Elizabeth Smart’s alleged kidnapper, Brian David Mitchell, will finally face charges in a federal court. Jury selection began Monday for Mitchell’s court, more than eight years after Elizabeth Smart, who was 14 years old in 2002, disappeared from her family’s Salt Lake City home. Based on Mitchell’s lawyers, he is not guilty by reason of insanity, even though his wife, who might testify against him, has already been convicted as his accomplice.
The kidnapping of Smart
Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped on June 5, 2002. Her parents put every effort into finding her while the news soaked it all up. The teenager's abduction was known by everyone. The drifter who had worked at the Smart residence at one point, Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Ileen Barzee, were found with her nine months later just 18 miles from her home. Mitchel thought he had been a prophet named "Emmanuel." That got him with charges of sexual assault, burglary and kidnapping. But the couple was ruled incompetent to stand trial by a Utah district court judge in July 2005.
Elizabeth Smart has a new case to give
Elizabeth Smart's case brought on a Television movie and book to be made over it. This brought on Mitchell and Barzee to be ruled competent to withstand court again in 2008. Barzee pleaded guilty in Nov 2009. This had been to unlawful transportation of a minor and the kidnapping. She was sent straight to prison. She will remain there for 15 years. Barzee made a plea agreement to cooperate in both state and federal cases against Mitchell. Mitchell was said to be faking insanity to avoid getting prosecuted by a nurse watching him. This took place in December 2009. In March 2010 U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball announced Mitchell a “misleading psychopath” and ordered him to face court.
Mitchell is on trial now
22 year old Elizabeth Smart testified. This happened at a Mitchell competency listening to they had. She said that through the nine months she was held by Mitchell, he sexually assaulted her numerous times when also taking her at knife point from her room. Mitchell’s attorneys unsuccessfully tried to force a change of venue, saying intense media coverage of the story in 2002 would make it extremely hard to find impartial jurors. Mitchell had been dressed as a prisoner Monday when he went to the federal courthouse in salt Lake City instead of as a patient. 35 potential jurors followed him in.
Citations
Washington Post
washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/22/AR2010102202949.html
CNN
cnn.com/2010/CRIME/10/31/utah.elizabeth.smart.trial/index.html?npt=NP1
Salt Lake Tribune
sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50581578-76/mitchell-juror-jury-case.html.csp
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Smart_kidnapping
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