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American Morning
Questions Concerning Disappearance, Discovery of Elizabeth Smart
Aired March 13, 2003 - 08:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: There is so much joy yet there are so many questions concerning the disappearance and discovery of Elizabeth Smart.
Earlier this morning, I talked with Elizabeth's uncle, David Smart, about her return home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID SMART, ELIZABETH SMART'S UNCLE: She looked very good and in good health. I know that Elizabeth is a very strong individual and that with all that she's been through that we have absolutely no idea what she's been through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: Now for more on the case, let's go live to Sandy, Utah.
And that's where we find the city's police chief, Stephen Chapman, this morning.
Thank you very much for joining us this morning.
I know you haven't gotten much sleep, sir.
So, Chief Chapman, can you take us back to the moment that Elizabeth Smart was spotted in your town yesterday?
CHIEF STEPHEN CHAPMAN, SANDY, UTAH POLICE: Yes. It was very exciting for the Sandy City Police Department after we discovered that it actually was Elizabeth Smart. We were very surprised. As we go back to the actual time when we found her, of course, as you know already, two of our citizens called 911 and reported that they had seen a person matching the description of Emanuel, which had been in the local news here just the day, that same day.
As we responded, we found three persons who were pedestrians, basically, on the street and we approached and talked to them, our officers did.
ZAHN: How long did it take for Elizabeth to identify herself?
CHAPMAN: Well, after some questioning, we were able to determine very shortly after contacting her that it was very possibly Elizabeth Smart. She was then, along with the other two, transported to the Sandy Police Department, where further interviews took place and it was at that time that we knew positively that it was Elizabeth Smart and Emanuel or Mr. Mitchell and his companion.
ZAHN: Is it true that your officers had to ask Elizabeth a number of times what her name was?
CHAPMAN: Initially we did. As the questioning took place on the street with the other two present, and we questioned her, it took some time before we could actually determine that it was her.
ZAHN: Did she seem reluctant to identify herself?
CHAPMAN: In some respects, yes. But under the circumstances that was probably very normal.
ZAHN: So you didn't really find anything odd about that?
CHAPMAN: Well, actually, yes, it was a little bit odd that some of the answers she was giving at that time, not knowing all the circumstances immediately that some of those answers were given that she had given us under the questioning.
ZAHN: And, Chief, what did that suggest to you?
CHAPMAN: Oh, I think there is a fear factor that we have to look at in reference to what was going on immediately as we approached that group and the circumstances that she was under in reference to being with those two persons at the time.
ZAHN: It was reported at the time that you saw her for the first time, or your officers did, she was wearing a veil, a wig and sunglasses.
CHAPMAN: That's correct.
ZAHN: So it must have been very difficult to make out who she really was.
CHAPMAN: Oh, immediately it was very difficult. If you were just to drive by and not ask further questions and be persistent in that questioning, you would have thought that they were just a homeless group, a transient group that were passing through. But you would have had to delve into the case a little bit further and question them further, which our officers did.
ZAHN: Did she ever explain to anybody why she was dressed that way?
CHAPMAN: She did, but I'm not at liberty nor do I know the exact answers to that question.
ZAHN: Are you able to tell us whether she was able to tell you where she had been?
CHAPMAN: Actually, when, after we had determined that she was Elizabeth Smart, we turned her and the case over, back over to the Salt Lake City Police Department. They did the interviews in depth, along with the FBI. So that information I do not have at this point. ZAHN: And were you with her long enough to be able to determine whether she had been abused?
CHAPMAN: I'm not able to comment on that at this point.
ZAHN: And are there any other details you can give us just about her state of mind at the time that you sat down and talked with her?
CHAPMAN: No. Other than the fact that she was very, she appeared to be in good health and that she was very conversant after we got past a certain point and gave very good answers to the questions that she was given, taking into account the circumstances that she was under at the time of the questioning.
ZAHN: Did she ever say she tried to escape?
CHAPMAN: I don't have that information.
ZAHN: All right, well, I know that your community has been under a microscope and we really appreciate your sharing with us the drama of what unfolded in your town yesterday.
Police Chief Stephen Chapman, thanks for your time.
CHAPMAN: You're very welcome.
ZAHN: Good luck to you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Smart>
Aired March 13, 2003 - 08:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: There is so much joy yet there are so many questions concerning the disappearance and discovery of Elizabeth Smart.
Earlier this morning, I talked with Elizabeth's uncle, David Smart, about her return home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID SMART, ELIZABETH SMART'S UNCLE: She looked very good and in good health. I know that Elizabeth is a very strong individual and that with all that she's been through that we have absolutely no idea what she's been through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: Now for more on the case, let's go live to Sandy, Utah.
And that's where we find the city's police chief, Stephen Chapman, this morning.
Thank you very much for joining us this morning.
I know you haven't gotten much sleep, sir.
So, Chief Chapman, can you take us back to the moment that Elizabeth Smart was spotted in your town yesterday?
CHIEF STEPHEN CHAPMAN, SANDY, UTAH POLICE: Yes. It was very exciting for the Sandy City Police Department after we discovered that it actually was Elizabeth Smart. We were very surprised. As we go back to the actual time when we found her, of course, as you know already, two of our citizens called 911 and reported that they had seen a person matching the description of Emanuel, which had been in the local news here just the day, that same day.
As we responded, we found three persons who were pedestrians, basically, on the street and we approached and talked to them, our officers did.
ZAHN: How long did it take for Elizabeth to identify herself?
CHAPMAN: Well, after some questioning, we were able to determine very shortly after contacting her that it was very possibly Elizabeth Smart. She was then, along with the other two, transported to the Sandy Police Department, where further interviews took place and it was at that time that we knew positively that it was Elizabeth Smart and Emanuel or Mr. Mitchell and his companion.
ZAHN: Is it true that your officers had to ask Elizabeth a number of times what her name was?
CHAPMAN: Initially we did. As the questioning took place on the street with the other two present, and we questioned her, it took some time before we could actually determine that it was her.
ZAHN: Did she seem reluctant to identify herself?
CHAPMAN: In some respects, yes. But under the circumstances that was probably very normal.
ZAHN: So you didn't really find anything odd about that?
CHAPMAN: Well, actually, yes, it was a little bit odd that some of the answers she was giving at that time, not knowing all the circumstances immediately that some of those answers were given that she had given us under the questioning.
ZAHN: And, Chief, what did that suggest to you?
CHAPMAN: Oh, I think there is a fear factor that we have to look at in reference to what was going on immediately as we approached that group and the circumstances that she was under in reference to being with those two persons at the time.
ZAHN: It was reported at the time that you saw her for the first time, or your officers did, she was wearing a veil, a wig and sunglasses.
CHAPMAN: That's correct.
ZAHN: So it must have been very difficult to make out who she really was.
CHAPMAN: Oh, immediately it was very difficult. If you were just to drive by and not ask further questions and be persistent in that questioning, you would have thought that they were just a homeless group, a transient group that were passing through. But you would have had to delve into the case a little bit further and question them further, which our officers did.
ZAHN: Did she ever explain to anybody why she was dressed that way?
CHAPMAN: She did, but I'm not at liberty nor do I know the exact answers to that question.
ZAHN: Are you able to tell us whether she was able to tell you where she had been?
CHAPMAN: Actually, when, after we had determined that she was Elizabeth Smart, we turned her and the case over, back over to the Salt Lake City Police Department. They did the interviews in depth, along with the FBI. So that information I do not have at this point. ZAHN: And were you with her long enough to be able to determine whether she had been abused?
CHAPMAN: I'm not able to comment on that at this point.
ZAHN: And are there any other details you can give us just about her state of mind at the time that you sat down and talked with her?
CHAPMAN: No. Other than the fact that she was very, she appeared to be in good health and that she was very conversant after we got past a certain point and gave very good answers to the questions that she was given, taking into account the circumstances that she was under at the time of the questioning.
ZAHN: Did she ever say she tried to escape?
CHAPMAN: I don't have that information.
ZAHN: All right, well, I know that your community has been under a microscope and we really appreciate your sharing with us the drama of what unfolded in your town yesterday.
Police Chief Stephen Chapman, thanks for your time.
CHAPMAN: You're very welcome.
ZAHN: Good luck to you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Smart>
