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Not long after Elizabeth disappeared I remember Lois Smart saying on TV that they called the police first. She also stated that it seemed like it took forever for the police to arrive.

Because of that memory, I have never questioned why friends and other family members were then called and that some of them who lived nearby might have arrived before or about the same time the police did. I see nothing suspicious about that.

I fault the police for allowing so many people to contaminate the crime scene, and they have taken responsibility for their mistake.

If my neighbor or close friend had called me and said a kidnapper with a gun had abducted their child, I probably would have, without thinking, rushed to give comfort to them or to help in searching the neighborhood. NOW I KNOW BETTER because I have learned about foresnic evidence, fibers, hairs, and DNA stuff. Before Internet and Court TV, I didn't know anything about protecting a crime scene.

I have thought about why the neighbors and friends appeared to have no fear that an armed kidnapper might still be in the house or lurking nearby. My answer to that is if you are told a kidnapper took a child, your brain just automatically assumes that the kidnapper and child are long gone. I would not have feared the gunman was still there had I been called to come to the Smart house to help. Knowing what I know now, I would be more cautious and would take the lead in advising people to not contaminate the crime scene if that was needed.

The thing that puzzles me is why Mary Katheryn waited so long to notify her family. I have a hard time believing it was as long as has been reported. I can see waiting 30 minutes or even stretching it into 45 minutes but longer than an hour I just can't see it. Either she dozed for a while or she was terrified even more than we can imagine.

HEY EVERYBODY, READ YELLOWCAT'S POST NO. 947!

Every point you made in that post is a point I hoped to make. You have said it better than I could have, and you have certainly said it with less verbiage than I would have. Thanks for saying it, b/c now I don't have to try to think all those things through, and I'm sure I would have missed many of the persuasive points you made.

"I have thought about why the neighbors and friends appeared to have no fear that an armed kidnapper might still be in the house or lurking nearby. My answer to that is if you are told a kidnapper took a child, your brain just automatically assumes that the kidnapper and child are long gone. I would not have feared the gunman was still there had I been called to come to the Smart house to help."

As I responded to cookiedough earlier, I can understand a layperson thinking this way. However, police officers are trained to PROTECT. I still contend that if the responding police officers had had any inkling that an armed gunman might have been in the area, they would have immediately sent the goodhearted neighbors back into their homes.