SALT LAKE CITY (Court TV) — A judge ruled Monday that a man accused of torturing his children — nearly killing one — can have contact with the victims.
Micah Smith appears in court on Sept. 28, 2026. (Court TV)
Micah Smith, 32, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of child torture and three counts of child abuse after an incident in which he took his three children out on a trail on Oct. 12, 2025.
Deputies from the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office were alerted that a group of hikers — identified as Smith and his children, ages 8, 4 and 2 — was overdue. A search team went out and found the group on the trail, but noted that Smith “was behaving oddly and did not appear to be concerned about the children. Smith also told [rescuers] that one of his children was dead,” prosecutors wrote in Smith’s indictment.
First responders said that the children were “not wearing much clothing,” and that the 4-year-old “was mostly exposed, unconscious and ‘appeared lifeless.'” While en route to the hospital, the 4-year-old was intubated and given CPR for 25 minutes before arriving at the hospital; once there, his temperature was only 62.6 degrees. While in the hospital, the child suffered a stroke, requiring doctors to remove a portion of his skull.
In interviews with investigators, the 8-year-old child told police that she and her siblings were given snacks on a hike their father had said would be either 9 miles or nine hours, but she couldn’t remember which. While the group was out, a storm moved in, and the 8-year-old told investigators that “she was getting scared,” but her father told her, “You shall not pass.” She said she was “worried about not living” and said she had to keep her 4-year-old brother warm while Smith warmed the 2-year-old.
Smith allegedly told investigators that he decided to take his children on a hike and that they “made good time” until the weather turned. When they tried to hike down, Smith said the 2-year-old fell and hit his head and “appeared dazed,” and that the group was forced to take shelter under a large overhang. Smith allegedly admitted that he was unfamiliar with the trail and did not check the trail reports or weather before heading out; he also said the children were numb from the cold and that the 4-year-old had difficulty breathing during the night.
In their motion for pretrial detention, prosecutors said that before taking his children out on the hike, Smith had expressed suicidal ideation. They also wrote that days after the incident, on Nov. 10, 2025, Smith was removed from the hospital after allegedly “interfering” with his 4-year-old’s care and “tampering with the equipment.”
After Smith was charged in December 2025, Commissioner Todd Olsen, acting as a judge, issued an order prohibiting the defendant from having any contact with his children, finding a “significant safety risk.” But that changed on Monday, after Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills granted a request from Smith’s defense to allow him to speak to his children. Under the new order, the guardian ad litem appointed to represent the children’s interests must supervise the contact; Smith is also not permitted to discuss the case with his kids.
Hruby-Mills scheduled Smith’s next hearing for Nov. 16, 2026.
