SALT LAKE CITY - A grand jury indictment against Elizabeth Smart kidnapping suspect Brian David Mitchell was unsealed Wednesday, a day after the self-proclaimed prophet was ruled competent to stand trial.
Unsealing the indictment against Mitchell moves the case toward a trial without a preliminary hearing, which could have included sensitive testimony from Elizabeth. Mitchell was expected to be arraigned Thursday, when a trial date could be set.
Wednesday's move revealed that prosecutors had managed to convene a grand jury in the case and keep those proceedings -- held about a year ago -- under wraps.
Grand jury proceedings are routinely secret, and are conducted only upon the request of the district attorney. Salt Lake County District Attorney David Yocom wouldn't say why he had originally sought a grand jury indictment, and wouldn't comment on whether Elizabeth testified for the 15-member citizen panel.
The indictment was returned last Sept. 4, but wasn't unsealed until Wednesday.
An indictment from the grand jury carries the same weight as a decision by a judge to indict a suspect and move the case to a criminal trial. The only difference is that hearings and testimony presented to the grand jury are secret.
The indictment removes the need for a preliminary hearing, meaning Elizabeth -- now a high school junior -- can put off publicly testifying about the nine months she was allegedly held against her will by Mitchell, a 50-year-old homeless street preacher, and his wife Wanda Barzee, 58.
Mitchell and Barzee are both charged with kidnapping the then-14-year-old from her bedroom at knifepoint in 2002. The girl was allegedly taken into the foothills near the home, sexually assaulted and kept as Mitchell's second wife.
The two face kidnapping charges, two counts of aggravated sexual assault, two counts of aggravated burglary and conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping. The couple has been in custody since Elizabeth was found with them along a suburban street in March 2003.
On Tuesday, a judge found Mitchell competent to stand trial, bringing an early end to what had been expected to be a three-day hearing to gauge his mental state.
Mitchell was motivated by a 'revelation from God' to take Elizabeth, according to court documents.
Barzee has been twice deemed incompetent to stand trial, and is undergoing treatment at a state mental hospital. She is scheduled to be re-evaluated in August 2005.
The two court-appointed experts who had evaluated Mitchell couldn't agree on his competency, concurring only that Mitchell has a narcissistic delusion.
But on Tuesday, Yocom said he and Mitchell's lead defense attorney, Kim Clark, had negotiated over waiving the competency hearing. Prosecutors said Mitchell's lawyers had developed evidence of his competency over the past few months.