Elizabeth Smart Foundation responds to Wanda Barzee’s second arrest 20 years after kidnapping

More than 20 years after Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped in 2002, the woman who helped carry out the crime, Wanda Barzee, was arrested again last year, and the Elizabeth Smart Foundation released a powerful statement.

With Netflix releasing the documentary Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart, loads of people have been looking back at the case that shocked the US. The documentary shows the roles played by Brian David Mitchell and his wife at the time, Wanda Barzee, in the nine-month kidnapping and abuse of 14-year-old Elizabeth.

Brian David Mitchell is still in prison serving a life sentence. But Barzee’s situation has been very different.

After years of court delays linked to her mental health, Barzee pleaded guilty in 2009 to kidnapping and unlawful transportation of a minor. She served time in both federal and state prison. She was released in 2018 after officials admitted they had miscalculated her sentence.

When she was released, but according to PBS News, she was put under strict rules. She became a registered sex offender for life and was banned from contacting the Smart family. She was also not allowed to go into “protected areas”, including public parks.

At the time, Elizabeth Smart spoke out against her release. She told ABC News, “I would urge the powers that be and anyone who works under them to really strongly reconsider this situation, to look at all the facts, look at her mental status, and see if they really and honestly truly feel that she is no longer a threat.”

The Salt Lake Tribune reported, Barzee was first placed in a halfway house, and later moved into an apartment in Salt Lake City. Which was reportedly just a few streets away from a primary school, which caused a lot of concern.

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So, where is Wanda Barzee now?

via Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office

In April 2025, she was arrested again. According to KSL TV, police said she was seen at Liberty Park, and later admitted she had also gone to Sugar House Park. She is legally banned from both places because of her sex offender restrictions. When officers questioned her, Barzee said she went there because she was “commanded to by the Lord.”

She was charged with two counts of Violation by a Sex Offender of a Protected Area. She was released while the case went through the courts. And she was ordered to appear before a judge in June 2025.

After the arrest, Elizabeth Smart made it clear she refuses to live in fear. But she said it was important that authorities take these situations seriously because survivor safety matters.

Her dad, Ed Smart, also spoke out and told KSL News Radio, “The issue is, can we keep the children safe? When she starts using the terms, you know, ‘God told me to,’ I think that we can’t allow that excuse to, you know, condone her behaviour.”

Soon after, the Elizabeth Smart Foundation released a public statement

via Netflix

The Elizabeth Smart Foundation said they were “deeply troubled by Wanda Barzee’s recent actions” and warned that they showed the “risk she poses to the community”. The foundation stressed how important it is to enforce sex offender rules, properly monitor people after release, and always put survivors first.

They also thanked the police for how they handled the arrest. And said the case shows a bigger problem, that many survivors never get justice at all, and the system often protects rules more than people.

The statement ended on a personal note, sharing advice Elizabeth’s mum gave her after she was rescued. It read, “Elizabeth often remembers advice that her mother gave her after she was rescued. She said, ‘Don’t you let them steal one more second of your life. Not one more second! You be happy. You move on.'”

Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news and drops, like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.