NEED TO KNOW
- Elizabeth Smart is the second oldest of six children and was raised by Ed and Lois Smart in Utah
- Smart was kidnapped at knifepoint when she was 14 years old and was rescued nine months later
- Her younger sister, Mary Katherine Smart, helped identify one of the abductors
Elizabeth Smart and her family’s lives were forever changed when she was kidnapped in 2002.
When Elizabeth was just 14 years old, she was sleeping in her shared bedroom with younger sister, Mary Katherine, when Brian David Mitchell broke into their Salt Lake City home and abducted her on June 5, 2002.
Elizabeth’s parents, Ed and Lois Smart, immediately began investigating their daughter’s disappearance and did everything they could to find her. In addition to searching for their missing daughter, Ed and Lois also had to parent their five other children: Charles, Andrew, Edward Jr., William and Mary Katherine.
With the help of Mary Katherine — who recognized the kidnapper’s voice — investigators located Elizabeth and rescued her after nine months, on March 12, 2003. Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee, were subsequently arrested. Mitchell was sentenced to life in prison, while Barzee was released in 2018 amid her 15-year sentence.
Elizabeth has since spoken about her traumatic ordeal in hopes of spreading awareness of violent crimes against children. Most recently, Elizabeth, Ed and Mary Katherine participated in the documentary Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart, which premiered on Netflix on Jan. 21.
Here’s everything to know about Elizabeth Smart’s five siblings: Charles, Andrew, Edward Jr., William and Mary Katherine.
Elizabeth is the second of Ed and Lois Smart’s six children
Colin E Braley/AP Photo
Elizabeth was born on Nov. 3, 1987, and is the second oldest child of Ed and Lois. She has four brothers —Charles, Andrew, Edward Jr. and William — and a younger sister, Mary Katherine.
Ed and Lois were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and raised their children in the church. Elizabeth, who lived in the Federal Heights neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah, has previously spoken about how her Mormon faith shaped her as a child and affected her kidnapping.
“I think as a Mormon, we’re taught to be kind, to be nonjudgmental, to be respectful of everyone around us,” she told NPR in 2013. “And so I think he thought going in with that mentality, he [Mitchell] thought that, yeah, we would be more vulnerable to what he wanted to do.”
While Elizabeth has been in the public eye to speak about her experience and advocate for other victims, her brothers have mostly stayed out of the spotlight and not appeared in interviews.
Mary Katherine was present for Elizabeth’s kidnapping and later helped identify her abductor
Courtesy of Netflix
On June 5, 2002, Elizabeth was abducted at knifepoint by Mitchell. At the time, 14-year-old Elizabeth’s younger sister, 9-year-old Mary Katherine was also in the room and pretended to be asleep.
After Mitchell took Elizabeth, Mary Katherine alerted her parents and told them that she heard the kidnapper’s voice.
“She’s gone. Elizabeth is gone,” Ed and Lois remembered Mary Katherine telling them, as they wrote in their 2003 book, Bringing Elizabeth Home: A Journey of Faith and Hope. “A man came and took her. He had a gun.”
Mary Katherine began telling police what she saw and heard — including the voice of the man. Months after the kidnapping, Mary Katherine identified the voice as one she had heard before, belonging to a man who briefly worked at their home.
“She’s my hero. She saved me,” Elizabeth told Today on Jan. 21. “Had she not remembered who had kidnapped me, who’s to say that I would be here today? The police all had their suspects, and my captor I don’t even think was on their radar at all. So she is my hero.”
The siblings slept in their parents’ room for months after the kidnapping
Courtesy of Netflix
One month after his daughter was abducted, Ed candidly spoke about how he and the rest of their family were coping. In particular, he admitted that it was difficult handling his and Lois’ feelings while helping their children, as well.
“William said yesterday that Elizabeth’s not going to be back for a long time,” Ed told Deseret News in July 2002. “To hear a 3-year-old say that, you know it’s impacting him.”
Ed added, “There’s a big hole in our family. I really thought this would be over long ago, and I don’t know how long it’s going to go on.”
In order to help everyone cope, Ed said that they had done their best to return to everyday life while also praying for the return of Elizabeth daily.
“The kids are doing the normal kid things,” Ed said. “I don’t hear them say that much about Elizabeth.”
However, he still acknowledged that Elizabeth’s missing presence was always in the air. He also revealed that all five siblings had been sleeping in his and Lois’ bedroom every night since the kidnapping.
Elizabeth has thanked her family for helping her readjust after her kidnapping
Elizabeth Smart/Instagram
Elizabeth was ultimately found and rescued on a street in Sandy, Utah, on March 12, 2003. In the years since her return home, she has credited her family for helping her get through the ordeal and readjust to society.
“Seeing my family again, it reminded me that everything that had happened, it didn’t take away my value or my worth. Like, those monsters could never take that away,” she said in the Netflix documentary Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart .
She continued, “I just remember being so excited to be home. I woke up a few times during that [first night back home] and both my parents were standing above me making sure I was still there.”
Elizabeth reiterated her family’s support and told CNN in January 2026, “Healing looks different for all of us. I’d say pursue connection fearlessly because I look at my own healing journey again and I don’t know if I’d be where I am today if I didn’t have the family that I have, if I didn’t have the support from my community that I have.”
Mary Katherine went on to work with children
Courtesy of Netflix
Although Mary Katherine spoke about her sister’s kidnapping ordeal in the Netflix doc, she keeps a mostly private life. In 2023, though, she told NewsNation that she’s pursuing a career in teaching.
“I love working with kids. I love behavior. I recently got my master’s in applied behavior analysis, so I’m just working towards becoming a licensed BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) and just trying to fully immerse myself in that and just trying to enjoy life,” Mary Katherine said.
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