March 08 - 15, 2003= Farrakhan Speaks - Saviour's DaSunday - February 23rd Hilton HotelTwo Charged inElizabeth SmartAbductionBy REBECCA BOONE,Associated Press WriterSALT LAKE CITY - Self-proclaimed prophet BrianMitchell and his wife werecharged with aggravated kid-napping, and sexual assaultTuesday in the abduction ofElizabeth Smart, the teenagertaken from her home last sum-mer.Mitchell, a drifter whose writ-ings promoting polygamy hadraised questions about whetherElizabeth was sexually abusedduring her nine-month ordeal,has told his attorney that heconsiders Elizabeth his wife andwants her to be rena-med"Remnant Who Will Return."Attorney Larry Long saidMitchell " whom he referredto as "the perpetrator" " con-siders the girl's nine-month dis-appearance a "call from God,"not a kidnapping.District Attorney DavidYocom's office asked reportersto refrain from asking questionsabout the sexual assault counts"for reasons that should be ob- -vious." ;Mitchell and his wife, WandaBarzee, also were charged withburglary. They each face a sin-gle count on-each charge, for atotal of six counts. They werescheduled to be arraignedWednesday morning and a trialis expected this summer.Mitchell, 49, and Barzee, 57,and Elizabeth were foundWednesday in Sandy, a SaltLake City suburb.Elizabeth was abducted fromher bedroom at knifepoint onJune 5.The charging documents allegeThief forgets phone atcrime sceneBy Wayne Loewe, Court TVCANONSBURG, Pa. (CourtTV) " A 22-year-old man wasarrested after he left his cellphone behind at the scene of asoe robbery.ce Triplett was chargwith robbing a Sunoco stationon March 4. He was jailed onrobbery, theft, conspiracy andother ¢ .Police said Triplett was withanother man + whose name was not released - when the otherman pointed a gun at the clerk,| In The NewsMitchell entered the Smarthome after using a knife to cuta window screen.The teen, dressed in pajamas,was forced at knifepoint to walkfour miles up a mountain trailbehind the home to a concealedcampsite.Mitchell threatened to harm orkill the Smart family if she re-sisted, prosecutors said."She was under the threat ofdeath," Yocom said. Prosecutorssay that when they reached thecampsite, Barzee tried to re-move Elizabeth's pajamas.When the girl resisted, Barzeethreatened to have Mitchellforcibly do it. Elizabeth com-plied and Mitchell attempted tosexually assault her, withBarzee's help, the documentssay.The couple held Elizabethagainst her will at the campsiteuntil Oct. 8 with little or noshelter, plumbing, water orfood, prosecutors said.In October, Mitchell and Barzeetook Smart to California wherethey stayed until March 5, thestate alleges.Assistant U.S. Attorney DavidSchwendiman said federalcharges would come oonly ifand when it is n bdProsecutors said Mitchell andBarzee also attempted to kidnap "Elizabeth's cousin on July 24. Awindow was cut with a sharpinstrument and the child insidetold police that she saw some-thing come through the win-dow. The attempt was foiledwhen the family stirred andcalled police.The maximum sentence forconviction on both the kidnap-ping and sexual assault chargesis life in prison.Mitchell, an excommunicatedMormon, wrote a ramblingwho handed over money fromthe cash register and his wallet.Police said they found a cellphone at the scene and traced itto TriplettMan walks into bar, killscomputerLafayette, Colo, have ar-a man who shot his lap-top inside the bar he owned "scaring customers " then hungit on the wall like a trophy.Mistaken 911 call leadslice to pot plantsay I pot pla. Ag Loewe, Court TVSPRINGS, Calif. (Court| . eB2003 -reenville . _e9manifesto last year espousingthe virtues of polygamy. TheMormon.church has long dis-tanced itself from polygamy andexcommunicates those whopractice it. | |Before Tuesday's charges, nodetails had been released aboutany abuse Elizabeth might havesuffered while captive. She hadbeen interviewed several timesby police but her parents hadnot asked her for details, familyspokesman Chris Thomas sal.Thomas has denied speculatiothe girl could be pregkant- ""Unequivocally, she is Aot prgf nant and was never wal '"She has been thorQugh 4amined and tested, � Thomesaid Saturday,Family members have said fre-tedly that Elizabeth waéainwashed during the ninemonths, and that her loss offree will prevented her from es-caping despite several opporty \nities to do so.The family had called Sdncutors to make sure thtraumatize the girl during qtioning and involve Elizaonly as much as they need to - " oA\for a successful prosecution, ©Thomas said."They have expressed their con-cerns for Elizabeth's well-being,and will hold the D.A.'s officeaccountable for any actions thatmight victimize her a secondtime," Thomas said.Salt Lake City Mayor RockyAnderson said Monday hewould name an independentcommission to examine policehandling.Investigators were criticized forconcentrating on potential sus-pect Richard Ricci even afterlizabeth's younger sister toldauthorities in October thatMitchell could be the man thattook her sister.TV) " Police found 76 mari-Juana plants inside a house af-ter a woman who was visitinmistakenly called 911 instead of411. When she hung up, a po-*Fathers and daughters are part of our electric co-oplice dispatcher called the num- . i, .per right back, and someone Whether the day is beginning or drawing to a close, our story is the same.ung up again, according to We're there with the sewer you aeed. The end.Palm Springs police department halekesman Sgt. Dennisyee Li Deossasty hea to North Carolinas: e mari- electric cooperativesjuana, valued at $76,000, grow- "ing ina rook en 7 gfsophisticated lighting. Officers aalso found three handguns and ~