From Deseret News archives:
Trying for normal
Family takes a break as questions remain
Elizabeth's best friend returned from a trip to California on Friday night and saw Elizabeth for the first time, Smart family spokesman Chris Thomas said. The two had a "great time" just doing what normal teenage girls do, he said.
Overall, Thomas said, Elizabeth is doing "remarkably well" considering what she's been through. He admitted, however, that "things aren't perfect." When asked to elaborate, Thomas said there are times Elizabeth seems a little distracted. But if you had no idea who Elizabeth was or that she had been a captive for three-quarters of a year, you wouldn't have a clue anything was wrong, he said.
At week's end, Thomas and others near the case and experts observing it tried to clear up some of the rumors and questions that have been circulating since Elizabeth was found Wednesday afternoon:
Question — Was Elizabeth "married" to Brian David Mitchell, her alleged kidnapper?
Answer — Asked if some sort of ceremony was performed in the foothills above her Federal Heights home on the night Mitchell is alleged to have abducted her, Thomas said, "Elizabeth did what she needed to do to survive. Had she been resistant, this case may not have had a positive out come."
Question — Could she be pregnant?
Answer — "She is unequivocally not pregnant and never has been," Thomas emphasized, quashing a specific rumor.
Question — Has Elizabeth changed?
Answer — Family members report that she is healthy, happy and glad to be home enjoying the little things she missed, such as movies, bubble baths and time with family and friends. The Smart family's LDS bishop, Dave Hamblin, told Newsweek's Elise Christenson that she has changed; she is a little more somber and she has matured a lot. (Newsweek's Web exclusive can be found at www.msnbc.com.)
Question — Why didn't she run away from her captors?
