S3 Ep380: Elizabeth Smart | The False Prophet (Part 2)

Crime Weekly

True Crime

4.7 • 10.7K Ratings

🗓️ 13 February 2026

⏱️ 125 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In June of 2002, a 14-year-old girl was taken from her bedroom in the middle of the night, from a quiet home in one of the safest neighborhoods in one of the safest cities in America. Her name was Elizabeth Smart. This case has endured for more than two decades, not only because of what happened to Elizabeth, but because of how it happened. It forces us to confront uncomfortable questions about trust, faith, and what happens when deeply held beliefs collide with someone willing to exploit them.Elizabeth wasn't held for hours or days. She was a prisoner for nine months, subjected to repeated trauma and torture that would have broken most adults. But Elizabeth's story is not just about what happened to her. It's also about survival and strength. It's about a young girl who would later turn the unimaginable into advocacy and support for victims of kidnapping and sexual violence. Try our coffee! - www.CriminalCoffeeCo.comBecome a Patreon member -- > ï½¿ https://www.patreon.com/CrimeWeeklyShop for your Crime Weekly gear here --> ï½¿ https://crimeweeklypodcast.com/shopYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CrimeWeeklyPodcastWebsite: CrimeWeeklyPodcast.comInstagram: @CrimeWeeklyPodTwitter: @CrimeWeeklyPodFacebook: @CrimeWeeklyPodADS:1. https://www.TryFUM.com - Use code CRIMEWEEKLY for a FREE gift with your Journey Pack!2. https://www.FactorMeals.com/CrimeWeekly50Off - Get 50% off and FREE breakfast for a year!

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everybody. Welcome back to Crime Weekly. I'm Stephanie Harlow. And I'm Derek Lavasser.
0:17.3	So this is going to be a long episode as it is, but I have something I want to say to all of you before we get in.
0:24.9	So we're just going to get into it.
0:26.6	So first of all, I was a little bit disappointed.
0:29.2	I'll be honest.
0:30.3	A little bit disappointed to see some of the comments from part one when it came to the LDS Church.
0:37.1	And not because of your criticism of the LDS Church and not because of your criticism
0:39.3	of the LDS Church because it's valid.
0:41.3	And I feel like if you guys knew me and you'd followed me, especially in my own channel,
0:46.1	you know how critical I have been of the LDS Church when it comes to cases like Lori
0:49.4	Vallow and Ruby Frankie and all of these.
0:51.4	I've been very critical.
0:53.3	But the way that this series was unfolding
0:56.3	was very intentional. So for instance, there's a comment, you're being way too nice to the LES
1:00.8	church. It's incredibly corrupt, racist, sex is much more. It's incredibly harmful. You don't
1:04.5	need to dance around the flaws because you're afraid of insulting people. Stop. When have you ever
1:08.9	known me to be afraid of insulting people if it's the truth? It's not.
1:14.7	So it was very important for me. And I think for once again, the storytelling aspect of this and how
1:20.6	important it is to the case, to in part one, show the LDS Church at its foundation, right?
1:26.6	Not as an institution across all of history,
1:29.0	but as a belief system as it was lived by the smart family. Their faith emphasized charity,
1:37.2	trust, compassion, and those values shaped their decisions in ways that really mattered to this case.
	...

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