they were reported missing. Search and rescue found Smith on the trail. They noted he behaved oddly. We'll talk about that. Helicopter crew found the children.

Starting point is 00:04:44 The four-year-old was mostly exposed, unconscious, appeared lifeless with no pulse. The two-year-old was underneath him. It's a terrible situation. Thankfully, they all survived. The four-year-old's condition was dire, though. En route to the hospital, he was pulseless, requiring 25 minutes of CPR. His body temperature was 62.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

Starting point is 00:05:05 Suffered a stroke. Required a portion of his skull removed, was placed on life support. Now, to be clear, this turned out to be, according to authorities, not just a case of bad parenting or bad judgment. They allege that this was a crime, that this turned into a criminal investigation. and the evidence investigators gathered was damning. For example, on Smith's phone, they apparently found a video. And in it, you can seemingly hear his daughter's voice, seemingly filled with fear,

Starting point is 00:05:32 asking, are we going to freeze to death, daddy? Smith's apparent response, we're almost to the top. Real quick, before we move on to this, I got to tell you a big update from today's sponsor, Hello Fresh. They are America's number one meal kit known for easy home cooking, recipes and ingredients, delivered right to your door, but this fall, they're serving up even more to love. Why? Hello Fresh's menu literally doubled with 100 options to pick from each week. They've added new fall dishes, seasonal produce, triple their seafood options, so they are tastier than ever.

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Starting point is 00:06:49 six first-degree felonies, three counts of child torture, three counts of aggravated child abuse. As you are aware, our office filed a charge of multiple charges against one Mika Smith, multiple counts of child torture, as well as multiple counts of aggravated child abuse. The search and rescue teams were contacted, and it pertained to the defendant with three children, the ages of two, four, and eight years of age. They encounter children in different stages of harm, including two of the younger children who had fallen down and taken some head trauma,

Starting point is 00:07:33 including one who had stopped breathing. This is not an easy hike. This is one that even as trained professionals, they suffered injury trying to respond to it. The other part that was really critical to us, was not only that the children were afraid, but as was indicated by the older child that she had to try to do CPR to try to save her brother

Starting point is 00:07:58 and to also to continue to go through that experience where she communicated fear and concern and they were told to march on. This is about the emotional and psychological harm that can be caused. Now, an arrest warrant was issued with no bail. The prosecution's motion called Smith, Still prepared, extremely selfish, alleging he chose to summit a mountain over the safety of the kids.

Starting point is 00:08:23 They also pointed to prior alarming behavior, including a mental health incident with weapons a month before, and that Smith was later trespassed from the hospital for allegedly tampering with his son's equipment, bizarre accusations, to say the least. We'll get to that too. But that brings us to the new development. So for the first time, since that day on the mountain, Micah Smith faced a judge. And this initial hearing had one job, decide if he would be released or stay in jail. Now, we were inside that courtroom for the virtual hearing. Take a listen.

Starting point is 00:08:51 Here, Your Honor. I was wondering if you might consider a pre-release. Let's see. Mr. Ross, what is the state's position on a request for a pretrial supervised release? That's a hard no, Your Honor. I haven't had an opportunity to bring the victim to weigh in on this. And I direct the court to the declaration of probable cause. There's a significant safety risk.

Starting point is 00:09:16 and a no bail warrant is absolutely appropriate. Okay. Mr. Smith, I did have a chance to read through the charging document before the hearing today. I read it when I was first filed and then I reminded myself of its contents this morning. There is substantial evidence to support the charges in this case, Mr. Smith, and I do find by a clear and convincing standard that you would be a danger to the alleged victims if you were released today. Now, that's not a permanent decision. Mr. Smith, it's a temporary one and it can be reviewed.

Starting point is 00:09:46 as soon as your next hearing in front of Judge Ruby Mills. But, sir, you will remain in custody until that detention hearing and until Judge Ruby Mills decides to release you. Your court date with her for that detention hearing will be December 8th at 9 a.m. So that's next Monday, Mr. Smith. That gives you a limited window of time in which to talk to your attorney. So my strong suggestion for you is that you reach out to them starting tomorrow afternoon, get a hold of the lawyer who's been assigned to your case so they can go through.

Starting point is 00:10:16 through the facts of the case with you and answer your questions. Okay. Mr. Smith, do you have any questions about anything we've talked about here today, but before you do that, I will caution you do not tell me anything about the facts of the case, what did or did not happen on the day in question. Yes, Your Honor. Is there anything that I can do to help show that I'm not a danger or threat? Okay. Well, Mr. Smith, that's an excellent discussion for you to have with your lawyer.

Starting point is 00:10:45 At this stage of the proceedings, there's not anything further for us to decide. I've made my decisions in the case today. But like I said, you will have the chance to review those decisions in front of Judge Ruby Mills, and your lawyer can help you do that. So keep in contact with them. Make sure you follow their advice and give them all the information they need. Okay. Okay.

Starting point is 00:11:07 Then in that case, Mr. Smith, you're good to step back. I wish you good luck. Thank you, Your Honor. You're welcome, sir. So what evidence was that compelling that it led a judge to immediately deem this father a danger to his own children and that he couldn't be let out right now? What had investigators uncovered after the rescue that resulted in those felony charges? Let's go back and follow the investigation as it's laid out in court documents step by step. Okay, we have obtained the declaration of probable cause in this case, the detective's sworn statement of the facts.

Starting point is 00:11:36 It builds the timeline of that day, primarily from two sources, the account of the eight-year-old daughter, as EAS, and the statements of the defendant, Micah Smith, themselves. It's their words that form the core of this narrative. I'm going to start with the foundation. So the document establishes that on October 11th, Smith took his three young children, ES, 2 years old, EZS, 4 years old, and EAS, 8 years old, on the Broads Fork Trail. Hike investigators later noted was, quote, nearly nine miles, rated hard, and not recommended for beginner hikers or children.

Starting point is 00:12:12 Now let's hear from the primary child witness, the eight-year-old daughter, EAS. Her interview provides the emotional core of the state's timeline. And by the way, while you can always question any witness's credibility and recollection of events, the thing to think about here, the apparent injuries, the state of these children, the condition of these children, the video I mentioned before, doesn't it necessarily corroborate what she's about to say? According to the declaration, quote, EAS reported that on the day of the hike, they got snacks.

Starting point is 00:12:42 She said Smith told her it was going to be a nine mile hike and a nine hour hike, but wasn't sure which. EAS said near the top, the cloud started to come in and she suggested to Smith that they should go. But he shook his head, no, and said, this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. The document continues with her account. EAS said she again expressed to Smith that they should really go and said that she was getting scared. EAS said Smith told her, you shall not pass, and then the storm came in really quickly and described that it was snowing, hailing, and raining. She said she was worried about not living, but Smith told her that they were okay.

Starting point is 00:13:20 Now, this establishes the first critical element, right? Expressed fear, a direct plea to turn back, which was refused, and why that is important, if these allegations are true, the aggravated child abuse charges require that Smith intentionally or knowingly inflicted serious physical injury. on his kids. The same thing with child torture, intentionally or knowingly. So we're going to get that a little bit. But the declaration then details the horrific night from her perspective. She described it as a, quote, really hard night that she was freezing cold. She said her teeth were chattering. Her clothes were wet. And crucially, she states, quote, EAS stated that one of her brothers

Starting point is 00:13:58 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. And then there's this devastating line. EAS said Smith taught her CPR and how to push on EZS's chest. Can you imagine that? So from the child's perspective, we have allegations of fear dismiss, survival conditions, being instructed to perform medical intervention on her sibling. And then you layer in Micah Smith's own reported account to police, okay, which is documented across multiple pages. His version confirms the lack of preparation and the severity of the crisis, but also contains seemingly shocking admissions. First, on planning, he allegedly admitted, quote, he did not check the trail

Starting point is 00:14:44 reports or the weather prior to heading out for the hike. He called the hike spontaneous and not well planned. He described reaching near the summit around 6 p.m. as the weather turned. He said they tried to descend but only made it, quote, 600 feet down before seeking shelter around 8 p.m. He claimed he built a makeshift shelter, removed the children's wet, clothes and tried to keep them warm. Then his account of the medical emergencies begins. He said his two-year-old ES fell and hit his head, quote, appeared dazed, and later in the shelter became, quote, unconscious and stopped breathing. Smith said he performed CPR. He then described his four-year-old EasyS becoming very, very cold, was not warming up, had difficulty breathing.

Starting point is 00:15:25 His description is graphic. Quote, Smith said he could hear EZS's heartbeat and perform CPR doing chest compressions and rescue breaths. Smith said that EZS had fluid in his lungs and it was coming out of his nose and foam was coming out of his mouth. Smith estimated that he did CPR on EZS for, quote, a large portion of the night about every five minutes. And this brings us to the single most critical admission or alleged admission from Smith's own mouth, a quote that forms the centerpiece of the alleged abandonment. The declaration states, quote, Smith reported he also taught EAS how to do CPR and gave her instructions to do CPR on EZ. while he was gone. And Smith said that he then left the three children and went down the

Starting point is 00:16:07 mountain. So to be clear on the scene, okay, to be clear on this, he allegedly left a two-year-old who had been unconscious, a four-year-old in respiratory distress, foaming at the mouth, a eight-year-old girl, he just apparently instructed to continue chest compressions, and he walks away. Now, the declaration then shifts to the objective evidence from the rescuers and medical professionals, which corroborates the severity or seemingly does. When search and rescue first found Smith on the trail, they, quote, noted that Smith was behaving oddly and did not appear to be concerned about the children. Then this apparent jarring statement, quote, Smith also told SAR team members that one of his children was dead. Now, when the helicopter team located the children, here's what they saw is quoted.

Starting point is 00:16:49 They noted that the children were not wearing much clothing, stating that ES was under EZS, and EZS was mostly exposed, unconscious, and appeared lifeless. Deputy Francho attempted to find a pulse on EZS and detected no pulse. And the medical records are awful for EZS. In route, pulseless CPR for approximately 25 minutes intubated. Upon arrival, core body temperature was 17 degrees Celsius, 62.5 degrees Fahrenheit. Later, quote, suffered a stroke which required a portion of his skull to be removed and an external ventricular drain to be placed. Now, finally, the declaration introduces the digital evidence.

Starting point is 00:17:32 This is big because it seemingly seals the timeline and allegedly confirmed the daughter's account of the fear that she expressed. So from a search of Smith's phone, a video from the hike apparently shows EAS asking, are we going to freeze to death daddy? And Smith apparently responding, we're almost to the top. By the way, digital evidence, the text messages with his wife, SS. So this apparently provides a real-time log of her escalating warnings. Things like, you better leave it's going to get dark. Child endangerment, not cool, get them home, please that according to the evidence and according to authorities went unheated.

Starting point is 00:18:11 I mean, by the way, he even allegedly texted this, quote, yes, EZS is exhausted. We're almost to the very top, but everyone is starting to fail and it's starting to rain. I'm getting tired of carrying E.S. It's tough with three children and no second parent. Now I want to move from the case to the information, the charging document here, where the state translates those harrowing facts into specific, severe criminal charges, okay? The document charges Micah Smith with six felonies here, okay? They are paired, one count of child torture and one count of aggravated child abuse for each of his three children. So let's break down what those charges legally mean.

Starting point is 00:18:50 First, count one child torture regarding the eight-year-old. daughter EAS. The charging language here is critical because it alleges that on or about October 11 through the 12th, Smith, quote, did intentionally or knowingly inflict upon a child a serious injury that was inflicted in an exceptionally cool or exceptionally depraved manner that caused the child to experience extreme physical or psychological pain or anguish? Or there's a second option, B, a serious injury or more than one serious injury as part of a course of conduct or over a prolonged period of time. Let's isolate. this, okay, intentionally or knowingly. This goes beyond negligence, okay? This is deliberate. That's what

Starting point is 00:19:30 they're saying, deliberately knowing what you're doing here. Exceptionally cruel or exceptionally depraved manner. That speaks to the method. Now, the prosecution will most likely argue that forcing a terrified child to continue a hike into a dangerous storm, dismissing her pleas, making her witness and participate in her siblings' medical crisis meets that legal standard. extreme psychological pain or anguish this directly ties to her stated fear all the trauma of that night course of conduct over a prolonged period so this could frame the entire ordeal not a single moment although i'm sure defense attorneys could say you know it's not a prolonged period over days or weeks that's what the statute meant there's some argument there i don't know if that's going to be winning

Starting point is 00:20:12 count two for eAS aggravated child abuse it alleges that smith quote intentionally or knowingly looks upon a child's serious physical injury. Now, this count likely covers allegedly deliberately putting his daughter into this environment where she would suffer, hypothermia, exhaustion, the condition she endured. And if you look at counts three and four for the four-year-old son, EZ, the language is identical. Count three, child torture, count four, aggravated child abuse. The serious injury, though, it's not just psychological. It's the physical reality of a body temperature of 62 degrees, the stroke, the skull removal,

Starting point is 00:20:46 The prolonged period of time arguably includes the hours of alleged CPR suffering in the shelter, counts five and six for the two-year-old. Yes, mirror this again, child torture, aggravated child abuse. But this all brings us to the critical moment that triggered our update. The motion for pretrial detention. This is the prosecution's argument for why Micah Smith should be held without bail. And this motion is the direct link between the paper case and the hard no that we heard in the courtroom. So the motion opens with a powerful summarizing hook that sets the tone.

Starting point is 00:21:17 Quote, 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. It then distills the core of failures from the probable cause statement. The defendant refused to turn around when their mom told them to turn around and get the children home. He also refused to turn around when EAS said to him that she was scared and that they should go. The defendant, who is supposed to be the protector of his children, was ill-prepared and extremely selfish. But then the motion goes further. So to demonstrate that this wasn't an isolated lapse in judgment but part of a clearly spiraling pattern,

Starting point is 00:21:56 prosecutors introduced two explosive pieces of contextual evidence that is not directly part of the hike, but are important here. First, they reveal a prior incident, quote, approximately one month before this incident, the defendant expressed ideations and was located by the, Cottonwood Heights Police Department with multiple firearms attempting to locate a mountain. He reported to the officer that he was going through a really hard time and was going to hike up to the top of the mountain. He had apparently two firearms and axe in his vehicle at the time. Now, the second thing, they allege, is disturbing conduct after the rescue while his four-year-old son was fighting for his life in the hospital. Quote, on November 10th,

Starting point is 00:22:34 2025, the defendant was trespassed from primary children's hospital for interfering with EZS's care and tampering with the equipment. Wild development. Wild accusation. Now, the motion weaves this all together into its central argument for no bail. The defendant's behavior is clearly spiraling, and he's not only a danger to himself, but he is a danger to these victims. The defendant's intentional and selfish act left his children in grave danger, with one of them dying and being revived multiple times and will never fully recover.

Starting point is 00:23:05 So this was the full package presented to the court, the horrific events of the hike, charged as intentional torture, abuse, framed by prior mental health and weapons concerns, and followed by alleged interference with life-saving care. And that is what brings us back to this story today, the motion for pretrial detention, the request for a no bail warrant led directly to the hearing that we covered at the top of this. The judge had this entire narrative, the facts, the charges, the alarming pattern on the bench when Micah Smith asked for release. So Micah Smith now remains in the Salt Lake County Jail.

Starting point is 00:23:36 He's held without bond. He's scheduled to be back in court on Monday, December 8th, and we will, of course, be following every development. That's all we have for you right now here on Sidebar, everybody. Thank you so much for joining us. And as always, please subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, wherever you should get your podcast. You can follow me on X or Instagram. I'm Jesse Weber. I'll speak to you next time.

Starting point is 00:24:07 binge all episodes of this long crime series, ad free right now on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.

Law&Crime Sidebar - Utah Dad Ripped Apart for Ditching Kids on Hike from Hell

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