The Knife: A True Crime Podcast

Episode: The Fugitive Mother (Part 2 of 2)

Hosts: Hannah Smith & Patia Eaton
Guest: Lee Barnett
Date: March 5, 2026

Episode Overview

Theme:
This riveting episode concludes the two-part story of Lee Barnett (aka Alexandria Maria Canton/Geldenhughs), a mother who, following a contentious custody battle in Charleston, South Carolina in 1994, went on the run with her infant daughter. Through in-depth first-person storytelling, Lee narrates how she forged documents, assumed new identities, and eluded law enforcement across several continents for two decades. The episode examines the emotional toll of her choices, the complicated roles of the justice and family court systems, and ultimately, the human impact on everyone touched by the case.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Descent into Flight: From Courtroom Drama to Thriller

• Recap from Part 1: Lee’s marriage deteriorates, she loses custody of her daughter, Savannah, and is labeled “crazy and dangerous” in court despite having been Savannah’s primary caretaker (03:19).
• Turning Point: When she no longer saw a way to keep her daughter safe within the legal system, Lee began planning to disappear: “This is no longer a courtroom drama. It’s now an action thriller.” — Hannah Smith (03:22)

2. Creating New Identities: The Mechanics of Disappearance

• MacArthur Park, Los Angeles: Lee describes seeking counterfeit birth certificates: “I put my finger down the phone book, picked out our new names… I decided I was going to make Samantha a boy because she was still bald.” — Lee Barnett (04:54)
• Navigating Danger: She describes a harrowing exchange in a crime-ridden park to get the documents, including being told to walk through a tunnel as a test of trust or desperation (05:57).
• Forging IDs: Lee meticulously creates photo IDs and forges supporting documents, overcoming obstacles at every turn and even bluffing her way through passport applications by pretending to be sick (12:02).

3. The Escape: Execution of Her Plan

• Meticulous Planning: Lee uses multiple vehicles, disguises herself and her daughter, and relies on trusted family members but keeps them in the dark for their own protection (13:52, 16:22).
• Timeline: She leaves Charleston on "day 65" after the trial loss, only fleeing after waiting in vain for a written court order for appeal (18:09).
• Emotional Farewell: Before disappearing, Lee records a lengthy video and letter explaining her reasons for abduction, highlighting feelings of being gaslit and disbelieved by the system (22:49).

4. Life on the Run: Survival, Secrecy, and Reinvention

• Global Journey: Moves from Germany and Paris to Malaysia, then South Africa, Botswana, New Zealand, and ultimately Australia, always under new identities (29:50, 35:02).
• Building a New Family: Marries, forges new birth certificates and identities for her daughter (now Samantha), and gives birth to a son, Rhys. Raises her children as a “normal family,” but only Lee and her husband know the full truth (35:55).
• Constant Paranoia: Despite external normalcy, Lee describes chronic vigilance and the emotional burden of always being on guard (39:04).
• Support Systems: Confided only in a select few, strategically never putting American friends in legal jeopardy (41:35).

5. Capture and Consequences

• Discovery & Arrest: After nearly 20 years, Lee is arrested in Australia in front of her son, mere days after her second (now ex-) husband’s death. The scene is described with dark humor and honesty (49:33).
• Revelations: She must reveal her true identity to her children, especially to Samantha, in a painful and emotional phone call. Samantha responds with immediate trust but is devastated to learn her father is not her biological parent (51:17).
• Extradition & Sentencing: Lee fights extradition for ten months, then pleads guilty and is ultimately sentenced to 21 months in federal prison (including for passport fraud). She narrowly avoids the maximum potential sentence of 23 years (54:13, 56:46).
• Reflection: Lee expresses no regret, emphasizing survival and protection over remorse. She insists, “A crazy person couldn’t have done all the things I did and maintained such a normal life.” (59:12)

6. Complicated Legacies

• Impact on Children: Both her children, especially Samantha, speak positively about their upbringing and their relationship with Lee, crediting her with a loving, normal childhood (62:22).
• Reconnection: Samantha eventually establishes a distant but cordial relationship with her biological father (61:46).
• Cautionary Perspective: Despite the outcome, Lee emphatically warns others not to try what she did: “You’ll get caught and you’ll never be able to protect your child. … There’s not a single person that I would ever say, yes, go on the run.” (63:15).

7. Larger Themes & Reflections

• Systemic Failings: The hosts and Lee discuss the family court system’s biases, especially against mothers in the ’90s and how “mental illness” was wielded as a legal weapon.
• Complex Victimhood: The hosts acknowledge that while Lee’s story is compelling, her former husband’s loss of his daughter and the court’s perspective must be considered (67:22).
• Ordinary People, Extraordinary Actions: The case demonstrates how, under pressure, “a regular person who doesn’t have any kind of FBI…training can figure out how to go on the run, how to forge documents” — and how desperation can push ordinary people to extraordinary acts (70:02, 70:28).

Memorable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• On entering a life of crime:
  “There was no reason, but I think he wanted to see the shock factor and also to see if I was being followed or to see how serious I was. So I start down that tunnel, and people were laying with needles sticking out of their arms. There was defecation.” — Lee Barnett (05:24)

• On acquiring the forged passports:
  “I whited out the names. I photocopied it, typed the new names in, and then I laminated it… and voila. I was now Alexandra Maria Canton, US Air flight attendant.” — Lee Barnett (12:02)

• The fateful escape:
  “We threw my hair into this little river… I changed dress, Samantha as a little boy… Then he cut my hair off. Yeah, I dyed my hair and put my contacts in. And we almost missed the plane…” — Lee Barnett (16:22)

• On the ever-present risk of being discovered:
  “I never had that [feeling of being safe].” — Lee Barnett (29:28)

• On fabricating her daughter’s identity (and family):
  “…He fell in love with. Everybody fell in love with Savannah the second they met her. Now she's Samantha. … We literally got married right away and then had Reese, my son, 10, 11 months later.” — Lee Barnett (34:10)

• Lee’s vulnerability at her arrest:
  “You envisioned this arrest your whole 20 years. You don’t envision being in Tasmanian boxer shorts and a scrub shirt.” — Lee Barnett (49:33)

• On telling her daughter the truth, after 20 years:
  “I said, honey, I was married 20 years ago, and I had to take you when you were 11 months old to keep you safe. … Mom, I trust you. Of course I do… 30 seconds goes by, and the phone rings, and it’s Sammy. …She just said, mom. And I said, what? And she said, does that mean my daddy wasn’t my daddy? And I just said, sweetheart, your daddy will always be your daddy.” — Lee Barnett (51:41)

• On having no regrets:
  “No, I wish I did. I cannot tell you how scary it is to be deemed mentally ill when you’ve had nothing wrong with you… you have no control over that.” — Lee Barnett (59:12)

• On survivor’s guilt and her message to others:
  “If anything, I have the worst survivor's guilt because Samantha and I had an aunt, Reese, we had… a normal Leave It to Beaver life. It didn't seem like it inside, I was being eaten alive, but on the outside, we did. There's not a single person that I would ever say, yes, go on the run because you'll get caught and you'll never be able to protect your child.” — Lee Barnett (63:15)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [03:19] Introduction/Recap of Lee Barnett's legal battle
• [04:54] Lee describes getting birth certificates at MacArthur Park
• [10:29] Disguises and forging identity documents
• [15:03] The detailed escape plan involving her brother
• [22:49] Lee’s recorded video and justifications
• [29:50] Life in Malaysia and work permit schemes
• [35:02] Remaking life and new family in South Africa
• [39:04] Settling in Australia, the sense of normalcy
• [49:33] The day of Lee's arrest
• [51:17] Telling her children the truth post-arrest
• [54:13] Trial, plea, and sentencing details
• [62:22] Lee and her children’s relationship after prison
• [67:22] Hosts' reflection on victimhood and grey areas
• [70:02] Theme: Ordinary person doing something extraordinary out of desperation

Reflections & Final Thoughts

• Empathetic but Nuanced: The podcast and interview foreground Lee’s emotional reality and the perceived systemic failings that led to her actions, while not shying away from hard questions about the ethics and victims of her crime.
• A Story of Gray Areas: Victim/perpetrator lines blur—Lee is both a lawbreaker and, to many listeners, a relatable mother desperate to protect her child.
• Broader Commentary: Raises questions about the family court system, gendered accusations of “mental illness,” the trauma of custody battles, and the complexities of justice when emotional truth and legal truth diverge.

For further details on Lee's pre-fugitive life and the trial, listen to Part 1 of this series.