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Article Last Updated: 03/13/2005 01:15:25 AM Elizabeth Smart is the star at children's safety event By Stephen Hunt The Salt Lake Tribune

Elizabeth Smart helps 3-year-old Julian Lovato get fingerprinted Saturday at the Partners in Safety event at the Salt Lake City Police Department's Pioneer Precinct. (Danny Chan La/The Salt Lake Tribune) On the second anniversary of Elizabeth Smart's safe return, her family is still trying to put the kidnapping nightmare behind them.    But life has changed for the Smarts. They are now much more safety conscious.    "The doors are locked and the alarms are set every night," Ed Smart said in an interview. "And the kids, when they take off, I never let the younger ones go by themselves. They go with a brother, a sister or a friend."    Ed and Lois Smart also are doing what they can to help protect other children.    On Saturday, the Smart family - including Elizabeth - were star attractions at the Salt Lake City portion of a statewide safety-awareness program.    Several hundred Utah parents took advantage of Partners in Safety, sponsored by the Girl Scouts of Utah, by having their children fingerprinted, photographed and videotaped. Parents also obtained DNA-collection kits and learned about safety tips.    "We know the community helped us, and we want to help the community," Ed Smart told a roomful of people at the Salt Lake City Police Department's Pioneer Precinct. "So many kids don't know what they can do in a bad situation."    Elizabeth, who inked children's fingers for identification cards, told the audience: "I'm thankful for everything that was done to bring me back. You never know when something's going to happen, and when it does you need to be prepared for it."    Girl Scout Mandy Lopatriello, 11, said she was "honored" to meet Elizabeth. Brittany Atkin, 9, of Troop 796, said it was "exciting."    But both girls also understood the importance of the identification program.    "If you get kidnapped," said Brittany, "your parents would have something to try and help them find you."    Ed Smart said police can act more quickly and efficiently after an abduction if parents have the child's fingerprints, DNA and a recent photograph on hand.    Smart also urged parents to educate their children about day-to-day safety and what to do if someone tries to abduct them.    "It's not a matter of being frightened to death or making everyone concerned," he said during an interview. "It's just taking things in a different manner, knowing what you can do to reduce the risks.    "When it happened to us, we felt it could happen to anyone," Smart said. "It's   just a different world we live in."    Smart said he is an advocate of radKIDS - Resisting Aggression Defensively KIDS - which teaches children about calling 911, as well as defensive moves to escape from a predator.    "The most important thing radKIDS teaches is, you can do something," Smart said. "You don't need to freeze up and think, 'I'm going to be a victim.' Feeling that you can do something is really important."    The national nonprofit program came to Utah three years ago and has been implemented in several schools. The Provo School District has adopted it districtwide.    Last November, a 9-year-old Provo girl used her radKIDS attitude of empowerment to escape from a man who grabbed her from behind as she walked home from school. The girl kicked the man and punched and slapped his face before running home.    "I hope [radKIDS] will go statewide," Smart said. "We are actually looking for sponsors."    Quoting statistics from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Smart noted that 800,000 children go missing every year in the United States. About half are Advertisement   runaways, and many of the rest are familial abductions stemming from custody fights. But about 50,000 are non-family abductions, Smart said.    Elizabeth was 14 on June 5, 2002, when she was abducted at knife point from her Federal Heights home.    Nine months later, on March 12, 2003, she was found walking in Sandy with her alleged kidnappers, homeless preacher Brian David Mitchell, 51, and his wife, Wanda Eileen Barzee, 59.    Rudy and Nancy Montoya called police after recognizing Mitchell as "Immanuel," a man featured two weeks earlier on the television show "America's Most Wanted." Moments later, police also heard from Alvin and Anita Dickerson, who recognized Mitchell from a mug shot shown on local television news programs.    "I think about the Montoyas and Dickersons daily," Smart said. "I'm thankful people are out there watching and willing to help."    He added: "It's great to have Elizabeth home and have it behind us. She's doing so well. I never could have expected her to be doing as well as she is."    Now a junior at East High, Elizabeth "thinks of herself as a typical 17-year-old," her father said.    "She   certainly has a different outlook on life than she did before," he said. "We're grateful for the time she spends with her family and friends, and the awareness of how many people are victimized out there. And Elizabeth has a new appreciation for the homeless."    He said Saturday's effort to promote safety awareness was a way to create something good from the kidnapping: "Elizabeth says, 'There's always something positive that comes out of a bad situation.' "        Tips from Partners in Safety        l Have children use the "buddy system" by always playing and walking with a friend. There is safety in numbers.        l Create a family password so kids know the adult they are talking to can be trusted. Practice saying the password and change    it periodically.        l Teach kids that predators use tricks, such as offering money or pretending to have lost a pet. Children should recognize any attempt to take them anywhere as a trap.        l Teach kids to find the nearest safe person - a police officer, store cashier or a   mother with children - if they get lost or separated.        l If someone in a car tries to talk to children, they should yell "No" and run in the opposite direction from where the car is headed.        l Kids should stay alert and keep three giant steps away from anyone who makes them feel uncomfortable.        l If anyone grabs them or tries to lead them away, children should scream and kick to escape, even if threatened with a weapon.

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