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 and it worked. Why? Cole went to his White Court home to collect it on May 19, 2021. Jonathan Vigliotti: And that phone call never comes. Bei der Nutzung unserer Websites und Apps verwenden wir, unsere Websites und Apps fr Sie bereitzustellen, Nutzer zu authentifizieren, Sicherheitsmanahmen anzuwenden und Spam und Missbrauch zu verhindern, und, Ihre Nutzung unserer Websites und Apps zu messen, personalisierte Werbung und Inhalte auf der Grundlage von Interessenprofilen anzuzeigen, die Effektivitt von personalisierten Anzeigen und Inhalten zu messen, sowie, unsere Produkte und Dienstleistungen zu entwickeln und zu verbessern. But Mary Lassiter says the earring matched the necklace Kristin is seen wearing on the billboard. His father Ruben Flores charged with being an accessory after the factwas found not guilty. Maybe we cant. At the time of the April 13 arrests, the sheriff said he believed that had enough evidence to win convictions. The county sheriffs office searched his room once more during the weekend of June 29th, when a team of cadaver dogs signaled the smell of human decay. They described dropping her off at the party at an unofficial fraternity house, and said that when it was over, she needed support to walk as she was being accompanied home by Paul Flores. The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. He says they are Ruben's ex-wife Susan and her boyfriend. Even worse they never sealed his dorm room. Alex Murdaugh Found Guilty of Murdering Wife and Son I didnt understand why. She had taken a job at a coffee shop to pay for a photography course at U.C. D.A. He later argued that the biological evidence found under the deck was not conclusively human blood. In a civil lawsuit, the Smarts' attorney claims that Kristin's remains were buried at one time on Paul Flores' father's property. The lawsuit claims they were moving Kristin's remains. Murphy and Sinclair promised the Smarts the billboard will stay until their daughter is found. Kristin Smarts family in 1999, three years after she was last seen walking home from a party in San Luis Obispo, Calif. Earthmovers were used in searches on and near the California Polytechnic State University campus in 2016. were in the room exactly where she had left them. In March, the Oakland Police Department released a statement saying that it had worked with the FBI and found no evidence indicating Durst was involved. First published on November 28, 2020 / 11:10 PM. And the complaint has some explosive claims about what led investigators to focus under Ruben's deck in the first place. There is no evidence of a murder and no evidence of a rape, Sanger added. Witnesses said Smart was intoxicated, and Flores had said he would walk her home after an off-campus party. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. Chris Lambert: I think that might have been the biggest misstep that investigators have made to this day. Kristin Smart 19, a freshman at California Polytechnic State University had gone to a party on Friday, May 24 , 1996 -- and has not been seen since. 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." In October 2022,. PODCAST EPISODE 2 | WOMAN #1: I wasn't surprised, but there's also that shock value of kind of "oh my god, I knew it! Paul Flores is charged with the murder of Kristin Smart, who disappeared from Cal Poly in 1996. Axel Koester/Sygma via Getty Images. I'm going to go back to the dorms. The elder Flores is charged with accessory after the fact to the crime of murder for allegedly helping Paul conceal Smarts body. James Murphy: To see them in custody was a feeling of great joy for me. PODCAST | EPISODE 1: At least once a day I asked myself what are you doing? Soon after her disappearance, a sheriffs search party combed remote parts of the Cal Poly campus on horseback, archival video from KCRA-TV shows. Paul Flores talks to his attorneys Sara Sanger and Robert Sanger on Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2021 in San Luis Obispo, Calif. had been arrested in connection with her disappearance, Paul Flores was found guilty of murdering Ms. Smart, while in the commission of, or attempted, rape. PODCAST EPISODE 3: Something shiny catches her eye next to the front driver side tire. Through the years, the Smarts have kept pressure on the Flores family. Lourdes Aguiar is the senior producer. Jonathan Vigliotti: How significant was that? Anyone would have been terrified if they heard it.. Produced by Lisa Freed. She was never seen again. (Pool photo by Dave Minsky/Santa Maria Times). 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Cadaver dogs trained to detect human decomposition were deployed by the F.B.I. James Murphy: That suggests that something bad happened in Paul Flores's dorm room. . 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. Cole said investigators checked out the skateboard ramp location but did not find a body. 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. Kristen Modafferi was an 18-year-old college student who was about to start a summer photography course at UC Berkeley when she disappeared after leaving work at a San Francisco coffee shop. They went on trial in July 2022 in Monterey County, Calif. On Oct. 18, 2022, Paul Flores was found guilty of murdering Ms. Smart. People are watching Ruben Flores and Susan Flores and Paul Flores. Denise Smart, Kristins mother, has also praised the show. Today, we make the first move toward bringing justice to Kristin, her family, and the people of San Luis Obispo County.. Flores, 44, was arrested Tuesday at his home, nearly 25 years after Smart left a party near the Cal Poly campus and vanished on the way back to her campus dormitory. On Oct. 18, Paul Flores was found guilty of murdering Ms. Smart. Paul Flores pleads not guilty to the murder and attempted rape of Smart. 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. Ann-Marie Christian: She was who she was because of her parents, for sure. The search for Smart did not begin until a week after her disappearance, as campus police refused to take a missing persons report from a dorm mate; the hunt only began in earnest after the student called the police and the Smart family. They seized digital devices during the search and, in April 2020, executed another search on Paul Flores property in San Pedro. As of 2021, Kristen Modafferi's case remains unsolved. He has denied any involvement. You just don't talk, and you get away with it. In April 2021, investigators finally put the pieces of the puzzle together and decided they had enough to charge the then-44-year-old Paul Flores with Kristin's murder, and his then-80-year-old father with being an accessory after the fact. An earring that appeared to match the necklace Kristin is wearing on the billboard. But the investigation is ongoing. But further investigation of the Flores's two trucks seemed impossible. 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? The judge in the case has issued a gag order preventing lawyers, investigators, witnesses and others from speaking about the case or releasing documents. Unsealed court documents in the Kristin Smart murder case include allegations of a discovery of human blood and witnesses who claim to have seen suspicious . He later told investigators that he walked her as far as his dorm, where they parted ways. Paul Flores is charged with first-degree murder and is accused of killing Smart while attempting to rape her. Margarita soon decided she'd had enough. Judge van Rooyen announced in April that the trial would be moved to Monterey County, about 140 miles north of San Luis Obispo, after the defense team requested the change of venue because of extensive publicity around the case. The jury hearing Paul Floress case began deliberations after closing arguments on Oct. 4. Margarita Campos: I was, like, "Kristin, I'm going to go back home. They told her Kristin had not been seen all weekend and asked if Kristin was with them. Her younger sister Lindsey says their mother urged Kristin to go there. Cadaver dogs were sent into Paul Floress dorm room. And might have connected Kristin to Susan Flores's house, says James Murphy. James Murphy: Every day. But to fully understand Chris Lambert's contribution, you have to go back to the beginning. Other witnesses included students who were at the party. Everyone knew Paul (Flores) was creepy. Lindsey Smart Stewart: Right. Recently unsealed court documents show the extent to which law enforcement has looked into Flores over the years: 48 search warrants involving wiretaps and GPS tracking, and a search of Flores former Cal Poly dorm room. 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. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. JAMES MURPHY: In May of 96 were you a student at Cal Poly? He's going to find her body, which is awful for a parent. In 2011, the Smarts hoped those boulders would become a little lighter when Ian Parkinson became the . Meanwhile, the hearing is scheduled to conclude on Friday, when the judge will rule if prosecutors have probable cause to go to trial. Back in May 1996, Kristin Smart was finishing her freshman year at California Polytechnic State University better known as Cal Poly. But it was a local story and the thing that stood out to me is that nobody was talking about it anymore. Um, wherever we can punch holes. But while campus police weren't doing much, Kristin's parents were doing whatever they could to find their daughter. 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. Denise Pearce: Kristin hasn't come home And we're not sure where she is We don't know anything. On June 23, 1997, Kristen left the coffee shop where she worked, Spinelli's Coffee in San Francisco's Crocker Galleria. San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office, via Associated Press. But Margarita says, the police did not seem concerned. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. On May 25, 1996, friends dropped her off at an off-campus party. Classes were difficult, she was trying to fit in, and she missed her family. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Kristin Smart: Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong calls the Smarts. [emotional] I will go outside at nighttime and I'll look up at the full moon and I'll think that that kid's buried somewhere real close. Nearly a week after their arrests, father and son both pleaded not guilty in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court. Members of the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department and FBI searched the grounds of Susan Flores's home in Arroyo Grande on June 19, 2000, for any evidence that might shed light on the disappearance of Cal Poly student Kristin Smart. That technology uncovered a soil disturbance under the deck as well as four soil samples that tested positive for human blood; an April evacuation also tested positive for blood. On day two, August 3rd, a close friend of Smarts from college, Steven Flemming, tells the court that Flores had interacted with Smart before the party they both attended prior to her disappearance. Kristen Modafferi was last seen on the afternoon of June 23, 1997, at the coffee shop where she was working in the Crocker Galleria Mall in San Francisco, California. Jonathan Vigliotti [with Lambert outside of the the dorms]: Paul and Kristin then make their way here. True crime podcasting is not something that particularly captivated me, Lambert told Rolling Stonelast year. 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. On October 18, 2022, Paul Flores was found guilty of first-degree murder. Paul Flores, 44, has pleaded not guilty to a murder charge. Missing-person posters and billboards offering rewards appeared along roads and in other public places. Smarts remains have never been found, but authorities recently said they believe they know where she was buried, though they havent disclosed the location. Convicted killer Scott Peterson is expected to be called to the witness stand at a pre-trial hearing in California involving the 25-year-old disappearance of co-ed Kristin Smart. PODCAST EPISODE 4: So, I walk him up to his sister's apartment, and all of a sudden, he just like picked me up, carried me inside, turned around and shut the apartment door, and locked it. but I knew that I could try to do a small part. Chris Lambert: I wish I knew why. Kristen was in her first year at Cal Poly when she vanished in 1996. "48 Hours" looks back to their arrests and how the saga began. To declare to the public if you stay quiet, you will get away with this. 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. By the time they called the Cal Poly campus police, Kristin had been missing for more than 48 hours. A missing-person report was filed with the campus police on May 28. But Parkinson acknowledges it hasn't been easy. Cole testified that Hudson told him about Paul's statement and that she'd also seen Paul with his white pickup truck at the skateboard ramp in Huasna. Smart's body was recently moved from the home of Ruben Flores, a prosecutor said. Previously sealed documents related to the case become available to the public that explain the rape charges Peurelle attempted to add against Paul Flores. In his complaint, Murphy alleges, along with Ruben, there were two other unnamed individuals. Just weeks later, Kristin's frustrated parents contacted James Murphy, a local civil attorney. But 22 years later, when he couldn't find any recent stories about the case, he decided to do something. It wasn't until Kristin's roommate returned to their dorm room, that Margarita realized Kristin never came home. Paul Flores did not have a car on campus, so Murphy surmises he had to have had help. She loved swimming and skiing. In fact, Cheryl Anderson, who trusted Flores to walk Kristin back to her dorm alone, told police that her friends called him "Chester the molester," because he was known for groping girls. The police searched her dorm room in Muir Hall, finding her wallet and reminders to turn in assignments. 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. 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. Chris Lambert: Kristin's father would come down and hike every trail he could find on the Central Coast. Chris Lambert: I didn't know the scale. 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. Lindsey Smart Stewart: I think they're, like, carrying boulders on their back. 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.
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