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Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Chris Lambert: The only thing he would confirm on tape is that his name is Paul Flores. Kristen Modafferi, Kristin Smart & Kent Jacobs. In February 2020, the authorities executed search warrants at four locations in California and Washington State and recovered what the San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office described as items of interest. One location was the Los Angeles home of Paul Flores, KCAL-TV reported. D.A. And then months and months later, they'd reach back out and say, can you get us in touch with this person again? Paul Flores did not have a car on campus, so Murphy surmises he had to have had help. The documents also include several people the defense believes investigators should have looked into in addition to Flores, including convicted murderer and fellow then-student Scott Peterson, who was previously ruled out. At the time of the April 13 arrests, the sheriff said he believed that had enough evidence to win convictions. But it's Susan Flores's concrete backyard that initially received a lot of attention. Oct. 18, 2022 In the spring of 1996, Kristin Smart, a 19-year-old college student, left an off-campus party in San Luis Obispo, Calif., and walked home to her dormitory. There is no evidence of a murder and no evidence of a rape, Sanger added. In the months after Kristin's disappearance, one truck was traded in and the other was reported stolen. JAMES MURPHY: Would you state your full name for the record please. He says Smart seemed uncomfortable but was too nice to ask the boy to leave. Flores wasn't talking. Ian Parkinson: I committed to them that I was going to go back to the beginning and re-examine every piece of evidence that we had. James Murphy: There's no way to get evidence back once you've lost it. PAUL FLORES: On the advice of my attorney, I refuse to answer that question based on the fifth amendment of the United States Constitution. James Murphy: An eyewitness actually documented the fact that throughout the night that there was activity in the area of the underside of that deck. PODCAST EPISODE 2 | WOMAN #2: You wouldn't want to be alone in a room with him. They also uncovered videos in a folder labeled practice that featured women wearing ball gags and in other fetish positions. Margarita Campos: Kristin was like, "come on, let's go, let's go." I didn't know how many people were gonna listen. A cemetery posted a personal ad for a goose whose mate died. The Kristin Smart Scholarship has been established by her family to help other college bound women pursue their dreams. Once, he says, Flores was lurking in the lobby of Smarts dorm at 1 a.m.; another time, he says he saw the man in Smarts dorm room. The Kristin Smart disappearance: After 26 years, Paul Flores is convicted of murder 20 photos. Authorities also uncovered fibers consistent with the color clothing Smart was last seen wearing. When authorities later confronted him with the two stories, Flores admitted lying and offered a new explanation. James Murphy: Every day. Im not going to exclude a member of the media (for doing their job).. Marital Status: Single Characteristics: Caucasian female with brown hair and eyes. James Murphy: They're interested in seeing Paul Flores get convicted and Ruben Flores get held accountable. Margarita Campos: I was a little bit more introverted and inhibited and she was like, "no, we have to go out and we have to go like live life." Chris Lambert: I wish I knew why. Paul and Ruben Flores appear at the San Luis Obispo Superior Court for the first time, at which time Judge Craig van Rooyen denies Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelles request to add two rape charges against Paul, according to The Tribune of San Luis Obispo. She was she was frantic I don't understand this, you know? Margarita Campos: She was absolutely sober when I left her. Jonathan Vigliotti: She had just 40 yards to go and yet she vanished. Below, Rolling Stone outlines where the Smart case is now: San Luis Obispo District Attorney Dan Dow announces chargesagainst Paul Flores and his father Ruben in connection with what he calls the 1996 homicide of Cal Poly student Kristin Smart. I don't think she went back to her dorm at all. The Smart family. Specifically, that they had Paul's white Nissan pickup in their possession. But Paul Flores was never charged with any of these incidents. She loved swimming and skiing. But to fully understand Chris Lambert's contribution, you have to go back to the beginning. During Tuesdays hearing, San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Detective Clint Cole testified about a conversation he had with Ruben Flores at his Arroyo Grande home when Cole was there to obtain a DNA swab. Axel Koester/Sygma via Getty Images The. In April 2021, investigators charged Paul Flores, left, with Kristin Smart's murder, and his then-80-year-old father Ruben, as an accessory after the fact. Kristen has never been found. She and all who have worked so hard toward this day deserve nothing less.. On May 25, 1996, friends dropped her off at an off-campus party. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. Flores claimed after walking Kristin back from the party, he went to his room in Santa Lucia Hall while she walked alone to her dorm. She disappeared in 1996 after attending an off-campus party and while she was declared legally dead in 2002, her body has never been found. And yes, we believe it's linked to Kristin. Cole said that Ruben then clarified that he meant he was the only one of the three to have been arrested. The judge rules that the DA cannot be disqualified for wearing purple clothing. After apparently becoming intoxicated, Smart headed back to her dorm with fellow partiers Tim Davis and Cheryl Anderson. Margarita Campos: I'll never forget her shadow against the building, this apartment complex, just standing like kind of cross-armed with the long leg And she was just kind of like looking at me like, [sighs] you're really walking away now, like you're really, you're leaving? Jonathan Vigliotti: What toll over time did this have on your parents? So now you've got three different stories about how he got that black eye. School was over, so campus police found an empty room that had been sanitized by the university's cleaning crew. Five months after Kristin Smart disappeared, Paul Flores was brought before a grand jury but no charges were ever filed. She writes about missing persons, unsolved murders, and human rights. The sheriff's office seized the trailer and Det. As of 2021, Kristen Modafferi's case remains unsolved. The mother is washing her car in the driveway at one point. From the start, investigators. Peuvrelle, who said Ruben Flores has helped cover up the crime for nearly a quarter-century, would continue to do so if freed. The day after the arrests, Dan Dow, the San Luis Obispo County district attorney, said that Paul Flores had caused the death of Ms. Smart while in the commission of, or attempted, rape. Ruben Flores helped to hide her remains, he said. Chris Lambert: A young couple moves into it with their kid. James Murphy and Garin Sinclair look at the billboard that has been in their front yard for more than two decades. Then, in 2011, Ian Parkinson was elected sheriff. suddenly major pieces of evidence came forward. Klicken Sie auf Alle ablehnen, wenn Sie nicht mchten, dass wir und unsere Partner Cookies und personenbezogene Daten fr diese zustzlichen Zwecke verwenden. James Murphy: That suggests that something bad happened in Paul Flores's dorm room. D.A. Just days after taking over the investigation, the San Luis Obispo Sheriff's Office brought several dogs trained to detect human remains, to the Cal Poly dorms. For more than two decades, her family, friends, and supporters searched for answers and for justice. Eighteen-year-old Kristen Modafferi was a college honor student from North Carolina spending her summer in San Francisco. Smart's body was recently moved from the home of Ruben Flores, a prosecutor said. Denise Pearce: The investigation was completely botched by the campus police. He'd go through tunnels, under bridges, looking for his daughter and expecting best case scenario. She disappeared in 1996 after attending an off-campus party and while she was declared legally dead in 2002, her body has never been found. That young woman was Kristin Smart, and she hasn't been seen since. Lindsey Smart Stewart: She had traveled the world before she even made it to college. The podcast, "Your Own Backyard,"has drawn millions of listeners and focused renewed attention on this decades old case. Paul Flores isnt granted bail, with Judge Craig B. You just don't talk, and you get away with it. As they soon learned, she had ended up at a party at an off-campus house. In the spring of 1996, Kristin Smart, a 19-year-old college student, left an off-campus party in San Luis Obispo, Calif., and walked home to her dormitory. Kristin Denise Smart (born February 20, 1977 [1] [6] -declared legally dead May 25, 2002) was an American woman who was found to have been murdered by Paul Flores at the end of her freshman year on the campus of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly). Dozens of community members on Saturday evening gathered for a vigil at Santa Rosa Park in San Luis Obispo to light candles in the memory of Kristin Smart, the Cal Maybe we cant. I did have guilt about that. November 01, 2017. They also did not focus on Paul Flores immediately, waiting six days to formally interview him. Devastating. Book Author Jenn is a lawyer-turned-author and true crime writer. Chris Lambert: He told those friends he just woke up with the black eye. Paul invoked the Fifth Amendment when the DAs office subpoenaed him to testify before a grand jury in 1996 and after the Smarts filed a $40 million wrongful-death lawsuit against him; during a 1997 deposition, he again pleaded the Fifth. It was first reported by The Tribune, and a reporter posted snippets of documents on Twitter. His father, Ruben, will be tried as an accessory to the crime. Lindsey Smart Stewart: It just amazes me the amount of evidence that's available, yet nothing has happened. They havent revealed what was found but returned to the yard for additional digging after the arrests. People are watching Ruben Flores and Susan Flores and Paul Flores. She had taken a job at a coffee shop to pay for a photography course at U.C. There was early mistakes made that you can't recover from when you're missing those vital pieces. to search on and near the Cal Poly campus. so eventually he unlocked you know, the apartment door, and I left. The Smart's attorney James Murphy, and his wife and office manager Garin Sinclair, have had Kristin's billboard in their front yard since late 1997. A separate jury for Ruben Flores started deliberating on Oct. 5. Chris Lambert: There was a man climbing her trellis and trying to get inside her balcony, very intoxicated and refusing to leave. Ruben Flores was acquitted by a separate jury. I knocked on her door, and I thought she was just sleeping, or she went out and about, you know? Witness Jennifer Hudson takes the stand, where she tells the court that, in 1996, when she was 17 years old, Flores laughingly told her he had taken care of Smart. So, she slowed down and walked with them. We want to hear it. Um, wherever we can punch holes. Jonathan Vigliotti: And that phone call never comes. And these girls are inviting us out. I think they're just waiting to see what the outcome is going to be. James Murphy: He lied to the police about everything. On Monday, he questioned why investigators needed to keep searching for evidence after making arrests. Sie knnen Ihre Einstellungen jederzeit ndern, indem Sie auf unseren Websites und Apps auf den Link Datenschutz-Dashboard klicken. Whatever happened in those early hours, one thing is indisputable: Kristin Smart has never been seen again. Prosecutor Chris Peuvrelle asked him if he found the remains of any monkeys or ferrets or any human bodies on the property. He also said there was suspicious staining in the soil indicative of human remains. Any evidence that might have been there was long gone. Let's go." He also said that law enforcement leaked information to "Your Own Backyard" podcaster Chris Lambert. Jonathan Vigliotti: Was this case, given the evidence that was lost early on, doomed from the very beginning? When they reached the turnoff to Cheryl's dorm, she says Flores tried to hug and kiss her. But I've seen it. Chris Lambert, who worked as a CBS News consultant, pieced together what he learned from people who were there that night. The investigation seemed to be hampered from the start by a series of missteps by campus police beginning with their assumption that Kristin was off having fun and ignoring worried friends who said she was missing. What's going on? The hearing began August 2 and is expected to last into at least next week. Podcaster Lambert will not be called to the stand during the Kristin Smart murder hearing. Her dorm entrance is right over here. Lindsey Smart Stewart: Right. When Kristin Smart disappeared, Paul Flores's parents Susan and Ruben were separated and living apart. In his complaint, Murphy alleges, along with Ruben, there were two other unnamed individuals. DAN DOW [press conference]: We have evidence that we do believe there are other people that are not yet identified that have had some kind of a criminal act perpetrated on them by Mr. Flores. Her younger sister Lindsey says their mother urged Kristin to go there. Cole said a search of it revealed "suspicious activity.". She left around 2 a.m. and was accompanied by Paul Flores, who was also a student at Cal Poly. 2 men found drugged after leaving NYC gay bars were killed, medical examiner says. After almost 25 years of suspicion, on April 13, 2021, San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson announced the arrest ofPaul Flores in the disappearance of Kristin Smart. But Mary Lassiter says the earring matched the necklace Kristin is seen wearing on the billboard. Kristin Smart, a bright, adventurous communication studies freshman at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, went missing May 25, 1996. When they showed up, it was Paul Flores. Even more difficult to understand was why they waited two months to search the family home where Paul Flores was living with his father, Ruben. PODCAST EPISODE 5: If you were making a film about a new law enforcer who's coming to a small town to save the day, you'd probably cast Parkinson. Cole also testified that the Flores family was wiretapped for 30 days starting on January 5, 2020. Even though he'd never investigated anything before, Lambert quit his job to create a podcast about the case. The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time It was updated on October 22, 2022.). Other witnesses are also questioned, but Flemmings testimony is noteworthy as he is the first to say he saw Flores and Smart together before the party. Other witnesses included students who were at the party. Back in May 1996, Kristin Smart was finishing her freshman year at California Polytechnic State University better known as Cal Poly. Mesick argued there were many innocent explanations why soil had previously been dug up in the yard. During Tuesday's hearing, San Luis Obispo County. To declare to the public if you stay quiet, you will get away with this. His is the latest in a line of true-crime podcasts to play a role in an arrest, a court appeal or even an exoneration. Margarita Campos: I was, like, "Kristin, I'm going to go back home. Two days after Kristin Smart vanished, Paul Flores went to the Arroyo Grande Police Department because of an outstanding DUI warrant. Nikki Rodriguez, a spokeswoman for the court, said the documents were not supposed to be public. And yes, we did find physical evidence at, at least two homes. SUSAN FLORES: [Long pause, grabs water bottle] Of course not. The arrests of the father and son came after investigators using ground-penetrating radar and cadaver dogs discovered evidence connected directly to Smarts death last month during a search at Ruben Flores home, authorities said. The body of Kristin 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. Chadwell answered no. The evidentiary hearing is underway and witnesses are testifying in front of Superior Court Judge Craig van Rooyen about Flores interactions with Smart. But while campus police weren't doing much, Kristin's parents were doing whatever they could to find their daughter. Margarita Campos: I was expecting her to knock on my door and be, like, "Oh, Margarita, you missed a rager. Chris Lambert: As they describe it, Paul Flores just sort of appears out of nowhere. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images Nineteen-year-old Cal Poly student Kristin Smart went missing after a campus party 25. It was on Memorial Day weekend 1996 that their 19-year-old daughter Kristin Smart disappeared. In one of Paul's police interviews he mentioned that he wanted to be let out of the interview because he needed to help clean up concrete at his mom's house So, what was being done in Susan Flores's backyard in the weeks after Kristin went missing? DAN DOW [press conference]: But the allegation that he was committing or attempting to commit a rape when he killed her, is the basis for which we are able to file first-degree felony murder charges. He says they are Ruben's ex-wife Susan and her boyfriend. He gets his arm around her torso and her arm around his neck, and he's helping her walk. They asked him not to use their names: PODCAST EPISODE 2 | WOMAN #1: Well his nickname was "Scary Paul.". D.A. The next month, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office took over from the Cal Poly police as the lead investigators. Hudson previously testified during the preliminary hearing that while hanging out with a group of skateboarders in San Luis Obispo in 1996, she heard Paul Flores use a derogatory term to refer to Kristin Smart and say, "I'm done playing with her and I put her out underneath my ramp in Huasna.". Ms. Smarts acquaintances were interviewed. Chris Lambert: Everything else, he took the Fifth Amendment. But the investigation is ongoing. A college student at North Carolina State University, ABC 7 writes that Modafferi had received a scholarship to work and live in a different city for the summer. Sources tell us investigators discovered videos and photographs on Flores' computer showing him engaged in sexual activity with at least 10 different women, apparently in various states of consciousness. James Murphy: They brought in the first dog and they'd had the dog go through the dorms. Flores defense team moves to recuse the San Luis Obispo County District Attorneys Office from the Smart case because prosecutor Peuvrelle and others have been seen wearing purple clothing, Smarts favorite color. She spent a summer in London, was an exchange student in Venezuela, and a lifeguard at a camp in Hawaii. It's, like, she has nothing on her. Ann-Marie Christian: Her parents reminded me of my parents. Denise Pearce | Longtime family friend: Things were gonna get better and, you know, and and they did. A lot of women felt uncomfortable around him, Flemming says. ", Although suspicion surrounded Flores almost from the beginning, any hopes for an arrest were dashed in May 1997 when then-Sheriff Ed Williams made an admission to the San Luis Obispo Telegraph: "We need Paul Flores to tell us what happened to Kristin Smart so absent something from Mr. Flores, I don't see us completing this case.". The 19-year-old, who is also from Charlotte and a . A hundred percent that was happening. When asked about how he got the injury Flores told three different stories. Paul Flores may have wanted a fresh start in Southern California, but Chris Lambert says, he could not seem to break old habits. And it was only 250 miles from Stockton, California, where she grew up with Lindsey and their brother Matt. He promised the Smarts that solving Kristin's case would be a priority. Paul Flores is charged with first-degree murder and is accused of killing Smart while attempting to rape her. James Murphy: Paul Flores had a reputation amongst the girls that knew him at Cal Poly as being a creeper that he was always trying to hit on women. Those were kind of unspoken things. Chris Lambert: They didn't bring cadaver dogs with them. Please enter valid email address to continue. Paul Flores, lower left, remained in jail without bail while Ruben Flores, upper right, was able to post bail after a judge agreed to lower the bail amount from $250,000 to $50,000, San Luis Obispo County Superior Court/Zoom, How a tragic boating crash is connected to the family of Alex Murdaugh, Five deaths with a connection to Alex Murdaugh's family investigated, Chilling details revealed in JJ Vallow and Tylee Ryan deaths, Mother at center of international manhunt speaks out to "48 Hours". Lindsey Smart Stewart: I think they're, like, carrying boulders on their back. Chris Lambert: They just have never given up and are never going to give up on their daughter.