True Crime

The Survivor Files with Elizabeth Smart

Hosted by famed abduction survivor turned advocate Elizabeth Smart, The Survivor Files is a true crime podcast featuring firsthand accounts from ordinary people who were thrust into impossible circumstances. Targeted by serial killers, held-hostage, stalked, attacked, and controlled – their stories reveal what survival really looks like. Guided by Elizabeth’s uniquely personal perspective, each conversation explores the choices, instincts, and strength that helped survivors make it out alive and rebuild their lives.

Latest Episodes:

He Came Back to Kill Me: Alisa Mathewson Part 1 Oct 19, 2026

Show notes

Alisa Mathewson wakes at 3:00 a.m. with the terrifying certainty that someone is standing in her bedroom. It is her estranged husband — the man she has spent months trying to escape. In Part One of her story, Alisa reveals how her desperate attempts to break free from his control culminate in a middle-of-the-night break-in that leaves her bound, drugged and fighting to stay alive.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Torture Box: Eduardo Valseca Oct 12, 2026

Show notes

Eduardo Valseca is locked inside a tiny box, its coarse walls tearing at his skin whenever he moves. He doesn’t know where he is, what has happened to his wife, or why the men holding him refuse to speak. Then the message comes: his captors want millions of dollars in ransom — and when his family can’t pay, his captivity stretches on for seven months of beatings, starvation and torture.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cornell Case: The Survivors' Take with Kimberly Corban and JoDee Neil Oct 08, 2026

Show notes

As the sexual assault allegations at Cornell University dominate the headlines, Elizabeth and fellow survivors Kimberly Corban and JoDee Neil engage in a challenging conversation about consent, reporting, bystanders, and what people still getting wrong about trauma. Plus the "Three D" rules for protecting young people at college parties.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Taking Down the Serial Killer: Lisa Mae Part 2 Oct 05, 2026

Show notes

After surviving more than 26 hours in captivity, Lisa Mae reaches the police expecting them to help her — only to find herself fighting to convince investigators that her story is true. Then a news report about another murdered woman leads Lisa to a chilling realization: the man who abducted her is the serial killer terrorizing Tampa.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I Made a Serial Killer Trust Me: Lisa Mae Part 1 Sep 28, 2026

Show notes

Seventeen-year-old Lisa Mae has already decided she doesn’t want to live. Then, riding her bike home through the darkness after a late shift, she notices a car sitting strangely in an empty church parking lot. Seconds later, a man lunges from the shadows, presses a gun to her head, and drags her into his car. Suddenly, the girl who had planned to end her own life is fighting desperately to keep it.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listener Q&A: Kara Robinson Chamberlain, Chris Cander and Kimberly Corban Sep 21, 2026

Show notes

For the first time, Elizabeth sits down with three fellow survivors — Kara Robinson Chamberlain, Chris Cander and Kimberly Corban — to answer questions directly from listeners. They share new details from their remarkable stories, talk about facing dangerous situations after their attacks, and reveal what surviving taught them about spotting danger, trusting their instincts and staying alive when the unthinkable happens.

For information and resources related to mental health, domestic and sexual abuse, child abuse, and human trafficking, go to ElizabethSmartFoundation.org