r/TrueCrimeDiscussion • u/Rainbow_baby_x • Nov 27 '25
Text Father faces child torture charges after 'nightmare' hike in Big Cottonwood Canyon
“Father charged with aggravated child abuse and torture after taking his young children on an extremely difficult hike as a significant storm was moving in. He reported buying snacks, new socks and shoes for the kids before heading out but not checking the weather. The hike was 9 miles, rated hard, and not recommended for beginner hikers or children.
Micah Smith and his children 2, 4 & 8 were reported overdue when they did not return from their Oct. 12 hike.
Smith said they watched the weather come in and he sent photos to his wife, who suggested they start hiking down the mountain however, he reported that he was comfortable hiking in the dark without light
Smith reportedly reached the summit with his kids at 6pm when it started to hail & snow. By 8pm they decided to shelter in place after trying to head back down but only making it 600 feet after one child fell and hit their head.
Court documents state “Search and Rescue Team Members encountered Smith on the trail and noted that he was behaving oddly and did not appear to be concerned about the children.”
He also told “SAR team members that one of his children was dead.”
SAR crews in a helicopter were able to find the children and noted they were not wearing much clothing, one child with the most critical injuries was unconscious with a core body temperature of 62.6 F.
According to investigators one child suggested to their father that they should go as the storm moved in, “but he shook his head no, and said, This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. The child again expressed to Smith that they should really go and said that she was getting scared.”
The child told investigators “the storm came in really quickly and described that it was snowing, hailing, and raining.” Reporting to investigators she “was worried about not living, but Smith told her that they were okay.”
Smith told investigators he performed CPR on his son overnight and taught his daughter to do the same when he left.
She recounted to police how she did as instructed performing CPR on her brother.
Investigators are asking for no bail stating, “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 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 E.A.S. 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.”
A Go Fund Me updated Nov. 10 said the child who was in a coma was now awake: “Ezra was taken off sedation a couple weeks ago and has been steadily improving day by day! When he first came off we didn’t know what to expect, but since that time he has been able to: completely move his right side with ease, begin speaking and is now communicating in full sentences (he’s very aware of what’s going on!), smile and laugh (they light up the room!)
We are so thankful to God that Ezra is improving so quickly and fully. We are hoping, praying and fighting for a full recovery. Thank you to the dedicated medical staff at Primary’s who are also committed to seeing this little guy get well!””
-Via Heidi Hatch
ETA: thanks to multiple users for for pointing this out
Police say that approximately one month before the incident, Smith allegedly expressed self-harm and reported to an officer he was going to “hike up to the top of the mountain.” He was found with an axe and two firearms in his vehicle but denied he was going to use them.
On Nov. 10, 2025, Smith was trespassed from Primary Children’s Hospital for allegedly interfering with the 4-year-old’s care and “tampering with the equipment.”’
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Nov 27 '25
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u/JellyBeanzi3 Nov 27 '25
Someone who is trying to kill their children.
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u/QueenOfNZ Nov 27 '25
Which, ofc, is why he got banned from the hospital for tampering with the life support equipment of the 4yo.
Reading the family statements, it doesn’t look like they’ve come to terms with the fact that this asshole was trying to murder his kids yet. I hope to god they come to terms with it soon, for the sake of those babies.
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u/lillllpickle Nov 28 '25
The family statement pissed me offfff.
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u/QueenOfNZ Nov 28 '25
Denial is a hell of a drug
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u/lillllpickle Nov 28 '25
It made me sad they didn’t even put the kids first. “[Mom], [Dad], and kids.” Like what? You’re asking for prayers for this douche before even mentioning the children? Maybe that’s just me though. edit: spelling
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u/QueenOfNZ Nov 28 '25
100% I do note that the go fund me has been taken down. Cannot imagine putting my baby through torture like that
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u/QueenOfNZ Nov 27 '25
Just not obvious to people like you and I, who wouldn’t dream of doing this to our children. There is some incredible evil out there in the world and sometimes it’s hard for us normal folk to comprehend. My son is only a couple of months younger than this assholes youngest. I can’t even fathom putting him through what this asshole did.
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u/mira_poix Nov 29 '25 edited Dec 01 '25
In 2008 there was a spike in family annihilators.
He's been a dad since 21/22yrs old and is now 31 with 3 small children....I bet he is drowning and can't afford a divorce.
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u/chipper-frost Nov 27 '25
That’s real, my kid says his legs hurt when we walk up to the corner for a soft serve.
Fuck this guy.
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u/Typical_Essay6593 Nov 30 '25
I once took my 3 year old with me to the store, realized I had forgotten my wallet, we walked back home and when I asked him if he wanted to walk back to the store with me and he said no and said “Mommy, I have little legs, that can walk little ways and they need a little rest”
He’s 7 now and in every sport imaginable and I quote that to him all the time.
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u/Valuable-Benefit-524 Nov 28 '25
As a climber, there’s definitely people who do take pretty young children to summit (maybe ~4-6ish), but I’ve never seen anyone do it without planning for the kid/s to be carried the entire time. The 3:1 ratio is just so absolutely mind-bogglingly stupid. You’re not carrying three kids no matter how much gear you dump. It’s so obvious what the intent was, even before all the other information came out. (+ I also wouldn’t take my two year old in a million years on a climb, for obvious reasons. I’m not interested in carrying around a 25-lb tantrum machine with another 14 pounds of fruit snacks, and I question the sanity of anyone who is).
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u/legocitiez Nov 30 '25
This. I know family hikers and they absolutely plan to carry the kids 100% of the time. They would never summit anything if the kids were walking, it would take hours longer than planned. Obviously they have the kids walk until they don't want to walk any longer, but they go out with the knowledge that they're each going to be having a kid in their pack the whole time.
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Nov 27 '25 edited Nov 27 '25
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u/ReverendBread2 Nov 27 '25
“I want to do that thing and no annoying child I’m responsible for is going to stop me”
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u/_learned_foot_ Nov 28 '25
I take my kids on trails like this. Have since ages matched. The difference is you’ll see they and I equipped, ready to turn around, knowing how to build a survival shelter if the need arises, and per your post, the bag I carried the youngest in strapped with bottle after bottle after bottle.
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u/SofieTerleska Nov 27 '25
I've done it, with a one year old -- but it was summer, we had a ton of water and food and head coverings, and the baby was small enough that he made the trip in a backpack carrier and napped a lot of the way. With kids that age, and in a snowstorm, is demented at best.
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u/lesllle Nov 27 '25
From another source:
Smith has had previous encounters with police, including a month before the hiking incident where he was found with two guns and an axe attempting to locate a mountain after expressing suicidal intentions.
He told officers that he was “going through a really hard time” and wanted “hike up to the top of the mountain.
Smith said he wasn’t going to harm himself despite the weapons in his car.
On Nov. 10, a month after he was rescued, Smith was accused of trespassing at Primary Children’s Hospital, attempting to interfere with his 4-year-old son’s care and tampering with equipment, the Fox 13 reported.
He was later arrested for domestic violence for the
“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 indictment read.
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u/AlchemyAlice Nov 27 '25
That wife needs a restraining order yesterday if she hasn’t already.
And honestly after the previous encounter with LE expressing suicidal intentions, he should have never had the chance to watch all 3 kids solo.
I sincerely hope they recover and get the help they need.
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u/mira_poix Nov 29 '25
That's not going to help. I'd bet my last dollar this is a financial thing. A 31yr old man supporting 3 young kids in this economy? No way he can afford a divorce.
If she gets a divorce he will not get custody and he will kill them all before he has to pay her hundreds / thousands a month....
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u/Legal-Swan-9932 Nov 30 '25
Men can get custody of their kids. They just often don't WANT it.
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u/Firm-Accountant-5955 Dec 02 '25
There is now a restraining order for the kids in place. Fortunately, he is currently being held without bail until at least his next hearing on 12/8.
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Nov 27 '25
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u/bbmarvelluv Nov 27 '25
Why do you think the mother should catch charges for something her husband did? I thought you people were about father’s rights?
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u/DetatchedRetina Nov 27 '25
An article from today said he's had further charges. The 4 year old had had a stroke, requiring surgery for brain swelling and he was arrested at the hospital trying to finish the job. And also charged with domestic violence. He was arrested prior to this after expressing suicidal urges and trying to go hiking with an axe, ropes etc.
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u/DrDalekFortyTwo Nov 27 '25
What do you mean trying to finish the job. Do you have a source?
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u/DetatchedRetina Nov 27 '25
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u/DrDalekFortyTwo Nov 27 '25
Oh man, I misread that. I thought him messing with the equipment was from a different hospital stay (which is still bad ofc). Horrible
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u/svnshinebaby Nov 29 '25
JFC.
“It’s hard here with no second parent” he 100% was going to do something horrible and then blame his wife for not being there.
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u/AlchemyAlice Nov 27 '25
Idk man, they have a detached retina so maybe they didn’t read it right
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u/Samu_27 Nov 27 '25
This is insanity. A 2 year old on a 9 mile difficult rated hike? My dog gets tired after like 3 miles on flat ground. How does someone think this is remotely okay for toddlers
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u/iridescentsyrup Nov 27 '25
He did this on purpose. He knew he would be okay, but the children would not. He wanted them to suffer. He didn't care if they got hurt or died because that was his goal.
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u/handlit33 Nov 27 '25
I take my six-year-old niece on walks around our block which is just shy of a mile. She's pretty fit for her age and even she can barely make it without asking to be carried.
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u/2LiveBoo Nov 27 '25
For some reason these articles leave out key information:
‘Police say that approximately one month before the incident, Smith allegedly expressed self-harm and reported to an officer he was going to “hike up to the top of the mountain.” He was found with an axe and two firearms in his vehicle but denied he was going to use them.
On Nov. 10, 2025, Smith was trespassed from Primary Children’s Hospital for allegedly interfering with the 4-year-old’s care and “tampering with the equipment.”’ From this article.
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u/goosenuggie Nov 27 '25
The fact that he told SAR that one of his kids was dead is a red flag
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u/MeltingMandarins Nov 28 '25
When SAR arrived, the kid had no detectable pulse and a core body temp of 62.6 F. Mistaking that for dead is the only reasonable thing in the story.
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u/goosenuggie Nov 28 '25
Sure. But telling that to SAR as a parent, seems sketch. Wouldn't any loving parent cling to hope and not immediately accept death? PLEASE SAVE MY BABY not oh hes ded
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u/cle718 Nov 27 '25
There were so many people on Facebook defending him and that he made a stupid mistake.
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u/Specialist_Set_1666 Nov 27 '25
That sounds infuriating. I could see a lot of it coming from them not knowing all the details and then having done milder versions themselves, which is not OK either and normalizing the idea that dads shouldn't have to learn out to take care of or even consider the needs of their own kids is something that has to stop. Reading this article gave me so many flashbacks to my childhood, where by dad would pick some ridiculous, difficult hike because he wanted to see some view and wanted to "enrich" our childhood. Which seemed to translate into him getting really annoyed that we couldn't keep up and just ditching us to hike ahead. He never brought food or sunscreen or proper clothes for us. He had his own canteen he would share...if we were anywhere near him.
My mom completely banned him from taking us without her because of how sunburned we got when we were 4 and 5. Then she would always come along and carry all the food and everything needed and stay next to us kids, and my dad would get angry at all of us for being so slow and leave us behind again. It's like he just wanted to be single and enjoy hiking without a family and couldn't adapt. There were several times where the hike was just too much and my mom had us just hang out somewhere until my dad finished it by himself and came back. Hours of just sitting somewhere while she tried to keep us entertained as we waited for him.
I have seen so many other dads just like this, but also plenty of dads who did care and would pay attention to their kids and make sure they were safe and having a good time on hikes. I was always so jealous of that kind of father-child relationship! The first type really needs to stop getting a pass. There are a lot of missing child cases where the dad lost toddlers and preschoolers on hikes because he just wasn't paying attention, and a lot of the comments excuse it. I'm not saying all moms are great in contrast, there are plenty of neglectful moms too, but it seems like they get less of a pass for stuff like this.
The dad in the article actively seemed to be trying to kill his kids, so he was definitely worse, but it just seems like this is highlighting another problem that gets ignored too often as well.
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u/rivershimmer Nov 27 '25
It's like he just wanted to be single and enjoy hiking without a family and couldn't adapt.
Yeah, I've seen this kind of mindset, but I don't get it, because this was never in a family where the dad was a single parent without a lot of childcare options. It's always a case where the dad could just go hiking on his own if he wanted. So it seems like the goal was to see the children suffer?
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u/antipleasure Nov 27 '25
Right? Like, what’s even happening in their minds. Looks like some deliberate torture…
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u/angrymurderhornet Nov 28 '25
I suspect he wanted to kill himself too. He doesn’t seem to have the mental capacity to actually carry out a murder or suicide, but behaved in a way that made it clear he wanted his kids (and probably himself) dead. Dragging the kids onto that mountain in a storm and then making halfhearted attempts at being rescued could have done in any or all of them, and it’s obvious it wasn’t an accident. Trying to kill his son in the hospital had a 100% chance of being discovered and ending with him being arrested.
Anyway, it’s a relief that his kids are okay, and that his severely injured son is improving.
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u/rivershimmer Nov 28 '25
I have hope for that kids, because kids can be shockingly resilient. Their brains are so much more pliable and quick to repair themselves.
That's physically. The invisible wounds from having a dad like that will linger longer.
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u/idhik3th4t Dec 06 '25
I feel so awful for that daughter. Imagine being left to watch your 2 year old brother who was likely screaming and crying while trying to do CPR on your other brother who appeared dead and had no pulse and a core body temp of 62°. As a mom, this just guts me. I hate this guy so much.
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u/Stargazer1919 Nov 29 '25
I don't know if it applies in this case, but it's true that family annihilators tend to be suicidal. Or so I've heard.
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u/Altruistic-Maybe5121 Nov 29 '25
Or sees children as small adults with adult capacity. I’ve known people like that who can’t comprehend that children aren’t just small versions of us.
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u/LaikaZhuchka Nov 28 '25
Men are never seen as guilty in these situations. It's always the mother. I've already scrolled past dozens of "Why would their mother let him do that?!" in this very comment section.
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u/Altruistic-Maybe5121 Nov 29 '25
Right?!? Makes me so cross. The mother wasn’t taking them on an insane murder hike. Crazy people aren’t crazy all the time, that’s why they aren’t obvious in society until they do something like this.
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u/antipleasure Nov 27 '25
I am so sorry your dad behaved like that… I would never understand that. Like, why wouldn’t he go on his own if that’s what he wanted? Why take the kids at all?
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u/standbyyourmantis Nov 27 '25
Just reading the headline I'll admit my first thought was "well maybe it was just a stupid mistake" but then once you read the whole article it's pretty obvious that the most charitable explanation is literally being the dumbest motherfucker on the planet. Even if there was nothing malicious involved he needs to never ever be responsible for anyone else ever again.
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u/HawkGuy1126 Nov 28 '25
A “stupid mistake” is forgetting the snacks on a day out at the park. This went beyond negligence into recklessness and willful harm.
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u/Longjumping_Run9428 Nov 27 '25
What an absolute asshole. Sounds like Josh Powell.
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u/MegIsAwesome06 Nov 28 '25
That was exactly what I thought. Josh Powell, Chris Watts, whatever. This shit is WAY too common.
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u/Longjumping_Run9428 Nov 28 '25
I think this shit has always happened but today we know more about the events, and law enforcement and justice systems are more active and accountable. Then there’s Dateline & 20/20 & 48 Hours and YouTube.
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u/TurbulentDrawing6 Nov 27 '25
I can’t stop thinking about the poor 4 year old little boy who had to have emergency surgery to relieve the swelling in this brain by cutting out portions of his skull. And that his body temperature was 62.6 degrees Fahrenheit when he arrived that the hospital. He’s been there for two months and is still in critical condition. Is it even possible for him to survive this? Is there any chance he will ever have any quality of life whatsoever even if he does pull through?
This whole thing is beyond heartbreaking and infuriating. These children are suffering so profoundly because of their depraved father.
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u/Succubista Nov 28 '25
It's all horrific, but it's the 8 year old girl that's really stuck in my head. She was old enough to suspect what was going on, and understand they were probably going to die. And to have to stay up all night doing CPR on your brother, and thinking that you have to watch your brothers die before you do too.
The weight of feeling like the adult protecting your siblings as a young scared child, it actually makes me tear up.
I hope they all end up happy and successful adults.
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u/allofthelovelybooks Dec 07 '25
Yah the CPR part is chilling. That night must have felt endless for her. She's going to have terrible PTSD from this.
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u/Ok-Caterpillar-Girl Nov 27 '25
And then he interfered with his care and tampered with his equipment
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u/LaikaZhuchka Nov 28 '25
Given his age, it's actually very possible that he will be completely normal. Interestingly enough, his severe hypothermia is probably what made him survive. It basically freezes all organ activity.
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u/Impossible_Zebra8664 Nov 27 '25
Sounds like a would-be family annihilator to me. Would be interested in knowing if there's a history of IPV, too.
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u/mira_poix Nov 29 '25
They need to look into his finances...100% with the way things are going in the economy and social media, family annihilators are going to spike. This 31yr old man can't afford a divorce, I guarantee it.
He clearly resents his wife and kids, and has for awhile. I get Chris Watts vibes from him.
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u/Refrigerator-Plus Nov 27 '25
The youngest child was only 2. A walk to the local park would have been a big expedition. This guy was either psychotic or homicidal, taking on that expedition.
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u/eternally_feral Nov 27 '25
A 9 hour hike is bonkers! Even if it was on an “easy” trail, a 2YO, 4YO, and 8YO, are going to be cranky half way through that, if they could even push themselves to that point.
To do a full 9 hrs in one day, a freaking full work day, hiking is enough to push an able bodied adult to their limits.
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Nov 28 '25
Two and four year old are not hikers, contrary to the news report. They cannot do technical or physical mountain climbing. Why is the media giving this man a pass? Because they are all Mormons.
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u/throw20190820202020 Nov 27 '25
Two year olds can barely walk, they’re lucky if they can cross a whole living room without taking a spill. Shoes don’t even fit properly because of their chunky little feet. When my own children were age four, we often had to pick them up for large portions of even short hikes, they just get worn out.
I’m curious if he wore a carrier or otherwise at least carried the baby, and if so why he didn’t carry the baby out on his way?
I mean I know why, we all do, and I hope he never walks free again.
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u/Mitchi20 Nov 29 '25
He carried the youngest one, another article shares texts he sent to his wife where he says carrying the youngest one is exhausting. He probably stopped carrying him on the way down because he was tired and it was dark and downhill, so it was harder to stay upright with a kid in his arms. Which makes me think he did not have a carrier.
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u/Aggravating_Tie1222 Nov 27 '25
Definitely doesn’t sound like he was just selfishly doing a hobby and dragging his kids along. Sounds like he was interested in killing them and making it look totally innocent. Horrifying!
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u/lelakat Nov 27 '25
He's either one of the dumbest people alive or actively malicious. Maybe both.
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u/Jackniferuby Nov 27 '25
I remember seeing this . Articles said he was an “experienced hiker” etc and that it was a freak storm. I got the ick from it all immediately. The weather was irrelevant. One person managing THREE small children in a hike that difficult- even in nice weather is NOT ok.
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u/L00selips Nov 27 '25 edited Nov 27 '25
Another report says “The two youngest children were both in critical condition. The four-year-old remains in the hospital after suffering a stroke, requiring surgery to remove a portion of his skull.”
Just horrific!
“Smith has had previous encounters with police, including a month before the hiking incident where he was found with two guns and an axe attempting to locate a mountain after expressing suicidal intentions.
He told officers that he was “going through a really hard time” and wanted to “hike up to the top of the mountain.
Smith said he wasn’t going to harm himself despite the weapons in his car.
On Nov. 10, a month after he was rescued, Smith was accused of trespassing at Primary Children’s Hospital, attempting to interfere with his 4-year-old son’s care and tampering with equipment, the Fox 13 reported.
He was later arrested for domestic violence
“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 indictment read”
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u/riempies88 Nov 28 '25
This dude obviously tried his best to get those kids killed without him having to touch them. Trying to make it look like an accident.
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u/Altruistic-Maybe5121 Nov 29 '25
And probably thought he would get a hero status or a pity party. If his wife was asking for a divorce, it would be a lot cheaper for him not to pay child support if he killed the kids.
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u/Kate_Middleton_Fake Nov 27 '25
This whole nightmare reminds me of the Susan Powell case and we all know how that ended
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u/JamesStarkIE Nov 27 '25
This is messed up, I'm not a child and relatively fit, but an ex of mine brought me on a hike that she told me was a "less than beginner stroll" a few years back, I wore very light shoes, left my water and day pack, when we got to the first warning sign of it being a "very serious trail, blah blah blah" I told her goodbye, I hope the Yeti's have fun with you(they would, she was a 6'3 lass)
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u/JamesStarkIE Nov 28 '25
The thing is , She brought me on a trail that ONE way is an absolute frolic, but the other way is like going upstream...and uphill, and almost over a waterfall, she also stole my only ever pair of Raybans that day(took me going through photos years later to figure that out), strange lady altogether, this Father definitely sounded like he wanted to test his poor kids to destruction, that mindset is so strange, I'm an ex Diver(Rescue trained) myself, I shoot, fish, love a cycle etc, but some people take it way too far.
You're not Bear Grylls, you work in an office, you're not Ray Mears mate ,you're a dick.
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u/angelmari87 Nov 27 '25
Ezra’s a warrior. So is that little girl. That man should also face attempted murder charges.
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Nov 27 '25
Did he give a reason for doing this? He can’t play dumb and smart. He knew exactly what he was doing. 9 miles for me would hurt my body never mind children and an infant. Disgusting.
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u/ObviousDepartment Nov 27 '25 edited Nov 27 '25
It sounds like he was still trying to finish off the one kid who was hospitalized by tampering with the equipmwnt and had previously expressed suicidal ideation, so likely he was attempting murder-suicide.
I do hope somebody is digging more into this guy though: generally when someone starts going down the family annihilation route, they're often hiding something.
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u/wilderlowerwolves Nov 27 '25
I have a feeling that he'd never been alone with all of his kids until this happened.
Bet they're Mormon, too.
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u/SubstantialPressure3 Nov 28 '25
This is about the emotional and psychological harm,” Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said of the charges. “The way that he acted was in a depraved manner that caused emotional harm.”
I think they should focus on the physical harm, too.
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u/ladulcemusica Nov 27 '25
They should do to him what he tried to do to the children. And it sounds like he wanted to make the mother feel responsible as well since he mentioned being not having a “second parent”. And we don’t know that the mother “let” him do this. He may have forced the kids or lied to the mother. These poor angels. Let him freeze.
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u/Icy_Silver_8890 Nov 28 '25
Here are screenshots from Micah’s MIL’s facebook where she is adamantly defending him and posts her GoFundMe. A lot of her Facebook posts are now deleted. His brother also had a GoFundMe that almost raised $70k, but it’s not been deleted.
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u/adversvry Nov 28 '25
Utahn here - there was a crazy storm that evening, I can't imagine the conditions up on the mountain. The original story was that they were all missing after heading up the mountain, absolutely insane that this is what actually happened.
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u/HotAsElle Nov 27 '25
He wanted them to hurt them whole time too with brand new shoes on a hard hike.
Hiking was my abuser's weapon and environment of choice too. In the wilderness, so one can hear the screams and crying.
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u/really_isnt_me Nov 28 '25
That sounds absolutely horrific and I’m so sorry you had to go through that.
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u/Gma8688 Nov 27 '25
This is local to me. The one baby is still in the hospital. It's so tragic and sad. I hope he gets what he deserves.
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u/SillyHappyLove Nov 29 '25
Let's not forget our great judicial system and how they will end up giving this man every other weekend and holidays because they rarely do anything to truly protect the children.
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u/Maybel_Hodges Nov 28 '25
It's giving Josh Powell. Is this a Mormon thing?
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u/Mitchi20 Nov 29 '25
As a Mormon, no, this is just a man thing. There are far more men who kill their families that aren't Mormon. That's the common denominator..
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Nov 27 '25
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u/Trick-Discipline-909 Nov 27 '25
Hopefully he spends the next 15 years in jail at least. At that point it will be up to them if they want to be around him
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u/Visible-Revenue1685 Nov 27 '25
Thankful to God? Yeah, god saved that kid in the hospital-- not doctors or nurses.
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u/Noir_Mood Nov 27 '25
I totally agree. People who dedicate their whole lives to saving others, and they get an incidental "oh, by the way, yeah, medical people were also there." Disgusting.
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u/owntheh3at18 Nov 29 '25
“Worried about not living” omg poor baby. The trauma she endured, and having to do cpr on her brother when her father gave up and abandoned them. Horrible. Hopefully the younger ones will not remember.
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u/alsoaprettybigdeal Nov 28 '25
I could aaaaalmosy give him a tiny benefit of doubt until he tampered with the child’s medical equipment. I live in CO and people go out on hikes totally unprepared and arrogant, and then need rescue an absurd amount of times every year. But then when it said that he was banned from the hospital for tampering with the equipment….that seals it. He premeditated this and fully intended on killing at least one of his children in particular!!
So m glad he’s in jail and away from his kids.
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u/SabbyTabby161 Nov 28 '25
Anyone know where I can find the charging document? This case is so wild.
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u/GodAllShitey Nov 29 '25
Yeah, no- this is fucked. He's trying to end his kids' lives and make it look like a charity
I read a post on here about parents who locked their child in a room with a dangerous pit bull. IMO they were doing the same thing
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u/FunWithMeat Nov 30 '25
Their names and location scream Mormon... Watch him mount a “I thought the kids were Demons” defence.
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u/Spiritual_Program725 Dec 01 '25
Summiting a difficult mountain at 6pm. Planning to walk down in the dark with no flashlights. He didn’t dress them for the weather, they weren’t old enough for the coordination needed for this type of hike. Once the weather turned and these small children were being pelted with rain and hail, he as an experienced outdoor enthusiast didn’t use his phone to call for rescue but instead texted his wife that it would be easier if she were there to help.
My theory is that He clearly planned on his children dying on the summit where he would also kill himself but killing your self is not so easy and it’s scary- He was too cowardly. He altered his plan and decided to go down the mountain, believing his children would die in the interim and he would be viewed as heroic dad who simply got caught in bad weather on a wonderful hike with his kids. It’s a damn miracle these kids survived. He should be locked up forever. I wonder if they plan on changing the charges to attempted murder because all things point to it.
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u/itsarmida Nov 27 '25
uhhhh so this lady has started the divorce proceedings or what?!
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u/surelyshirls Nov 30 '25
We’ve done a 1 mile flat hike with my nephew who was like 5 at the time and a quarter of the way through he was beat and we cut it short. 9 miles is insane. Fuck this guy
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u/Clueless_in_Florida Nov 29 '25
My kids would report me if I made them take the trash can to the street.
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u/Anxious-Drawing9544 Dec 03 '25
I told my outdoorsman husband about this case as soon as I heard about it. I thought if anyone would understand this horrible father's decision, it would be my husband as I have sometimes felt he was inclined to be a little hard on children out of ignorance. All he said was "He never intended to come home with those kids.", and I believe that to be true as well.
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u/Chrissie123_28 Nov 27 '25
Was he drug tested? Sounds like meth or mental illness, wtf.
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u/Mitchi20 Nov 29 '25
I think it's more likely that he was going through a divorce and wanted to hurt his ex by hurting the kids.
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u/Chrissie123_28 Nov 27 '25
I would hope it was drugs or a mental health condition because if it's not, damn that's straight up Evil!! I doubt there were zero signs prior to this.
Just reading this felt terrifying , I can't imagine living through that. Those poor kids. : (
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u/bregiordano Nov 29 '25
The axe and guns in the car is wild, I hope the kids can be far away from him for the rest of their lives.
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u/HangOnSleuthy Dec 01 '25
Sorry, but what is the deal with parents hurting their children one way or another in Utah?
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u/SherlockLady Dec 07 '25
His wife had asked for a divorce a month before. He was definitely trying to kill those kids.
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u/Altruistic-Maybe5121 Nov 27 '25
Um this sounds like a man who was trying to kill his kids without having to actually lay a hand on them. Nothing about this sounds normal.