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By Lydia Patrick
Life & Trends Reporter
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Elizabeth Smart was just 14 years old when she was abducted from her bedroom at knifepoint in June 2002.
Her younger sister, Mary Katherine, watched on in terror from their family home in Salt Lake City, Utah. Smart was held captive, subjected to repeated sexual abuse, and deprived of food.
In the early stages of the investigation, police questioned family members but found nothing suspicious. Authorities later focused on Richard Ricci, a former handyman who had worked in the Smart home. Ricci died in custody in August 2002 after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
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A crucial breakthrough came when Mary Katherine recalled a detail from the night of the kidnapping: the intruder had identified himself as “Emmanuel,” a street preacher who had previously visited their home. That man was later identified as Brian David Mitchell.
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Police were initially hesitant to release a composite sketch, fearing it might drive the suspect further into hiding.
The new documentary revisits the haunting case that gripped America and provides new insight into the horror of her capture, the family's relentless campaigning and Smart 's life more than two decades on.
Elizabeth Smart: Length of Kidnapping
Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee, transported Smart across several states, including California, where they held her in a remote encampment near San Diego—roughly 750 miles from her home in Utah.
The couple believed that constant movement would help them avoid detection.
On March 12, 2003, Smart—now 37—was found alive with Mitchell and Barzee in Sandy, Utah, just miles from where she had been taken.
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“I remember him saying the whole of Salt Lake is looking for you, but they will never find you because I have you,” Smart recalled in a clip from her documentary.
She was recognized by a police officer during a routine street encounter and immediately taken to safety.
The total length of her captivity was nine months.
Where Is Brian David Mitchell Now?
Smart's captor, now 72, was a self-proclaimed prophet who was born in Salt Lake City and reportedly had a deeply troubled childhood.
Mitchell became increasingly consumed by extremist religious beliefs. When he was arrested on March 12, 2003, he and Barzee were charged with kidnapping, burglary, and sexual assault.
Mitchell’s trial was repeatedly delayed after he was twice ruled mentally unfit to stand trial in Utah state court. He was later prosecuted federally and spent many years incarcerated at the United States Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana, a high-security facility.
On December 10, 2010, Mitchell was found guilty of interstate kidnapping and unlawful transportation of a minor.
In May 2011, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
At the time, Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlie Christensen said in a press release: "A sentence of life in prison for Brian David Mitchell is an appropriate, just, and long overdue result for this community, the Smart family, and most importantly, Elizabeth. Mitchell’s heinous criminal conduct and the evidence of his propensity to reoffend warrant nothing less.”
What Happened to Wanda Barzee?
Mitchell’s accomplice, Wanda Barzee, now 80, was sentenced in May 2010 to 15 years in federal prison.
In April 2016, she completed her federal sentence in Texas and was transferred to Draper Prison in Utah to serve her state sentence. However, her legal team successfully argued that her sentence had been miscalculated.
Barzee was released in September 2018, placed under five years of federal supervision, and required to register as a sex offender.
Is Elizabeth Smart Still Mormon?
Smart has said the trauma she endured led her to reevaluate her relationship with religion, growing up in a Mormon household.
“I have a lot of appreciation for many of the things that it taught me growing up,” she told Tudum, Netflix’s magazine. “But also, as an adult now, until I feel like I know for myself, I don’t believe anything anyone sells me anymore.”
Today, Smart dedicates her life to advocacy work for survivors through the Elizabeth Smart Foundation. She married in February 2012 and shares three children, Chloé, 10, James, 8, and Olivia, 6, with her husband, Matthew Gilmour, 35.
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“Sitting here 20-plus years later is surprising—I never would have imagined this for my life,” she told TODAY on January 21. “I never would have thought my life would go in this direction.”
“I also hope it brings comfort that there are happy endings,” she told Tudum. “And that even after terrible things happen, you can still have a wonderful life.”
The new documentary is streaming now on Netflix.
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