The Most Harrowing Revelations From Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart

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Elizabeth Smart was found safe on March 12, 2003, nine months after being kidnapped from her home. Her rescue was widely considered a miracle, as she had been taken in the middle of the night by Brian David Mitchell.

I still get chills just thinking about it. In the new Netflix doc, Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart, her dad, Ed Smart, described the moment he saw her again, and it wrecked me. He said his mind was racing, and he just blurted out, ‘Elizabeth, is it really you?’ Then, she just said, ‘Yes, Dad,’ and he held her. He actually held his miracle daughter in his arms. I mean, can you imagine? It’s just… everything.

Most people know Elizabeth’s story – she’s been openly sharing her experience for years to help other survivors of sexual assault. Her attacker, Mitchell, is currently in prison for life after being convicted of kidnapping and sexually exploiting a minor by taking them across state lines.

The documentary tells a disturbing story, piecing together accounts from Elizabeth, Ed, Elizabeth’s uncles Dave and Tom Smart, her sister Mary Katherine (the only person to see the kidnapping happen when she was nine years old), and the police involved. Kidnapped serves as a frightening reminder of how easily things could have turned out differently.

When I returned home after being rescued, I didn’t want to discuss what had happened with anyone. Later, during the trial, I felt disconnected while answering questions – like my words lacked context. I realized that if my story was going to be public anyway, I wanted to control how it was told, give it meaning, and ensure it served a purpose. That desire for ownership over my experience ultimately led me to share it.

Beyond Elizabeth’s own story, Kidnapped explores the difficult time following her abduction. It details the suspicion cast on her family, why investigators began to lose hope, and the disagreements between the Smarts and the police that led Elizabeth’s parents to start their own search.

Interestingly, the documentary doesn’t include Elizabeth’s mother, Lois Smart, who divorced Ed in 2019.

Elizabeth shared in the film that her mom was incredibly supportive in helping her come to terms with everything, but now her mom feels it’s time to move on.

It’s easy to see why things were so difficult, given the nine months her daughter was missing – a time filled with stress and frustration, where people were quick to blame others even as they hoped for a rescue. Here are the most important details from the Netflix documentary, Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart.

When Elizabeth Smart disappeared from her home in Salt Lake City on June 5, 2002, investigators initially had to consider whether the situation involved someone within her family.

Captain Cory Lyman, a key investigator in the Elizabeth Smart case, explained in the 2026 Netflix documentary Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart that the family seemed perfectly normal. However, he noted that statistically, the person responsible for these kinds of crimes is often a parent or another family member, so investigators immediately focused their attention on them.

He remembered that investigators did detailed interviews and took 12 computers from the large Smart family.

Lyman realized the alarm hadn’t been set and there were no signs anyone had used the kitchen window – no scuff marks from a chair, for example. He began to suspect the break-in wasn’t what it seemed. It was possible someone had cut the screen after entering through another way, making it look like the window was the point of entry.

Investigators found no concerning information on the family’s computers or in their email accounts. Elizabeth’s father, Ed Smart, also passed a lie detector test, and eventually, all family members were ruled out as suspects.

Ed described the experience of his daughter going missing as ‘horrendous’ and added that being considered a suspect was utterly overwhelming.

I remember Ed talking about the moment his wife, Lois Smart – they have six kids together – told him the police suspected him of hiding something. He said he was so overwhelmed, he started shaking and just couldn’t stop. It was a really difficult time for him, and you could just feel the stress he was under.

Ed remembered his father threatening to have him institutionalized if he didn’t get control of himself. His father then took him to the hospital and had him admitted to the psychiatric ward, where Ed spent the entire night crying.

Early in the investigation, Ed’s brother, Tom Smart, often spoke to the press and urged the police to take action. He became a prominent public voice for the case.

Following reports of unclear polygraph results and observations of Tom’s nervous behavior – his brother, Dave Smart, noted he seemed “really jittery” in his account in Kidnapped – people began to wonder if Tom was concealing information.

Tom admitted in the Netflix documentary that he didn’t make a good impression during a previous interview. He was referring to a moment where he appeared to sympathize with the person who took Elizabeth, saying things like “we understand everyone has issues” and calling the case “a wonderful story” because of Elizabeth being “a beautiful little angelic girl.”

He believes anyone watching the interview would likely conclude Tom Smart is unhinged and possibly guilty. Afterward, his wife told him he had ruined their family’s reputation.

At the time, Tom explained, he was exhausted and didn’t care how he sounded.

Honestly, all that mattered to him was finding Elizabeth. He made it really clear we weren’t waiting for anyone’s permission – why would we? He didn’t care about getting ‘cleared’ by anyone else, because in his mind, we already had the green light. It was all about Elizabeth.

Investigators discovered a woman’s remains, and Lyman had to inform Ed and Lois that they might be those of Elizabeth.

Ed recalled the phone call, saying, “The girl’s body was so badly burned, she was unidentifiable.” He explained he’d tried to distance himself emotionally until the identification was certain.

Although the deceased was sadly another victim, Lyman explained that it was difficult to witness the Smarts’ grief.

Ed remembered feeling relieved, but he couldn’t stop worrying, constantly wondering about her safety and what might be happening.

When Elizabeth was kidnapped, her sister, Mary Katherine Smart, was the only one who saw what happened. Because of this, authorities interviewed the 9-year-old Mary Katherine many times.

Honestly, it breaks my heart, but they kept her totally isolated. They were so worried about anything affecting her memories, anything that could change them, that they shut her off from everything happening with the family. It was like they were trying to preserve her in a bubble, even though everything around them was falling apart. It just… it feels so sad, knowing she had no idea what was going on.

In the Netflix documentary, Mary Katherine described feeling isolated and desperate to understand what was happening, but people kept her at a distance. She struggled to recall who had taken Elizabeth, recognizing the voice but not the source. Eager to assist in any way possible, she even underwent hypnosis. However, she felt immense pressure from all sides, which was overwhelming for a nine-year-old.

As someone who keeps a close eye on home projects and the people involved, I learned that Richard Ricci, a contractor who’d previously worked on the Smart home, was taken into custody on June 14th, 2002, due to a violation of his parole. It wasn’t related to the work he did at the house, but it was definitely something that caught my attention.

When police discovered Lois’ jewelry with Ricci, he was arrested for burglary and immediately became the main suspect in Elizabeth’s disappearance.

I’ve watched the police interview, and it’s just… unsettling. Ricci claimed he had absolutely no idea what happened to her, but then he completely clammed up when they asked about the mileage on his Jeep. He put hundreds of miles on it the very day she disappeared, and he wouldn’t explain where he’d been. It feels like he’s hiding something big, even if he says he isn’t.

After seeing the man on the news, Mary Katherine insisted that the person who had been in their bedroom wasn’t Ricci.

On July 24, 2002, someone tried to break into the home of Elizabeth’s aunt and uncle. Police discovered a hole in a window screen and two chairs positioned beneath the bedroom window of their 18-year-old daughter.

Despite the lack of major breakthroughs, police believed they were nearing a solution in the case. According to the documentary, investigators, feeling increasingly pressured for answers, offered Ricci a deal: immunity from prosecution in exchange for information leading to Elizabeth’s whereabouts, as long as he hadn’t been involved in her disappearance or death. Unfortunately, Ricci suffered a brain aneurysm while in jail and passed away on August 27, 2002.

“I felt awful,” Lyman said. “Our main suspect passed away, taking all the information he had with him. It left us stuck with a really tough case. As a police officer, you try to stay detached, but I was starting to feel the weight of it.”

After her sister was kidnapped, Mary Katherine was afraid of going to sleep and would always wait for her father to come and tuck her in at night.

In the documentary, Mary Katherine recalled that four months after her abduction, she was looking through a copy of the Guinness World Records when a name suddenly came to her. She couldn’t explain why, but it just appeared in her thoughts at that moment.

She suddenly recalled that the man, Brian David Mitchell, sometimes went by the name Emmanuel. He’d been doing odd jobs around town – including work for the Smart family – while presenting himself as a wandering prophet.

Mitchell kidnapped Elizabeth while threatening her with a knife and took her to a mountain campsite where he and his wife, Wanda Barzee, were living.

For days, hundreds of people actively searched the area around Elizabeth’s home, hoping to find her. Eventually, the search team nearly succeeded.

In Kidnapped, Elizabeth recalls hearing someone call her name, though it was very quiet. Emmanuel then brought her into the tent and, brandishing a knife, threatened to kill anyone who entered the camp, blaming her if that happened.

She said she only heard her name called a couple of times before the sound disappeared completely.

While being held captive, Elizabeth reported that Mitchell repeatedly sexually assaulted and psychologically abused her.

She described the rape as horrifying, but also wrestled with the idea that listening to her attacker might have been even more damaging. He constantly talked about his own importance and justified his actions – which would normally be considered wrong – by claiming God had ordered him to do them, insisting he didn’t want to, but felt compelled to obey a divine command.

In September 2002, Mitchell and Barzee took Elizabeth to Lakeside, California, and discussed continuing their journey to cities like New York or Boston.

Elizabeth remembered feeling lost and afraid they’d never be found if they moved to another large city. She felt it was crucial to share her thoughts, so she told Mitchell she believed they should return to Salt Lake City. She encouraged him to pray about it, confident that God would confirm if it was the right decision and if Mitchell was indeed a prophet.

Elizabeth remembered him saying, ‘It seems God is finally helping you.’ He continued, ‘Now that you understand you’re insignificant, we’re meant to go back to Salt Lake City.’

The Smart family believed Mary Katherine’s memory of Emmanuel was a major step forward, but the police weren’t convinced.

In the Netflix documentary, retired Salt Lake City Police Detective Cordon Parks explained that investigators questioned the witness’s memory. Her identification relied on recognizing a voice, which counts as evidence, but isn’t considered very strong evidence.

Lyman agreed, but he admitted he had doubts. He explained that Emmanuel hadn’t been on their radar – he wasn’t among the people they were looking into at the time.

Police advised the Smarts against releasing a sketch of Emmanuel. Lyman explained that their thinking was, making the sketch public might frighten the suspect off. They already had a name and a drawing, so they wanted to avoid tipping him off.

The Smarts responded with their own press conference, revealing what they knew. This ultimately led to a crucial clue – Mitchell’s true identity – thanks to a tip from his family, who also shared additional photos to help with the search.

I couldn’t believe it when I found out! Mitchell, Elizabeth, and Barzee actually arrived in Sandy, Utah on March 12th, 2003, and people immediately recognized him. It was like something out of a movie, honestly. I was so excited to hear they were finally here, and then to find out people spotted them right away… it was incredible!

Lyman expressed relief that her family hadn’t followed the police’s advice about releasing a sketch.

Police Sergeant Victor Quezada of Sandy City received a report about Mitchell’s location and then spotted him with two women. One of the women appeared much younger than the other.

“I was hesitant to believe it would turn out to be true,” he said in the doc.

Elizabeth explained that the police officer repeatedly asked if she wanted to go home, but her kidnappers were nearby. She was scared and felt she had to choose the safest possible response.

Quezada explained that he eventually asked the girl, “Please, for the good of our country and your family, just tell me you’re Elizabeth.” She responded with, “Thou sayeth,” a phrase he’d never encountered before. He took it as a confirmation, saying to himself, “I’ll consider that a yes.”

Elizabeth recalled being silent when she finally saw her dad again at the police station.

I hesitated to answer because I was scared I’d done something wrong. Then I saw my dad, and I knew he’d be there to protect me and wouldn’t let anything happen to me.

As a lifestyle expert, I’ve followed this case closely. Mitchell initially claimed he wasn’t responsible for his actions due to mental illness, but after a trial, a jury ultimately found him guilty of a truly horrific crime – kidnapping a child and taking them across state lines for sexual abuse. It’s a heartbreaking situation, and the verdict reflects the severity of his actions.

The man received a life sentence, meaning he will never be released from prison. Now 72 years old, he was moved from a high-security prison in Terre Haute to a medium-security facility in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, in October 2025. This transfer happened after he was attacked multiple times while incarcerated, as reported by Indiana Public Media.

In 2009, Barzee, then 79 years old, admitted to kidnapping a child and illegally taking them across state lines in federal court. She also pleaded guilty to a charge of planning a more serious kidnapping in state court. As a result, she received a 15-year prison sentence, with the sentences for each case being served at the same time.

In court, she pleaded guilty and apologized to Elizabeth and her family, saying, “I am deeply sorry for the hurt I’ve caused, and I hope you can eventually forgive me.”

Despite objections from the Smart family, Barzee was released in September 2018.

In May 2025, she was arrested in Utah after visiting public parks and charged with violating restrictions for registered sex offenders. According to People magazine, she was released under court supervision and required to report to the Salt Lake City Police each week.

Elizabeth is a skilled harpist who studied music at Brigham Young University, where she received her bachelor’s degree.

She met her future husband, Matthew Gilmour, while serving a mission for her church in Paris. He’s originally from Scotland. They were married in Hawaii on February 18, 2012, and now have three children together.

In her book, Kidnapped, Elizabeth explained that as time went on, she started talking openly about her experience. She believed sharing her story could make a positive difference in the world.

Beyond public speaking, she’s also written several books and made films detailing her own kidnapping and the experiences of other victims.

I definitely have ups and downs, she admitted. But I’ve learned to be kinder to myself. I used to be really critical, constantly thinking about what I should have done. Now, my inner voice is much more supportive – it tells me I can get through tough times, finish what I start, and that I’m capable of handling anything.

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2026-01-21 11:19