Quick Facts About Elizabeth Smart: When Was She Kidnapped and How She Was Found

Elizabeth Smart's abduction and survival continue to resonate more than two decades on, as a new Netflix documentary revisits her kidnapping, rescue and remarkable transformation from victim to advocate.

Smart was kidnapped when she was 14 years old in 2002 and was freed nine months later. In more than 20 years, she has turned her suffering into a task to help the victims and make children safe.

Abduction and the rescue of Smart

Brian David Mitchell kidnapped Elizabeth on June 5, 2002, out of her home in Salt Lake City. Her 9-year-old sister, Mary Katherine, faked sleep during the incident.

Mitchell, with Wanda Barzee, then drove Elizabeth to a distant camp in the mountains. It was there that she was sexually abused in her captivity that took about nine months. The kidnapping attracted national interest, with the police officers conducting a massive search through thousands of volunteers.

The step forward was when Mary Katherine recalled that she had heard a voice that night and came up with a sketch of the suspect.

This was the most important tip that enabled the authorities to find Elizabeth walking with her captors in Sandy, Utah, only miles away from where she was at home, in March 2003.

Her salvaging was the culmination of a very dramatic story and the beginning of an interest in child safety precautions.

'Family will never give up'

All through the experience, Elizabeth's parents, Ad and Lois Smart, had not given up hope and remained visible in their quest to locate Elizabeth. They would become outspoken child protectors, co-authoring a book on child protection, the book being titled Bringing Elizabeth Home, and they would agitate lawmakers into implementing such legislation as the AMBER Alert system.

In 2019, Ed Smart disclosed his sexuality, which is a personal achievement due to the years of fame. The two ended up divorcing the same year, although both are still involved in auditory activities.

Ed is a director at Youth Futures Utah, and Lois is still doing speaking engagements as a motivational speaker.

Mary Katherine recognised the voice of the suspect that resulted in the identification of Mitchell. She is currently a special education teacher pursuing her certification as a behaviour analyst and has made several public appearances where she has talked about the healing process that she is undergoing.

She has recently been married to John Paul O'Brien and has been carrying on with the work of assisting children.

The captors and the legal process

In 2009, Mitchell was convicted with the help of the testimony given by Elizabeth, who provided a detailed account of what actually happened.

In 2011, Mitchell was sentenced to a life sentence for his kidnapping and other related charges. Barzee worked with the government, and she received a 15-year sentence but was released in 2018 after serving her sentence.

Her release was criticised by Elizabeth, who was concerned that she could be a threat to society.

Mitchell is still in prison and his life term is being served. The fact that Elizabeth was brave enough to testify and her later activism emphasised the strength and resilience she possessed, which no longer wished to simply be a victim of her trauma.

A biography of preaching is a curing

Elizabeth is known nowadays not only as a kidnapping victim but also as a child advocate and a speaker concerning the victims of abuse.

In 2011, she established the Elizabeth Smart Foundation that provides such programmes as Smart Defence and Smart Talks to empower victims and educate the community.

She has already spoken to Congress, helped create laws, and written two books: My Story and Where There Is Hope – as a way to tell her healing and survival story.

New lightmaker on Netflix

A documentary bearing the same name, 'Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart,' releases on Netflix on January 21, going through her story with interviews with Smart, family members, and people around her.

The movie also has previously unknown content, and the filmmakers want to inspire audiences with her constant recovery and advocacy.