Kriti Mehrotra
Directed by Benedict Sanderson, Netflix’s ‘Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart’ lives up to its title in every way imaginable by delving deep into the 2002 abduction of the then-14-year-old girl. The documentary incorporates not only archival footage but also exclusive interviews to shed light on how every aspect of the ordeal severely impacted her and her family. There is thus a significant focus on then-9-year-old Mary Katherine Smart, too, especially as she played a pivotal role in helping rescue her elder sister as the sole witness to the crime.
Mary Katherine Smart Raised the Alarms Following Her Sister’s Kidnapping
In the early hours of June 5, 2002, Mary Katherine Smart awoke to strange noises in the bedroom she shared with her elder sister Elizabeth Smart in their family home. Since they resided in the affluent neighborhood of Federal Heights in Salt Lake City, Utah, they were never concerned about safety, which is how the young girl knew something was wrong. As per the 9-year-old, she saw an older white man threatening her sister with what looked like a gun (it was a knife), so she pretended to be asleep until they’d walked out.
Therefore, Mary Katherine later recounted to detectives that the man seemed oddly “polite” despite his imposing threats as well as warnings, and that his voice was familiar to her. She even revealed she had gotten out of bed to tell her parents what had happened immediately, but quietly turned back upon noticing the man discreetly forcing Elizabeth out of the house. “I thought, you know, ‘Be quiet, because if he hears you, he might take you, too, and you’re the only person who has seen this,'” she once said, so it was 3:58 am when she woke her parents up.
Mary Katherine Smart Helped Identify Her Sister’s Kidnapper
Mary Katherine initially wasn’t believed when she said Elizabeth was “gone,” but the family realized she hadn’t been dreaming or playing around when they found a window screen cut open. That’s when they contacted the police, kick-starting an investigation that spanned the entire city for over nine months (until the teen was found), with the 9-year-old being the sole witness. Because of her age, officials were very careful in how they questioned her, even going so far as to ask her not to speak with anyone regarding the matter, as it could possibly influence her memories.
The ensuing few months were lonely for Mary Katherine, as per her account in the documentary, owing to her having not only lost her best friend in her sister but also feeling isolated. Her parents and her four brothers helped by making her feel comfortable at home, with the former even going so far as to tuck her into bed every night to ensure she knew she wasn’t alone. Little did they know that this routine was how they would get the breakthrough they needed in the case in October 2002.
The young girl was going through a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records while waiting for her parents one evening when she suddenly remembered how she knew the kidnapper’s voice. Mary Katherine identified him as Emmanuel, a man who had done some work on the family’s house around seven months prior to the abduction and was often seen preaching on the streets. The police were reportedly skeptical of her epiphany, so the family had a sketch artist draw him from descriptions before releasing it to the media in February 2003. Less than a month later, on March 12, 2003, the teenager was rescued.
Mary Katherine Smart Prefers to Lead a Quiet Life Today
Emmanuel was identified as Brian David Mitchell by several of his relatives within days of the sketch coming out, who then provided investigators with contemporary photographs of him. These images helped several locals spot him in the company of two females in Sandy, Utah, on March 12, 2003, following which they immediately contacted the local tip line. That’s how Elizabeth was rescued after nine long months, and her captors, Brian and his wife Wanda Breeze, were arrested for good.
Since then, Mary Katherine has understandably chosen to remain away from the spotlight for privacy reasons, making only rare public appearances to show support for her sister. However, in an interview, she did concede her epiphany was as sudden as it has long been reported by asserting, “The page (of the Guinness Book of World Records) was like … really muscular lady and, like, a Harley Davidson person, and I was thinking, like, who has been to the house, and who was suspicious, and the name ‘Emmanuel’ came into my head.”
As for Mary Katherine’s personal standing, it appears as if she is still based in Utah, where she is leading a happy, healthy life surrounded by loved ones. She is definitely close to her entire family, and she has since started a family of her own by marrying John Paul O’Brien on October 17, 2020. It’s imperative to note that she once struggled with the label of being the younger sister of survivor Elizabeth Smart, but she has since come to understand that outside noise does not matter. In fact, with the unwavering kindness and support of her loved ones, including her sister’s, Mary Katherine has been able to find contentment in herself and accept every part of who she is.
Read More: Elizabeth Smart’s Kidnapping: Who Kidnapped Her? How Was She Found?
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