Smarts: Keeping The Faith
Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart was the victim of one of the most incredible kidnapping stories in history. She was snatched from her home last year and found alive nine months later.
As part of an emotional effort for an upcoming CBS movie, her parents, Ed and Lois, sat down with CBS Entertainment. The appearance is woven together from scenes from the movie and news footage and narrated by Bill Curtis and offers a striking event at the looks surrounding the abduction and her miraculous return. The Smarts hope to deliver a message: "That miracles do happen, that God is there. And He does answer our prayers," says Ed Smart.
"The Elizabeth Smart Story" airs on Sunday, Nov. 9 at 9:00 p.m./ET, 8:00 p.m./Central on CBS.
The story will be told from the viewpoint of her parents, Ed and Lois Smart, who have also signed a book deal about the kidnapping.
CBS says the movie will reveal new details previously unknown to the general public, centering on the search efforts, community support, and how the Smart family navigated through the court system, and dealt with the media frenzy.
The Smart parents have signed a deal with Doubleday Books to tell their story in "Bringing Elizabeth Home: A Journey of Faith and Hope." That book is scheduled for release on Oct. 28, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth's uncles, Tom and Dave Smart, also are working on a book about the teenager's ordeal, Tom Smart said Thursday. That story, which the brothers will co-write with Deseret Morning News columnist Lee Benson, will not come out until the criminal cases against Elizabeth's alleged kidnappers are resolved.
Family members are acting separately because "Ed and Lois wanted it that way," Tom Smart said. "We do have very different stories to tell, though there is obvious overlap."
Tom Smart said the book would include information from police investigations, interviews with members of his family and the alleged kidnappers' families. It also will look at media ethics and how the story was reported.
Elizabeth, 15, was abducted from her bedroom on the night of June 5, 2002. In March, she was found in a Salt Lake suburb with her alleged kidnappers, Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee.
In the first five days after the kidnapped teen returned home, the family's spokesman fielded nearly 100 film, book or made-for-TV-movie proposals.
Prosecutors say Mitchell, 49, a drifter and self-styled prophet, and Barzee, 57, held Elizabeth at a crude campsite in the dry foothills above the Smart home until Oct. 8. They then took her to California, where they stayed until March 5, according to court documents.
Mitchell and Barzee have been charged with burglary, kidnapping and sexual assault. They are being held on $10 million bond pending psychological examinations to determine whether they are competent to stand trial.