![]() ![]() Nearly 25 years after she disappeared, authorities said new evidence led to the arrest of Paul and Ruben Flores in April 2021, which Smart’s family called a “bittersweet day.” Her friends and family never heard from Smart again. Paul Flores had walked her home, prosecutors said. She was last seen near her dorm but never made it to her room, police said. The Smart family described the decades-long search for answers in the case as an “agonizingly long journey with more downs than ups.” The case haunted the small college city of San Luis Obispo in 1996.īillboards in the community of about 47,000 residents displayed Smart’s face, asking the public for any information that could lead to clues in her case. Smart’s disappearance haunted small college city He is scheduled to be sentenced December 9. Paul Flores’ conviction carries a sentence of 25 years to life in prison, prosecutors said. “We will never be able to personally thank everyone, but please know our gratitude and love goes out to each of you who have been with us on this long, overwhelming, and emotional journey.” “Our family is comforted and strengthened by the knowledge that Kristin continues to be held in the hearts and memories of many,” the family said. The family thanked investigators and prosecutors for their efforts and expressed gratitude to Chris Lambert for his 2019 podcast highlighting the case, “Your Own Backyard,” which they said shined a spotlight “in our darkest hours by sharing Kristin’s voice and story.” Kristin Smart Office of the Attorney General of California/Reuters “After 26 years, with today’s split verdicts, we learned that our quest for justice for Kristin will continue.” “Without Kristin, there is no joy or victory with this verdict, we all know it did not have to be this way,” the Smart family said. In a decision by a separate jury announced Tuesday, Ruben Flores was found not guilty of being an accessory to Smart’s murder, the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release.Īlthough Smart’s body has not been recovered, she was declared dead in 2002. ![]() Prosecutors also accused Ruben Flores, Paul Flores’ father, of helping his son move Smart’s body to his Arroyo Grande home and hiding it for a time under his deck. Flores was the last person to see Smart alive and prosecutors argued he raped or attempted to rape Smart and then killed her in his dorm room. It was first reported by The Tribune, and a reporter posted snippets of documents on Twitter.Paul and Ruben Flores arrested in connection to the murder of Kristin Smart SLO County SheriffĬalifornia jury finds man guilty in the 1996 murder of Kristin Smartįlores and Smart were both freshmen attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo when she disappeared in May 1996, authorities said. The court document was filed before bail arguments Monday in San Luis Obispo Superior Court when the father and son were arraigned. Witnesses said Smart was intoxicated, and Flores had said he would walk her home after an off-campus party. Paul Flores, a fellow freshman at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, was the last person seen with Smart on May 25, 1996. A bail hearing for Ruben Flores is scheduled for this afternoon. Paul Flores, 44, has pleaded not guilty to a murder charge. Ruben Flores, 80, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of accessory after the murder for hiding Smart’s body after his son allegedly killed her. The body of Smart, which has never been found, was recently moved from the home of Ruben Flores, a prosecutor said, according to a document filed Monday and posted on social media by a reporter for The Tribune of San Luis Obispo. LOS ANGELES – The body of Stockton college student Kristin Smart, who has been missing for nearly 25 years, was once buried in the backyard of the home owned by the murder suspect’s father, authorities said in a court document. ![]()
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