A Utah father who was once hailed for shielding his three children during a harrowing night on a mountain hike is now facing criminal charges, including child abuse.
Micah Smith first drew attention in October when he and his three kids were caught in a storm while hiking in Utah’s Big Cottonwood Canyon, according to the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
Smith, his 8-year-old daughter, 4-year-old son and 2-year-old son were reported missing and were found and rescued the following day. Police said two of the children were hospitalized in critical condition, while Smith was in “fair condition” and the third child was listed as stable.
A now-removed GoFundMe campaign previously described Smith as having “bravely sacrificed himself” to protect his children.
He is currently charged with aggravated child abuse and one count of child torture, according to Salt Lake County jail records.
In charging documents cited by KSL, Fox 13 and ABC 4, authorities allege that Smith chose “to summit a mountain over the safety of the kids.”
“During the 24-hour ordeal, the victims expressed that they were cold, tired and wanted to go home,” investigators allege, per KSL. “The defendant, who is supposed to be the protector of his children, was ill-prepared and extremely selfish.”
When rescuers found the family, Smith was allegedly “behaving oddly and did not appear to be concerned about the children,” authorities claimed, according to Fox 13.
The outlets report that the 4-year-old boy remains hospitalized. After paramedics reached him, he required 25 minutes of CPR during transport to the hospital.
ABC 4 reports that when the 4-year-old arrived at the hospital, his body temperature was 62.6 degrees. He later suffered a stroke and required part of his skull to be removed.
According to Fox 13, the 8-year-old girl told authorities that her father had said they were going on a long hike, which ultimately led to a situation in which she was trying to perform CPR on her brother.
Police say a video from that day, recovered from Smith’s phone, shows the 8-year-old asking, “Are we going to freeze to death, daddy?,” according to all three outlets.
KSL reports that the trail they were on is rated as difficult and is not recommended for children or inexperienced hikers.
It is not yet clear whether Smith has entered a plea or obtained legal representation.
KSL and Fox 13 also report that about a month before the hike, Smith had an encounter with police in Cottonwood, Utah, during which he allegedly expressed suicidal thoughts.
