CA v. Flores & Flores: The Kristin Smart Murder Trial

SALINAS, Calif. (Court TV) – Testimony began Monday, July 18, at the Monterey County courthouse in The Kristin Smart Murder Trial. Three months later — on Tuesday, October 18 — a  jury found Paul Flores guilty of first-degree premeditated murder. His father, Ruben Flores, was found not guilty of accessory after the fact. He had been accused of helping hide Smart’s body. Paul Flores faces 25 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced on December 9.

The fate of the missing college freshman was a mystery for decades.

This combination photo shows suspects Paul Flores (L) and Ruben Flores (R), who were arrested Tuesday, April 13, 2021, for the murder of Kristin Smart. Flores, the longtime suspect in the 25-year-old disappearance of the California college student was arrested Tuesday, April 13, 2021, on suspicion of murder, and his father was booked in jail as an accessory to the crime. Flores, 44, who was the last person seen with Smart on the California Polytechnic State University campus in San Luis Obispo before she vanished in 1996, was taken into custody in the Los Angeles area. (San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

19-year-old Smart was last seen on May 26, 1996, as she left a campus party with two other students at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. One of those students was Paul Flores.

Flores was a longtime suspect in Smart’s disappearance, but was not arrested until last year when new evidence was discovered. His father, Ruben Flores, was also arrested at that time.

Paul, 45, was charged with murder. Ruben, 80, was charged as an accessory. Both men maintain their innocence.

In a unique set of circumstances, father and son were tried simultaneously, but with different juries. Those separate juries rotated in and out of the courtroom, depending on which witness was called to the stand.

In February 2020, 24 years after smart went missing, search warrants were issued for Paul’s home and his parents’ home, as well, as property in Washington State.

During a follow-up search of the home, police caught a break in the case; they discovered “biological evidence” under the deck behind Reuben’s home. Paul and Reuben were arrested. The Associated Press reported that the soil contained traces of human blood and stains.

Last April, Smart’s family sued Reuben for severe emotional distress. The suit alleges Reuben relocated the remains of their loved one with the assistance of Paul’s mother, Susan Flores and her boyfriend, Mike McConville.

Interest in getting justice for Smart was largely reignited by Chris Lambert’s podcast “Your Own Backyard,” which put pressure on authorities to solve the case.

Smart was declared legally dead in 2002. Her body has not been found.

DAILY TRIAL HIGHLIGHTS

VERDICTS – 10/18/22

• A California jury found Paul Flores guilty of first-degree premeditated murder in the 1996 disappearance of 19-year-old college student Kristin Smart.
• His father, Ruben Flores, was found not guilty of accessory after the fact. He had been accused of helping hide Smart’s body.
• Paul Flores faces 25 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced on December 9, 2022.
  • WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Paul Flores Guilty of First-Degree Murder
  • WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Ruben Flores Not Guilty of Accessory to Murder 
  • READ MORE: Paul Flores guilty of first-degree murder of Kristin Smart; Ruben Flores acquitted

JURY DELIBERATIONS – 10/17/22

• Monterey County Superior Court Judge Jennifer O’Keefe went on the record Monday to announce that the jury for Ruben Flores has reached a verdict in the case against him.
• The verdict for Ruben won’t be read until one is also in for Paul’s case and at that time, they will be read back-to-back. Paul’s jury is still deliberating.
  • WATCH: Kristin Smart Murder Trial: One of Two Juries Reaches Verdict
  • READ MORE: Kristin Smart Murder Trial: Verdict reached for Ruben Flores

DAY 34 – 10/5/22

• San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle started out by thanking the jurors Wednesday morning for their time but then jumped right into laying out the groundwork for how and why he claims Ruben Flores helped his son get rid of Kristin Smart’s body.
  • Peuvrelle asked jurors for accountability and told them that while Ruben is older now, they can’t have sympathy for someone just because of their age.
  • Peuvrelle referred back to a phrase used in his closing arguments for Paul by telling jurors, “Justice delayed doesn’t have to be justice denied.”
  • The prosecutor described the Smart family’s pain while searching hundreds and hundreds of hours for Kristin.
  • Peuvrelle continued by saying that over 25 years, Ruben continued to hide the body and Paul continued to rape women.
  • READ MORE: Juries deliberating in Kristin Smart murder trial
• Ruben Flores’ attorney, Harold Mesick, then delivered his closing argument.
  • Mesick questioned jurors, asking if they got all questions answered or simply more questions than answers.
  • “I think this case screams reasonable doubt,” Mesick said, while adding there is a chance Kristin is alive and just missing.
  • Mesick said Paul did a good deed by helping Kristin get up when she fell at the party and by trying to keep her warm during the walk back to the dorms.
  • He insisted that his 81-year-old client has never been charged with a crime in his life.
  • In response to the prosecution’s argument that Paul called his father for help to hide Kristin’s body, Mesick called it a “ludicrous theory because there is no evidence to support the theory.”
• Both sets of juries are now deliberating in the Kristin Smart murder trial.
• If convicted, Paul faces a sentence of 25 years to life. Ruben faces a maximum sentence of three years in jail.

DAY 33 – 10/4/22

• Closing arguments for Paul, who is charged with the 1996 murder of Kristin Smart, wrapped up Tuesday afternoon. The jury is now deliberating.
  • WATCH: Kristin Smart Murder Trial: Closing Arguments Wrap Up
• In his closing argument for Paul Flores, defense attorney Robert Sanger talked about a question one of the jurors had regarding the testimony of Adela Morris, a dog handler whose dog searched Paul Flores’s dorm shortly after Kristin’s disappearance.
  • The question was about whether Morris’ dogs could alert on vomit and “whether that was right.” Sanger brought up false alerts and said, “We’ve seen them in this case. The prosecution brings in a dog handler in the case and says, ‘That’s a good question.’ It has to be answered by the prosecution. It may seem unfair, but it’s the way it works in our country. The People have to prove it. In the end, it is your job after weeks of trial to figure out what this is all about.”
• Following that, Sanger talked to jurors about “uncharged acts” witnesses brought forth in the case, saying two women came forward alleging Paul Flores raped or attempted to rape them. Sanger said, “He’s charged with murder, not rape or attempted rape.”
• He went on to tell the jurors that if Paul took advantage of them, “That’s wrong, that’s bad, that’s a crime he can be convicted of, but that’s not your job. What you have to decide is whether Paul Flores committed murder.”
• Sanger attacked the credibility of other witnesses that came forward to law enforcement decades after Kristin’s disappearance, saying that it’s too much of a coincidence that after all these years, they finally decided to tell their side of the story. There’s “too much publicity.”
• Later in the morning, Sanger said, “It’s probable that something happened to her, but what was it? Did she go somewhere else? What was she doing? We don’t know. You can’t fill in the blank with ‘I bet I know’ because that’s not how this works.”
• Sanger told the jurors that they needed to question whether the expert witnesses for the prosecution are actually experts. At one point he said, “It’s junk science coming into the courtroom.”
• Following the nearly six hours of closing arguments from Sanger Monday and into Tuesday, the prosecution had a chance for a rebuttal.
• In the afternoon, San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Chris Peuvrelle told jurors that “The only at-risk behavior Kristin Smart participated in that night was existing in the same zip code as Paul Flores.”
• He continued on to say, “Still no alibi for Saturday morning because he was murdering Kristin Smart and hiding the body with his dad.”
• Paul’s jury was sent to begin deliberations around 3 p.m. Tuesday. Jury instructions for Ruben’s case were given to his jurors by the judge moments later.
• Closing arguments are scheduled to begin in his case Wednesday morning. If verdicts are reached, they will be read back-to-back.
• READ MORE: Jurors now deciding fate of Paul Flores in Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 32 – 10/3/22

• Paul Flores’ jury was given jury instructions Monday morning. Once closing arguments in his case are complete, jurors can begin deliberating immediately. Ruben Flores’ jury is expected to hear closing arguments Tuesday.
• San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle told jurors the “truth is, Kristin Smart is dead and the evidence is clear that she was killed by Paul Flores.” Peuvrelle also said, “While the Smart’s searched, Ruben accumulated trophies in his bedside nightstand and Paul kept raping women.”
  • WATCH: Closing Arguments Underway in Kristin Smart Murder Trial
• Peuvrelle was referring to several items related to the case that investigators say were found at Ruben’s house during a search along with witnesses who came forward claiming Paul sexually assaulted them while they were under the influence of drugs and alcohol in the years following Kristin’s disappearance.
• Peuvrelle went on to tell jurors, “We don’t have a body, but we do have blood.” He later showed pictures of presumptive positive blood tests he says were from the soil beneath the deck of Ruben Flores’ Arroyo Grande home.
• Peuvrelle laid out a timeline for jurors alleging Paul killed Kristin sometime Saturday morning after the party they both attended and then called his father to help him hide the body.
• The prosecutor spent quite some time recapping the evidence, including re-playing portions of interviews Paul did with law enforcement early on in the investigation.
• Peuvrelle told jurors that in order to find Paul guilty of first-degree murder, they have to believe beyond a reasonable doubt that Kristin died while Paul was either raping or attempting to rape her.
• READ MORE: Closing arguments underway in Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 31 – 9/29/22

• The final witness took the stand Thursday in the Kristin Smart murder trial. San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle called DNA analyst Angela Butler to the stand.
• She previously testified about soil samples she was given by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office that were reportedly collected from Ruben Flores’ yard in 2021.
• Butler was asked whether her lab has conducted any experiments on older blood evidence. Butler said “yes,” saying they had done HemDirect testing on blood stains from the 70s and 80s, later revealing the samples were on clothing that were stored inside, in a box
• Butler also mentioned that tests she conducted on the soil samples from Ruben’s yard yielded both negative and positive results, but testified that even weak results are considered positives.
• She said there can be no false positive results but there can be false negative ones.
• Butler’s testimony on Thursday marked the end of evidence being presented in the months-long trial. Opening statements began back on July 18.
• Judge O’Keefe said closing arguments for Paul Flores are set to take place Monday starting at 8:30 a.m. Closing arguments for Ruben’s case are set for Tuesday morning. Following the completion of each set of closing arguments, jurors will begin immediately deliberating.
• READ MORE: Closing arguments in Kristin Smart murder trial scheduled to begin Monday

DAY 30 – 9/27/22

• Late Tuesday afternoon, the defense rested its case in the Kristin Smart murder trial.
• Earlier Tuesday, the defense called former San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s detective Henry Stewart to the stand. He testified about working alongside another detective in 1996 on the Kristin Smart case.
• Stewart said that in 2001, he and Detective Crawford worked with the FBI to conduct an undercover investigation in an effort to get a confession from Paul Flores.
• Next on the stand was sheriff’s detective Clint Cole, who was asked by Sanger about when he was officially assigned to the case in 2017.
• Cole testified that he inherited several hundred documents in relation to the Kristin Smart case, including files from the Cal Poly Police Department, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.
  • READ MORE: Defense rests case in Kristin Smart murder trial
• Court was dismissed for the day and is expected to resume Thursday morning after an off-the-record day on Wednesday in which the different parties involved will discuss the next steps in the trial.
• Jury instruction is scheduled to take place later this week followed by closing arguments.

DAY 29 – 9/22/22

• Dr. Elizabeth Johnson, a forensic scientist in private practice, continued her testimony.
  • Earlier in the trial, another forensic specialist testified that the soil tested positive for blood but Dr. Johnson told jurors those tests were likely false positives as blood would break down in soil after a short amount of time.
  • She also said the test used can be affected by pH levels and the soil pH was never tested.
  • On cross examination, San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle asked how long it’s been since Dr. Johnson worked in a lab setting, She said 2003 was the last time she worked full time.
  • Peuvrelle pointed out that was before the iPhone was invented resulting quickly in an objection from Sanger.
  • Peuvrelle also pointed out that Dr. Johnson has worked almost exclusively for defense attorneys for the past 20 years.
  • READ MORE: Forensic expert questioned about soil sample evidence from Ruben Flores’ property
• Outside of the trial, more details have emerged from an arrest report that reveal one of Paul Flores’ attorneys may have been working on a plea deal.
  • READ: Arrest warrant details potential plea deal for Paul Flores

DAY 28 – 9/21/22

• The defense began their case Wednesday by calling Dr. David Carter, a forensic scientist and professor at Chaminade University in Hawaii.
• Dr. Carter is an expert in forensic taphonomy, not just decomposition but other postmortem outcomes as well, like mummification.
• Paul Flores’ attorney, Robert Sanger, contacted Dr. Carter and asked him to look at evidence and photographs collected by investigators from under Ruben’s deck in March and April of 2021.
• Sanger asked if he saw any evidence that a body had ever been buried there. Dr. Carter said he saw no evidence in the photographs. Sanger also asked him what typically happens when a body decomposes and how much fluid would be released.
• Dr. Carter told jurors that it can be difficult to talk about or hear about what happens after death, but decomposing bodies are “messy” and he would expect see what he calls “artifacts” in the area, like bones, hair or teeth, all of which take a very long time to breakdown.
• Sanger asked Dr. Carter if he’d requested or seen any of the soil samples personally. Dr. Carter said he’s requested them but has not been given access to them or seen them in person.
• Dr. Elizabeth Johnson, a forensic scientist in private practice, took the witness stand.
• Defense attorney Robert Sanger asked her several questions about the validity of the test that detected blood in the soil under Ruben Flores’ deck. She said that the test isn’t designed to detect blood in soil and there are multiple studies that show blood is too degraded by the elements to be detected after about four weeks.
• READ MORE: Defense calls first witness in Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 27 – 9/20/22

• Forensic DNA Analyst Angela Butler continued her testimony Tuesday under cross-examination.
• SLO Deputy Jason Nadal was recalled to the stand and asked about the search warrant he served at Paul Flores’ home.
  • Nadal described a sunroom in the residence that he searched, testifying that he submitted a Dell computer that was on the desk into evidence.
• Sheriff’s Det. JT Camp was recalled to the stand:
  • Peuvrelle showed him various DMV documents for a blue-green Ford Ranger, as well as a white Nissan pickup.
  • He then asked Camp to confirm that the documents showed a transfer of ownership of the white Nissan pickup from Ruben Flores to Paul Flores. Camp provided confirmation.
  • During Sanger’s cross-examination of Camp, he showed Camp an image of the pickup and asked if he had heard that the vehicle was reported stolen by Paul Flores. Camp said he had.
  • Sanger also asked Camp if he had collaborated with Peuvrelle to discuss strategies in the case.
  • Peuvrelle objected and the competing counsels as well as Monterey County Superior Court Judge Jennifer O’Keefe met privately for a discussion before Camp could answer.
  • It was decided to end Camp’s testimony briefly and to instead bring in detective Clint Cole, with the intention of bringing Camp back to the stand.
• When questioned by Peuvrelle, Cole explained that the white truck was a two-wheel drive truck, something Camp had been unable to answer.
• Peuvrelle then asked Cole if he was present in the courtroom with Jennifer Hudson when she testified and described the truck as a four-wheel drive, prompting a big objection from Sanger and another brief recess.
• In a statement of frustration from Sanger, he accused Peuvrelle of misconduct and called for a mistrial for asking leading questions, saying that Peuvrelle “knows better” and that the truck Hudson saw was a separate vehicle.
• Sanger said that Peuvrelle acted inappropriately, but Judge O’Keefe dismissed the objection.
• READ MORE: Prosecution rests case against Paul, Ruben Flores in Kristin Smart murder trial
• At the end of the day, while arguing that there was no evidence linking his client to Kristin’s murder, Mesick told the court: for all we know, Kristin could be in Dubai or the Middle East. There is no evidence that she’s dead. Mesick apologized to the Smart family before making the statement.
• Both Mesick and Sanger argued for the judge to declare a mistrial based on local of evidence and speculation. The judge ruled to move forward with the trial.
• Before resting the peoples’ case, Peuvrelle walked through different elements of evidence, going back to the beginning of the trial.

DAY 26 – 9/19/22

• Forensic DNA Analyst Angela Butler was back on the stand Monday morning and testified about a package she received from San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Detective Clint Cole in March of 2021.
  • The package contained what Butler described as “damp, sandy soil.”
  • She says while inspecting the contents, there were some very unusual pieces of soil in a variety of colors.
  • Butler described a test she did on some of the soil samples to test for blood and said all six samples came back with weak positive results for the presumptive test for blood.
  • After the courtroom was shown various photos to help explain how the tests work, San Luis Obispo County Prosecutor Christopher Peuvrelle asked Butler what the significance of the results were to her.
  • She replied, “As far as the conclusions I can draw, I have confirmed the presence of human blood on these samples.”
  • However, Butler added that she was unable to extract any DNA from the samples, telling the court that while DNA lasts decades under pristine conditions, if not stored correctly, you may not get any results.
• READ MORE: Kristin Smart case: Soil samples showed presence of blood, forensic analyst testifies

DAY 25 – 9/12/22

• Jennifer Hudson – continued
  • Jennifer Hudson broke down in tears several times and told jurors she feels “partially responsible for the Smart’s suffering all these years” and that not telling anyone about the conversation sooner is her “only demon.”
  • During cross-examination, Paul Flores’ defense attorney, Robert Sanger, asked Hudson to clarify the timeline of events. She says she told her friend, Justin Goodwin, about the conversation when they were drunk in 2002.
  • She says Goodwin reconnected with her in 2019 after hearing the “Your Own Backyard” podcast. Hudson told jurors he ultimately talked her into first contacting podcaster Chris Lambert with her story and later law enforcement.
  • Sanger questioned Hudson for several hours about inconsistencies he says were in the story she told investigators about her two encounters with Paul Flores.
  • Sanger asked how much of her own investigation she’d done. Hudson admitted to taking Goodwin, Lambert and a real estate agent to the Huasna property. The real estate agent looked into the property ownership and couldn’t find any record of the Flores family ever owning it, Hudson testified.
  • She also said that Lambert asked her not to tell authorities that they’d been to the property once she contacted them, but Hudson said she told authorities everything they knew during her meetings with them, even about Lambert’s request to withhold information.
  • Sanger also asked Hudson if she’d been able to locate any of the others who’d been at the skateboard get-togethers. She said no. Sanger then pressed her about past drug use and what he described as her involvement in motorcycle gangs.
  • Harold Mesick, the defense attorney for Paul Flores’ father, Ruben, asked Hudson whether she is aware of the reward in the case and if she feels entitled to it. However, before Hudson could answer, Monterey County Superior Court Judge Jennifer O’Keefe sustained an objection by the prosecution.
  • During re-direct examination, Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle asked Hudson what she meant when she told investigators she felt partially responsible for the Smart family’s suffering. She broke down in tears and said, “If I was not a coward, I would have come forward then.”
• Justin Goodwin – friend and former roommate of Jennifer Hudson
  • Told jurors that in 2002, Hudson told him she’d met Paul Flores and Flores had told Flores where Kristin’s body was buried.
  • Said he met Hudson through his sister when the two women worked together. Later, he moved into her house and rented a room from her.
  • Goodwin said late one night when the two of them had been drinking, the subject of Kristin Smart came up.
  • Goodwin said Hudson seemed like she was scared and after trying to get more information out of her the next morning, she asked Goodwin to keep the information about what she says Paul told her back in 1996 to himself and not talk about it again.
  • Ultimately, Goodwin reported the information three different times. He says he submitted a tip to the FBI, to the website “Son of Susan” and later to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office in 2019.
• READ MORE: Witness breaks down on stand during Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 24 – 9/8/22

• Faye Springer – Sacramento County D.A. evidence lab
  • Trace evidence expert and private contractor for Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office evidence lab
  • Discussed some of what was found in soil samples from Ruben Flores’ home during a 2021 search and dig operation.
  • Said she could identify both natural and synthetic fibers in black, brown, blue and red, plus some fibers where the color could not be determined.
  • Paul’s attorney, Robert Sanger, asked if construction, other residents living in the house or even investigation crews could contaminate the scene and leave fibers behind. Springer said yes, it’s possible.
  • Sanger also once again brought out pink construction twine mentioned during testimony a few weeks ago. He asked if it was possible to confuse that with red synthetic fibers. Springer said she would have been able to identify differences in that type of synthetic fiber and a fluorescent pink and red wouldn’t look the same.
• Jennifer Hudson – recalled
  • Came forward after the “Your Own Backyard” podcast was released and said Paul told her back in 1996 that he put Kristin under the skate ramp on his property in Huasna.
  • Hudson testified that when she was 17-years-old in 1996, Paul told her that information when she met him at a skate ramp in San Luis Obispo.
  • She said a public service announcement came on the radio and Paul began talking about Kristin. She said she was terrified by what he said and she testified to remembering his “evil eyes.”
  • She says a few weeks after seeing him in San Luis Obispo, she saw him again at a skate ramp in the Huasna area and because of what he had told her before, Hudson says she got sick to her stomach and left immediately and never told anyone else about it until much later.
  • Hudson says she kept the conversation until she told her friend, Justin Goodwin. She says Goodwin connected her with Lambert in 2019, who she spoke with prior to speaking with any authorities.
• READ MORE: Private contractor details findings of 2021 dig at Ruben Flores’ home

DAY 23 – 9/7/22

• Shelby Liddell – SLOC Sheriff’s Office forensic specialist
  • Helped in searches of Ruben Flores’ home in March and April 2021
  • Told jurors that investigators and deputies laid out several grids over the soil beneath the deck on the back of the house.
  • As they started digging, she says they noticed several areas with staining. Areas where the dirt was a lighter color but surrounded by a dark border.
  • She testified that the area under the deck is sloped and the staining occurred at different depths ranging from two to four feet below ground level.
  • Liddell talked about the process of taking soil samples from the discolored areas using a special probe and how it was stored in paper bags to help control moisture
  • Helped process other evidence collected during the searches, including a cargo trailer parked on the side of the house.
  • READ MORE: Forensic specialist testifies presence of blood possibly found in trailer at Ruben Flores’ home

DAY 22 – 9/2/22

• Detective Clint Cole – San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office
  • Interviewed Paul Flores’s ex-girlfriend, Angie Carrizel, in 2021
    • A recording of the call where she was interviewed by Cole was played in court. Carrizel can be heard saying, “they redirected me” … “Oh, you have avocado trees? Let me go over there.” Carrizel continues on, saying, “and they said no, you can’t go over there and they… redirected me to go somewhere else in the house.”
    • Ruben Flores’ attorney, Harold Mesick, asked Cole if he was aware Carrizel and Paul were engaged. Cole replied saying he recalled they were dating. Mesick then asked Cole about whether he was aware that Paul and Carrizel were headed to Susan Flores’ home at the time and that they were late for a dinner party. Cole said yes.
• Sarah Doe – Paul Flores rape accuser
  • Described being at the Crimsin bar in San Pedro in the spring of 2011
    • Sarah said there were not many people at the bar, calling it “very empty,” but said Paul Flores was there and identified him in the courtroom Friday. “He’s right there, wearing a suit and blue tie,” she stated while appearing somewhat emotional.
    • Regarding that night at the bar, Sarah testified, “Every time I would look up, I would notice… him looking towards our direction.” She stated that at one point, Paul approached her.
    • She says she and her friend went outside at times to get a cigarette and would leave their drinks at the bar. Sarah said it wasn’t until “more towards the end of the night” when she noticed Paul outside as well.
    • Sarah said Paul bought her and her friend drinks and they had a few minutes of “friendly talk” and “regular conversation” at the bar.
    • Sarah describes it as a random night, saying she didn’t usually go out on weekdays and didn’t expect to go out that night.
    • Sarah went on, first pausing to tell the court she was nervous, to describe when a fight broke out that night causing her and her friend to be pushed out of the bar.
    • “I don’t really remember a lot of things” from that point on, Sarah testified.
    • She says she does remember rushing to her car because of the fight and its proximity to her car. Sarah says she, her friend, a friend of her friends and also Paul got into her car to move it and “from there it just gets kinda foggy,” she testified, adding that she doesn’t remember how her friend got home.
    • Sarah says the last thing she remembers is being parked across the street from Paul’s house and seeing a lot of bushes.
    • Sarah said she had four to five drinks over a period of about four hours that night, adding that she has had a similar number of drinks both before and after that night and her memory has never been as foggy as it was the night she met Paul at the bar.
    • She continued testifying, describing being at Paul’s house and noticing “a lot of things in his house just kinda piled everywhere.”
    • She says she was confused as to why Paul invited her over if his house was so dirty, using the word “hoarding.”
    • Sarah told the court that Paul gave her something to drink as she just stood there “shocked” as to how many things were in the house, adding that she believes she drank the drink Paul gave her, but said she doesn’t think it was alcoholic.
    • After that, she said, “I just kept going in and out of it but I just remember being in his bedroom,” … “Him on top of me.”
    • Wiping away tears, Sarah continued, “I couldn’t really… I just remember him on top of me,” … “He was penetrating me.”
    • She continued describing the events that unfolded after, saying she did not consent to the sex and that “I wasn’t really processing what was going on.”
    • Sarah says “it went on for a while” and that she also remembers at one point wanting to take a shower to wake herself up. “It kind of just meshes all together so I don’t know what happened first,” she said. “I just remember flashes throughout the years.”
    • While still on the stand, Sarah described other memories, saying, “At one point he (while referring to Paul) did try to gag me but I was screaming and then I do remember someone… there was somebody else there too who was talking to him.” She says she doesn’t remember who that was and continued describing Paul’s attempt to gag her. “I was screaming… I couldn’t breathe,” she testified.
    • Sarah says Paul eventually gave up, she thinks, because she was moving around too much.
    • In the morning when she went to leave, Sarah says Paul tried to say goodbye to her, noting that it had been pretty quiet until they got to the door.
    • Sarah says she told Paul, “When someone tells you no, you know, it means no.” Sarah says Paul looked down and said “OK,” adding that she thinks “he understood.”
    • “I was still so confused from the whole night,” she testified. “I felt bruises on my arms, my legs, and I felt really sore for a couple days.”
    • Sarah says Paul texted her a day or so after, thinking he probably had her number from the night they met. “I think I might’ve just said, you know, leave me alone, but I don’t remember exactly what I said,” she testified.
    • Sarah says after that, she would run into Paul randomly, including a couple years later at the bar. “I left. I was still with the same friend from that night,” she told the court, adding that Paul also stopped by her work once.
    • Sarah says she did not initially report the incident to law enforcement saying she was really confused from that night. She said a couple years later she tried reporting it to authorities, but “They kept asking me questions and I just kept saying ‘I don’t know’,” Sarah said, adding, “I gave up after a while.”
  • In June of 2021, Sarah says she met with Detective Cole and another investigator and was shown a photo lineup.
  • She was reportedly asked, “Did you see the person in that lineup who did this to you?” Sarah says she replied, saying, “I did.” The lineup shown to Sarah in 2021 was then shown in court before Monterey County Superior Court Judge Jennifer O’Keefe ordered a break. At the time, multiple jurors for both defendants could been seen crying and passing tissues around on more than on occasion.
  • READ MORE: Jurors hear testimony from woman claiming she was raped by Paul Flores

DAY 21 – 9/1/22

• Cindy Arrington – Archaeologist
  • Arrington testified that during excavation and use of ground-penetrating radar, several anomalies in the soil were found, including darker soil consistent with human decomposition.
  • Her company, Natural Investigations Company, was hired by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office the same month the excavation occurred.
  • Arrington testified that she and Phil Hanes, an expert in ground-penetrating radar who testified Wednesday, used the technology and came to the conclusion that there was a disturbance in the area under the deck in the backyard of Ruben’s home, testifying that soil had been removed at one point and put back.
  • During their analysis, Arrington says they started finding dark staining, consistent with human decomposition, about two feet deep.
  • Arrington said that they continued finding dark staining in the soil deeper, at one point stating that the staining shouldn’t be in that soil.
  • SLO County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle asked Arrington whether she could tell if the dig had been done by hand or a machine. She responded by saying it was likely dug by hand.
  • Arrington said two employees from the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office completed the excavation under the deck, and she said she observed the operation.
  • During trial proceedings Thursday when photos of the soil staining were shown, a juror on Paul’s jury started crying, causing Judge O’Keefe to stop testimony and take lunch early. Other jurors also reportedly had tears in their eyes.
  • During Sanger’s cross examination of Arrington in the afternoon, Sanger brought into question comments the archaeologist had made to law enforcement following the excavation about what the staining could have been.
  • Sanger asked if she had mentioned to investigators that the stains could have been caused by roots. Arrington responded that they could have been roots, human or animal. She then said, “I would say it’s organic material.”
  • Sanger then asked Arrington if there were any fibers or pieces of fabric found in the site, something like a tarp that a body could have been wrapped in, and Arrington said that there was nothing found. She then mentioned that tarps are not organic material and decompose at a much slower rate than organic material.
• READ MORE: Juror breaks down during testimony in Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 20 – 8/31/22

• Karen Atkinson – dog handler
  • Conducted search of Ruben Flores’ home in March 2021 with her K9, Amiga.
  • Amiga, a Labrador born in 2010 but now a retired search dog, was certified in human remains detection at the time.
  • When asked to describe Amiga’s response to target odors, Atkinson said Amiga normally becomes very animated, slows her pace, has rapid tail wagging and sits down.
  • Atkinson said dog handler Kristine Black, who testified Tuesday, also participated in the search but adds that Amiga was the first canine deployed in the search.
  • Atkinson explained Amiga was instructed to begin with a vehicle located in the driveway, then to the lattice that runs along the house and the backyard.
  • When asked by Peuvrelle about Amiga’s behavior at Ruben’s home, Atkinson said it was by the lattice where Amiga reacted. “It was a point in my assignment that I noted that she came in contact with some of her target odor,” she said.
  • During cross examination, Ruben’s attorney, Harold Mesick, asked about the freshness of the blood used to train Atkinson’s dogs and what was the oldest blood used.
    • Atkinson said they do train on blood that’s maybe a few years old, but they refresh their training sources regularly.
• Philip Hanes – Archaeologist
  • Used a ground penetrating radar during the March 2021 search of Ruben Flores’ home.
  • Established a 35-foot-long search area, which covered the porch and an avocado orchard.
  • Hanes used his ground penetrating radar and reported an anomaly or disturbance underneath the porch.
  • Peuvrelle asked if this suggested that soil had been dug out and refilled. Hanes replied, “That is a possibility.”
    • That anomaly was reported to be a 6×4-foot disturbance that was 3.5-feet deep.
  • During the discussion surrounding ground penetrating radar, jurors submitted three questions. The first question was about how far underground the radar machine can study soil. The second question asked if ground penetrating radar could also detect other fluids and the third was regarding the need to recalibrate the radar.
  • During cross examination, Mesick asked Hanes if he could tell when the soil in the six-foot anomaly could have been removed. Hanes responded “no.”
  • Hanes also said another slight anomaly was found at Ruben’s home but since it was near some avocado trees, their assessment was that the disturbance was likely caused by mature tree roots.
• READ MORE: Archaeologist describes anomaly found under Ruben Flores’ deck during 2021 search

DAY 19 – 8/30/22

• Jason Nadal, served a search warrant at Paul Flores’ San Pedro home in Feb. 2020
  • On cross-examination, Nadal said he’d coordinated the search efforts and admitted that San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Detective Clint Cole had briefed him before the search warrant was served, but Nadal said he could not remember if Cole had been present at the time of the search.
• Det. Gregory Smith, SLO County Sheriff’s Office
  

  Detective Gregory Smith with the SLO Co. Sheriff’s Office testified Aug. 30, 2022 during the Kristin Smart murder trial. (KSBY)

  • In January 2020, he received permission from a San Luis Obispo County Judge to wiretap the phones of the Flores family.
  • An audio conversation between Paul Flores and his mother, Susan, from Jan. 26, 2020 was then played in the courtroom. In the recording, Susan could be heard telling Paul to start listening to the “Your Own Backyard” podcast so they could start “punching holes in it.”
  • Sanger then asked Smith to confirm that nearly 10,000 phone calls were intercepted from the Flores family between Jan. 5 to Feb. 3rd, 2020. Smith said that sounded like an accurate number.
  • Referring to the audio clip that had just been played for the courtroom, Sanger asked Detective Smith to confirm that Susan had said she wanted to make sure Paul was legally covered during the investigation, to which Smith agreed.
  • At one point during cross examination, Sanger asked Smith if he had heard Paul talk about bringing forth false information once the trial began. Smith said he had not heard that.
  • He did, however, admit that a sheriff’s office strategy was using Chris Lambert’s podcast as a way to leak information about the investigation to the Flores family.
• Kristine Black, Asst. Director SCC search and rescue
  • Has worked with K9-specialized search teams trained to search for human remains for the past 20 years.
  • Black testified that during her time with her current K9, Annie, they worked together on multiple homicide investigations, and that her canine was successfully able to locate bodies that authorities were searching for.
  • Black and Annie were called out to conduct a search at Ruben Flores’ home on White Court in Arroyo Grande on March 15, 2021.
    

    Ruben Flores’ deck was searched by K9 Annie in March 2021. (KSBY)

    • Black explained that she and Annie searched a Volkswagon in front of the home where no human remains were identified.
    • Testified that during Annie’s search of the backyard, the canine also did not alert to remains.
    • Black then discussed her search with Annie throughout the deck of the property, which was where she noticed Annie started sniffing for human remains. Black testified that she informed Detective Cole about what happened shortly after that.
    • Black also noted that Annie had not given a final alert after her search, which she said may have happened because the primary odor source of human remains had been disrupted or removed from the location.
  • During Sanger’s cross examination, he asked Black to clarify Annie’s behavior when she identifies human remains. Black replied that Annie would typically go into a down position in the location remains were found.
  • Mesick then began his cross examination of Black, where he asked her if factors like wind and heat impact a canine’s effectiveness in detecting remains. She testified that they play a big role in impacting surrounding scents, but she could not clarify if that was the case during Annie’s search of Ruben’s property.
• READ MORE: Detective details call intercepted between Paul Flores, mother during wiretap

DAY 18 – 8/29/22

• Ed Chadwell – contractor who built the Flores home
  • Described the steep slope of the lot and construction of the home’s foundation, which required digging down to solid rock sometimes as deep as eight feet under the soil.
  • Prosecutor Christopher Peuvrelle asked Chadwell if they found any remains under or near the house when workers were building the deck and if any serious injuries were reported by workers.
    • Chadwell answered no to both questions while also explaining how Ruben and Susan Flores agreed to purchase the house while it was under construction. It was completed and handed over to the Flores’ in August of 1991.
      

      FILE – In this March 16, 2021, file photo, San Luis Obispo Sheriff’s Office personnel dig in an area in the backyard of the home of Ruben Flores, in Arroyo Grande, Calif. Flores is the father of Paul Flores, who remains the prime suspect in the disappearance of Kristin Smart in 1996. (AP Photo/Daniel Dreifuss, File)

  • During Cross examination, Paul’s attorney, Robert Sanger, showed Chadwell some of the building plans and permit application as well as several pictures of the house while it was under construction.
  • Sanger had the builder explain how the deck was built and describe any modifications to the home’s foundation once it was under construction. He also showed Chadwell some pink construction twine and asked him if it was similar to what he used to mark out the foundation in 1991. Chadwell said it was similar and the color he preferred to use was pink as it shows up well.
  • Sanger also asked Chadwell if he’d ever used diesel fuel as a “release agent” to help the concrete from sticking to the construction forms. Chadwell said it was a common practice in the ’90s and that he’d sometimes used it.
    • The questions are likely to explain some of the items found in the soil under the deck during a search of the home including discoloration in the dirt and red fibers. Kristin Smart was reported to be wearing red at the time of her disappearance.
  • READ MORE: Developer of Ruben Flores’ home, former roommate, neighbor testify in Kristin Smart murder trial
• David Stone – former roommate, lived with Ruben Flores from 2010-2020
  • Told jurors about a time when he moved a few empty plastic, 55-gallon drums into the space under the deck. Stone said Ruben was angry he hadn’t asked for permission ahead of time and ultimately made him move the drums.
  • Testified he overheard Ruben referring to Kristin Smart as an “*expletive* slut.”
  • On cross-examination, Stone said he got along with Ruben during his time at the home and moved out voluntarily. At one point, he said he’d asked Ruben about moving back in.
• Det. Clint Cole & Det. Matt Terrell described serving a search warrant at Ruben’s home
  • Terrell showed pictures of items found in a drawer in Ruben’s bedroom. The items including flyers, newspaper articles and post cards referring to the Kristin Smart case.
• Jamilyn Holman – neighbor of Ruben Flores
  • Said heard lots of arguing and other noise as Ruben and Susan Flores along with Susan’s boyfriend removed part of a fence and then parked a cargo trailer next the house all after dark in 2020.
  • During cross examination of Holman, Sanger asked about her knowledge of the “Your Own Backyard” podcast. Holman said she was aware of it and also aware the FBI searched the house on Feb. 5 of 2020.
  • She testified the incident involving the cargo trailer happened on Feb. 9, 2020, but says she didn’t report it until March of 2021.
  • Holman also admitted to meeting with Jim Murphy, the Smart family attorney, before going to detectives.

DAY 17 – 8/26/22

• Angie Carrizel – Paul Flores’ ex-girlfriend, continued…
  • Told jurors that during a visit to Ruben’s home on White Court in Arroyo Grande, she walked to the back of the house to see some avocado trees and there were dogs under the deck. She says she was quickly redirected back to the front of the house and she described Ruben Flores as “being rude to her.
  • Said she and Paul were headed to his mom’s house for dinner that day.
  • Under cross-examination, Ruben’s defense attorney asked Carrizel if she was dressed up for the dinner. She replied that she was dressed normally. He asked if she could have been redirected to keep the dogs from getting her dirty and she said she didn’t know.
• Jury is excused until Aug. 29 so the court can deal with an “evidence issue.”
• READ MORE: Paul Flores’ ex-girlfriend testifies at Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 16 – 8/25/22

• Gail LaRoque – dog handler that searched the Cal Poly dorms after Kristin Smart went missing in 1996
  • LaRoque says she and her dog, Torrey, did a “blind search” of the Santa Lucia dorm in June 1996.
  • She testified her dog was working the first floor off-leash when she sniffed and alerted to Paul Flores’ room.
  • LaRoque said unlike the other two dogs who searched, Torrey alerted to both beds in the room and also to a trash can in the room.
  • She believes Torrey was alerting on human remains.
  • On cross-examination, LaRoque said CARDA is a private organization but uses standards approved by the Office of Emergency Services. She said her dog has never had any “false positive” alerts.
• Angie Carrizel – Paul Flores’ ex-girlfriend
  • Dated Paul for two years in the early 2000s.
  • At one point, she says she visited Ruben’s house, testifying that she walked into the backyard to look at some avocado trees and was quickly redirected to the front of the house.
    • Told jurors it was obvious Ruben and Paul didn’t want her back there.
• READ MORE: Attorney fires back at dog handler testifying in Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 15 – 8/24/22

• “Rhonda Doe” – claims Paul Flores sexually assaulted her in 2008
  • Never reported the incident until last year when she says she saw media coverage of Paul Flores’ arrest and recognized him as the person who she says drugged and then assaulted her.
  • Doe testified that she met Paul at a bar in Redondo Beach in January of 2008. She and some friends were headed to her house after a night out when she says Paul rode up on his bicycle.
  • She agreed to briefly go to his house before the two re-joined her friends.
  • Doe testified once they got to Paul’s house, he gave her some water and that’s when she blacked out.
  • She says when she woke up, Paul was having non-consensual sex with her. Doe says she only remembers brief moments of the encounter while she was in and out of consciousness. She later remembers waking up crying beside his bed and asking Paul to take her home, which she says he did.
  • San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle asked Doe why she didn’t report the incident at the time and she told him she didn’t think it would be prosecuted and didn’t “see the point.”
  • WATCH: Woman Testifies that Paul Flores Sexually Assaulted Her
• JT Camp – San Luis Obispo County District Attorney investigator, interviewed Rhonda Doe
  • Sanger pressed Investigator Camp about the interview with “Rhonda Doe” asking Camp about how he came up with the five other photos to use in the line-up, inconsistencies in the testimony about how far Paul’s house was away from the bar and why he didn’t show Doe any other houses besides Paul’s.
  • Sanger also referred to the “other person involved” instead of referring to Paul during some of the questioning.
• READ MORE: Woman testifies Paul Flores sexually assaulted her in 2008

DAY 14 – 8/16/22

• Adela Morris -dog handler, continued testimony…
  • Much of the questioning centered on what the dogs are actually able to detect or where the scents come from and how long they may linger. There was also much discussion about how the dogs let their handlers know they’ve found something and how those handlers interpret what the dogs are telling them.
  • Ruben Flores’ attorney, Harold Mesick, listed a number of searches that Morris and Cholla had worked on and asked how many cadavers they’d actually found. Morris said the team itself had located only one body but helped narrow down a search area in others.
• Wayne Behrens- dog handler, participated in June 1996 search for Kristin Smart
  • His dog, Sierra, was certified in cadaver location in June of 1996 just days before the search of the dorms and campus.
  • The pair was requested to search an area near the Santa Lucia Dorm. Behrens says the search was blind meaning he didn’t know who or what he was looking for.
  • Behrens testified Sierra started to alert when she got near the dorm building. He ultimately asked to search inside the dorm itself. He says Sierra alerted on the door outside of Paul’s dorm room.
  • Once inside, Behrens says Sierra alerted to the same bed that the other search dog had identified.  Each of the dog handlers have said they were not aware of the other dog’s searches of the room.
  • The two handlers drove down together, he testified, and the searches were conducted separately but Sanger wanted to know how much they discussed the case on the way back before the reports were completed.
    • Berhens says they were in the same car and he was sure they would have discussed what they’d done.
    • Sanger asked if he found any human remains in the room and Behrens said no, Sierra just alerted to the mattress.
  • Another alternate from Paul’s jury was excused from the case Tuesday. That brings the number of alternates for his case down to four. No reason was given other than the judge assured the others involved in the case that it was not related to COVID-19. There are three remaining alternates on Ruben’s jury.
  • Jury is excused until Wednesday, Aug. 24.
  • READ MORE: Dog handler answers questions from jury in Kristin Smart murder trial

DAY 13 – 8/15/22

• James Camp – gathered phone records and images of Paul Flores’ dorm window
  • Camp showed multiple pictures of both the Santa Lucia and Muir Hall dorm buildings as well as Kristin Smart’s and Paul Flores’ dorm rooms.
  • His testimony was likely to clear up some confusion during testimony late last week where one witness had trouble recalling the exact location of the rooms even though he had reported seeing Kristin in Paul’s room.
  • During cross examination, there was some noticeable tension between Camp and Paul’s attorney, Robert Sanger.
  • At one point, Sanger asked Camp if he “made some notes about the dorms during his own time living there in the early 90s,” but quickly withdrew the question. Camp told the jury that he’d been in both dorm buildings during his time as a Cal Poly student.
• Adela Morris – dog handler
  • Morris has spent more than 30 years training dogs to detect the smell of human remains.
  • Her dog, Cholla, was the first dog ever certified in California for that particular type of search.
  • Morris and two of her dogs were called to help in the search for Kristin Smart in June of 1996.
  • Cholla was asked to search the first floor of the Santa Lucia dorm building in what was a called a blind search where the handler was not told what she was specifically looking for or where.
  • Morris says she let Cholla off leash and she alerted to Paul’s dorm room door. Once inside, Morris says Cholla alerted multiple times to a mattress in the room.
  • Morris also searched with a second dog that she says alerted to the same area in the same room.
  • Before wrapping up his questioning, Peuvrelle asked Morris several questions submitted by jurors including whether the dogs would alert to blood on a bandage. Morris said yes, they would.
  • Sanger began his cross examination by asking about Morris’ qualifications, He pointed out that her dogs are certified by a private organization with no government oversight.
• READ MORE: Kristin Smart murder trial: Dog handler questioned about search of Paul Flores’ dorm room

DAY 12 – 8/12/22

• Jana Lord – slept in Kristin Smart’s dorm room the night she disappeared
  • In May 1996, Lord visited Kristin’s roommate (Crystal Teschendorf) & met Kristin Smart
    • Noticed a significant amount of clothes on Kristin’s side of the room
  • That Friday, Lord accompanied Teschendorf to a sorority event, drank 2-3 beers between 9:00pm-1:00am
  • Returned to the dorm around midnight or 1:00am Saturday
  • Noticed “Kristin’s bed was undisturbed,” went to sleep “pretty readily”
  • Woke up to Ted Munley knocking around the window around 2:00 AM or 3:00 AM, said Ted wanted a place to sleep because Crystal was spending the night with his roommate
  • Went outside to smoke with Ted for about 15 minutes, did not see anything or anybody
  • Went to bed, Ted slept on the floor
  • Saturday morning, woke up around 9:00 AM, “there were no changes” to Kristin’s bed, the mound of clothes on Kristin’s bed was “consistent” with what it looked like the night before, Ted was on top of the bed next to her, didn’t realize when Ted had gotten on top of the bed
  • On cross-examination, Lord testified she didn’t recall if the phone in the room rang
• Karen Hall – asked Paul Flores about a missing girl
  • On June 8 or 9, 1996, she hosted a high school graduation party for her son
  • Heard about a missing girl, didn’t know the girl’s name, didn’t know Paul was involved
  • Was messing around with a VHS tape during the party and asked Paul, “Do you know anything about that girl?” to which Paul “just put his head down and continued to eat”
• James Camp – gathered phone records and images of Paul Flores’ dorm window
  • May 24, 1996 (Friday) at 8:59 PM (4 sec), a phone call was made from Santa Lucia to Paul’s sister
  • May 25, 1996 (Saturday) at 9:47 AM (50 sec), a phone call was made from Santa Lucia to Ruben Flores
  • May 28, 1996 (Tuesday) at 7:42 PM (7 min, 13 sec), a phone call was made from Santa Lucia to Ruben Flores
  • May 28, 1996 (Tuesday) at 7:50 PM (38 sec), a phone call was made from Santa Lucia to Paul’s sister
  • Paul’s dorm room window slid open approximately 3 feet, had a screen that flipped up
• WATCH: Kristin Smart Murder Trial: Day 12

DAY 11 – 8/11/22

• William Hanley – former senior investigator at SLO District Attorney’s Office
  • (Testimony only offered for Paul Flores’ case)
  • Hanley interviewed Paul at the Cal Poly police department on May 31, 1996
    • The department was loud and busy so, the interview took place in an unmarked car
    • In the interview, Paul said he didn’t touch Kristin & knew she introduced herself as Roxy
    • Paul said when he walked Roxy back to the dorms, she started getting cold and he rubbed her shoulders one time but it was “not sexual in nature at all”
    • Paul said he couldn’t remember any conversation he had with that group of people he walked back with
    • Hanley asked Paul why he didn’t help Roxy get back to her dorm if she was intoxicated. According to Hanley, Paul said, “I didn’t even think about it.”
    • Paul mentioned that after he parted ways with Roxy and went back to his dorm, in the middle of the night he threw up and then took a shower. Hanley said he asked Paul why he would take a shower, and to this Hanley said he remembered Paul “just didn’t have an answer for it.”
    • Hanley said he noticed that under Paul’s right eye there was faint discoloration, like the later stages of a black eye. He relayed that Paul told him he was playing basketball with Jeromy Moon and “he got elbowed.”
  • Hanley interviewed Paul again on June 19, 1996 in Arroyo Grande. He did not tell Paul he was being recorded.
    • In the video interview played the for jury, Paul said,…
      • He thought Kristin took off with someone
      • He didn’t remember Kristin stumbling
      • He never kissed Kristin and didn’t feel any attraction towards her
      • He doesn’t remember having a conversation with Kristin
      • He might’ve had a blackout
      • He got a black eye uninstalling his radio on his truck and hitting his eye on the steering wheel
      • Claimed his lie about the black eye doesn’t matter, that he didn’t think it was important
      • Resisted taking a polygraph test, said he needed to ask his parents first

DAY 10 – 8/10/22

• Lawrence Kennedy – Investigated Kristin Smart’s missing person case
  • An audio interview between Lawrence Kennedy and Paul Flores was played in court. In it, Paul said he observed Kristin to be overly flirtatious at the Crandall Way party and indicated he doesn’t like being with girls of that character because he doesn’t want to get some sort of “disease.” Though, he doesn’t elaborate on this. Paul also said that after the party, he took a shower and that someone had seen him and could be his “alibi.” (To this, Lawrence testified that Paul did not provide any list of people who could corroborate a timeline of his whereabouts.) In the next part of the audio interview, Lawrence asked Paul if he had had sex with anyone in the past few weeks. Paul responded, “Never” not all year long. When asked if he had been intimate with anyone, Paul said that he had – one time over Christmas break. Paul also said he only went so far as to kiss girls. Going back to the party, Paul said he hadn’t heard of any parties going on on Memorial Day weekend. He said that on that Friday, he had two beers in his dorm room, took one beer to-go, and headed out to go visit his sister. On the walk to his sister’s house, he saw the Crandall Way party and decided to stop by. Later in the audio, Paul was asked about his black eye. To this, Paul said he was playing basketball near an elementary school and that the gravel was loose in that area
• Robert Cudworth – Investigated Kristin Smart’s missing person case
  • Interviewed Paul on May 28, 1996 sometime in the afternoon. Said that Paul told him he knew of Kristin Smart but hadn’t talked to her the night of the Crandall Way party. Testified that Paul said that when he was getting ready to leave the party, he noticed Kristin, Cheryl, and Tim headed back to the dorms, and that during this time, he was going to assist Kristin, who was having difficulty walking back to the dorms. Cudworth also relayed that, according to Paul, the group had to stop along the way, and that he and Kristin separated from Cheryl at Perimeter and Grand, and that later, he separated from Kristin. When asked if he wanted to hug or kiss Cheryl, Cudworth said that Paul’s response was that he did not want to do this. When asked if he was interested in Kristin, he said “that he did not want to get together with her.”
  • Interviewed Paul on May 30, 1996 with Kennedy. Observed Paul to have scrapes to his knees and what appeared to be a black eye.
• Richard Neufeld – Processed Paul Flores’ dorm room
  • Assigned to process Paul’s dorm room on June 24, 1996. Found hair and fibers off one of the mattresses. Did not find usable fingerprints.
  • Returned to Paul’s dorm room on June 29, 1996. Collected one of the mattresses and mattress cover.
• WATCH: Kristin Smart Murder Trial: Day 10

DAY 9 – 8/8/22

• Timothy Davis – Attended 135 Crandall Way party
  • Said, during the Crandall Way party, he saw Kristin Smart on the ground and Paul Flores was next to her. Said it appeared they had fallen. Said he was in the kitchen area at the time.
  • Said he had about one beer every hour, about five to six beers over the course of the night, arrived around 7:00 PM or 8:00 PM and left around 1:30 AM or 2:00 AM.
  • Said, towards the end of the party, he gave his green Ford Taurus to a driver and sent some freshman back to the dorms. Said he saw that Cheryl Anderson had missed this ride back to the dorms. Said around the same time, he saw Kristin laying on the ground as if she was trying to sleep. Said when he saw Kristin, he was trying to get people to go home, and didn’t want the cops coming out to the house. Said he told Kristin she had to leave, she couldn’t be there, and quickly realized she was in no capacity to do anything. Said she was responsive, she knew she had to get up. Said she told him, “I’m cold. I want to go home.” Said he picked her up and she hung onto him, hugging him, putting her nose and face into his neck. Said when they started walking, Paul came out from the darkness, from what looked to be the door that went to the backyard of the party house, and told them “Hey, I’m going back too.” Said at one point, Cheryl said he could go and that she and Paul would walk with Kristin. Said he then took Kristin and gave her to Paul.
  • On cross-examination, he said it’s possible other people were across the street at a Sigma Nu frat party at the time.
  • Said he’s sure there was a keg at the Crandall Way party, not sure if there was whiskey or vodka.
  • Said Kristin introduced herself as Roxy. Said he didn’t know Kristin was a freshman and did see her drinking.
  • Said he did not see Kristin kiss Ross or Trevor, was mainly there spending time with his girlfriend and friends.
• Jeromy Moon – Observed Paul had a black eye during Memorial Day weekend
  • Said on the Sunday evening of Memorial Day weekend of 1996, noticed Paul had a black eye.
  • Said he asked Paul about it and Paul told him that he “woke up with it.”
  • Said he played basketball with Paul and doesn’t remember Paul getting hit in the face during the game.
  • On cross-examination, he said he doesn’t remember having Chinese food and going to see a movie in SLO with Paul.
  • Said he doesn’t remember telling any detectives he didn’t see any marks on Paul’s face the Sunday, May 26, 1996.
  • Said he doesn’t remember telling any detectives he played basketball with Paul the weekend after Memorial Day on June 1 or June 2, 1996.
• James Camp – Presented reports to Jeromy Moon prior to Moon’s testimony
  • Said he presented Jeromy Moon five reports prior to his testimony.
  • Said he didn’t re-interview Moon but went to see him as a courtesy to refresh his memory leading up to the hearing.
• Lawrence Kennedy – Investigated Kristin’s missing person case
  • Said he was contacted on the Monday of Memorial Day weekend and assigned a missing person case. Said he went to work on it on Tuesday.
  • Interviewed Paul on Tuesday. Said he observed Paul to have a bruise under his right eye. Said Paul thought he was going to be arrested for an outstanding warrant for a traffic violation (for driving on a suspended license). Said Paul mentioned he had taken care of the traffic violation. Said Paul said he had obtained a black eye playing basketball over Memorial Day weekend. Said Paul mentioned he had walked Kristin and two other students from the Crandall Way party back to campus. Said Paul mentioned that on their way back to campus, at Grand and Perimeter, Kristin had walked off towards her hall and he walked towards his. Said Paul recounted taking a shower and going to bed around 5:00 AM. Said Paul didn’t know who Kristin was. Said Paul mentioned he gave Kristin two hugs and there was no other contact between them beyond that.
• WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Day 9

DAY 8 – 8/4/22

• Mario Garcia – knew Paul Flores
  • Used to play pool with Paul
  • After Memorial Day weekend, saw Paul with a black eye. Said Paul was wearing a baseball cap and had it pulled down.
• Felipe Arias – friend of Kristin Smart
  • Last saw Kristin May 23, 1996 – she spent the night in his room.
  • Kristin spent the night in his room about two times.
  • Kristin had problems with her roommate, who would bring another boy to their dorm room frequently.
  • Said he doesn’t remember if, when Kristin visited his room, whether or not she would bring any backpacks or bags.
• James Camp – gathered DMV records
  • According to DMV records, Ruben Flores was previously 5’6 and 185 lbs. He is now 5’6 and 165 lbs.
  • According to DMV records, Paul Flores was 5’10 and 170 lbs.
• WATCH: Kristin Smart Murder Trial: Day 8

DAY 7 – 8/3/22

• Trevor Boelter – attended 135 Crandall Way party – cont…
  • Said Kristin introduced herself as Roxy and then kissed him. Said she then pulled him into the bathroom, adjusted her makeup, asked him if he thought she was ugly, mentioned she was concerned about what Ross Ketcham indicating she thought he was attractive.
  • Said Kristin, after the party, grabbed his head and started kissing him again.
  • Said Kristin, as the night wore on, became more “druggy” or “out of it”
  • Said he couldn’t recall if he smelled alcohol on her.
  • Said he doesn’t recall being drunk that night.
  • Said had been to one other party that night and at that party, had one beer.
  • Clarified why he thought Kristin looked “druggy,” was because he had a previous experience being roofied.
• Eric Wilkins – attended 135 Crandall Way party
  • Said he saw someone who appeared to be drunk laying in a front yard, they were not dressed for cold weather.
  • Said they weren’t fully coherent.
  • Said he remembered Kristin talking to a lot of men at the party.
• Jennifer Medeiros – filed missing person report
  • Sunday – Tried to file a missing person report with SLO police, was told it was a campus matter, tried to file a missing report with campus police but couldn’t because campus police thought Kristin would return after Memorial Day weekend
  • Tuesday – Filed missing person report
• Derrick Tse – roommate of Paul Flores
  • Transferred to Cal Poly SLO in the fall of 1995
  • Lived with a roommate, that roommate moved to a different floor, then Paul Flores moved in sometime between Dec. 1995 –  Jan. 1996
  • Friday of Memorial Day weekend 1996 – Left for Oakland
  • Tuesday of Memorial Day weekend 1996 – Returned to Cal Poly SLO
  • Said when he returned from Oakland, he had heard a girl had gone missing, the police had talked to Paul. Said he asked Paul about this and Paul had revealed he had been the last person to see Kristin.
  • Said he joked with Paul and said, ‘You probably did something to her’ and that he joked back, ‘Yeah, she’s at my mom’s house right now.’
  • Said Paul didn’t deny anything.
• READ MORE: Partygoers recall their last interactions with Kristin Smart before her disappearance

DAY 6 – 8/2/22

• Steven Fleming, friend of Kristin Smart, cont….
  • On cross-examination, said two girls told him in 1996 that Paul made them feel uncomfortable. Admitted he didn’t provide anyone these two names until now.
    • Resisted the characterization that he was taking advantage of Kristin’s disappearance to befriend girls on campus.
    • Couldn’t provide a regular route that he took out of the dorms to attend basketball practice. Said there was “no rhyme, no reason” to his routes.
    • Was not able to name Kristin’s best friends. Provided only two names – Margarita and Crystal.
    • Said he didn’t come forward with his memory of Paul in Kristin’s dorm making Kristin look uncomfortable because he’s Black and at 18 years old, was scared of the police.
    • When asked if he, Kristin, and Margarita spent time in Margarita’s room, he said he was digging through the “melon” of his head and just couldn’t recall a time.
  • On re-direction, he testified he previously stated to the FBI he saw Paul in Kristin’s room 6-6 times but on the stand today, could only remember the one time when Kristin looked uncomfortable.
  • When asked on re-cross if Kristin gave him a sign indicating she was uncomfortable, he reiterated what he noticed was that she was uncomfortable.
• Matthew Toomey – attended 135 Crandall Way party
  • Said Kristin asked him if his friend Ross Ketcham had a girlfriend. Said Kristin mentioned to him that she thought Ross was attractive.
  • Said Paul asked him questions about Kristin as if he was interested in her and attracted to her.
  • Said Paul told him something to the effect of, Kristin was good looking or hot.
  • Said he later saw Kristin laying down on a lawn, maybe had too much drink. Said he and Ross told her she couldn’t stay there and offered to walk her back to the dorms.
  • Said Kristin’s eyes were closed. Said she responded she didn’t want to leave.
  • Said he and Ross left her alone. Said they figured there were still people at the party that she knew.
  • Said at one point, Kristin and Trevor Boelter kissed.
• Trevor Boelter – attended 135 Crandall Way party
  • Said a tall girl introduced herself to him as “Roxy,” kissed him, then took his hand and pulled him into a bathroom.
• WATCH: Eyewitnesses Testify in Kristin Smart Murder Case

DAY 5 – 8/1/22

• James Camp – SLO D.A. investigator, took photos of 135 Crandall Way
  • Said the residence appeared to be a rotating student housing setup.
  • Said the house was approximately 1,000 square feet.
  • Said the walk from 135 Crandall Way to redbrick dorms was approximately 8 minutes, 35 seconds
  • Said the residence changed, it previously had pool table and bar area which was replaced with a bedroom.
• Crystal Teschendorf – roommate of Kristin Smart
  • She and Kristin didn’t know each other very well.
  • She didn’t see Kristin wearing a backpack or purse when she left for the evening
  • Said she let her friend sleep in her bed while she spent the evening with her boyfriend in another dorm.
• Steven Fleming – friend of Kristin Smart
  • Lived in Muir Dorm fall of 1995, moved out in the winter, moved back into Muir Dorm for spring of 1996. Met Kristin when he moved back to Muir Dorm the 2^nd time.
  • Observed Paul in the common areas of the dorm, said it looked like Paul was following Kristin. Said it was odd because Paul didn’t live in the dorm.
  • Said one time, he observed Paul in Kristin’s room and Kristin looking very uncomfortable, like she was not okay with it.
• WATCH: Kristin Smart Murder Trial Back in Session

DAY 4 – 7/25/22

• Lindsey Smart Stewart – younger sister of Kristin Smart
  • Said Kristin was like a mini mother, inspired her to do better and to work hard.
  • Said when she graduated high school, it was hard milestone to experience without Kristin there.
  • On cross-examination, she said Kristin didn’t share her struggles at Cal Poly SLO
  • WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Victim’s Sister and Friend Testify
• Margarita Campos – close friend of Kristin Smart
  • Lived in Muir Hall. Kristin moved into the dorm next door in January 1996, became close with Kristin around April 1996.
  • Said Kristin dyed her hair brown after moving into the dorms.
  • Said on Friday of Memorial Day weekend, Kristin was wearing black board shorts, red Puma shoes.
  • Said she didn’t want to go out to party with Kristin because she wasn’t feeling social and had anxiety about her biology class.
  • Said she did go with Kristin and some other girls to a house party (Not the same party that Paul was at). Said they had one beer, stayed for an hour maybe two. Said she, Kristin, and the other girls drove back towards campus. Then she and Kristin got out of the car at the intersection of California and Foothill. Said this was when she and Kristin bantered on which way to walk back towards campus. Said the way Kristin wanted to walk back was a pathway that could’ve passed another party. Said she was done socializing. Said they ended up parting ways and that was the last time she saw Kristin.
  • The Saturday after, didn’t talk to Kristin all day, figured she went to go get food, go swimming, go to library, etc.
  • When Kristin’s roommate came home, that roommate said they hadn’t seen Kristin.
  • Said she noticed all of Kristin’s stuff was still in her room, nothing had been touched, including a red backpack.
  • Said she remembers a time when she and Kristin went to a campus grocery store where Paul was working at. Said she remembers Paul staring at them.
• Ross Ketcham – attended 135 Crandall Way party
  • In May 1996, was a Cal Poly SLO freshman.
  • On the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, attended a party at 135 Crandall Way.
  • Said he spoke with Kristin for five minutes at the bar area, had a beer with her. Said during this time, Paul was looking at her.
  • Said at one point, Paul had his arm and Kristin.
  • Said at one point, Kristin fell off a washing machine.
  • On cross-examination, he clarified he didn’t see Kristin fall, but heard a commotion, saw Kristin on the ground and some people helping her to her feet – Paul being one of them.
• Cheryl Manzer – attended 135 Crandall Way party
  • In May 1996, was a Cal Poly SLO freshman.
  • Said Paul put his arm around her at the party and she walked away.
  • Said when she was ready to go home between 2:00 AM – 2:30 AM, realized her friends had already left the party, was offered to walk home with Tim Davis and agreed to this.
  • Said as she and Tim were leaving the party, Tim realized Kristin was laying somewhere, helped her up, and together, all three of them started to walk toward Cal Poly SLO’s red brick dorms.
  • Said as they started to walk out, Paul appeared sort of suddenly and said he was going to walk with them to the dorms.
  • Said Kristin was unsteady and Paul had his arm around her waist to support her.
  • Said at a certain point, she told Tim that she, Paul, and Kristin could continue without him because she knew Tim lived in the other direction.
  • Said from that point on, she, Paul, and Kristin paused 2 – 3 times on their way back to the dorms. Said each time this happened, Paul said she could continue on by herself and that he would stay with Kristin. Said she didn’t want to walk home alone and preferred to stay with them.
  • When asked on cross-examination if she felt it was safe for Paul to assist Kristin to her dorm, she admitted she did ask if he would so because she didn’t think anything horrible was going to happen.

DAY 3 – 7/22/22

• Stan Smart, father of Kirstin Smart, on cross-examination….
  • Said he went to Ruben’s residence, saw there was a moving truck, was worried about it because he was missing a daughter and things were being moved.
  • Said he followed the moving truck for a ways.
  • Sanger said Ruben was simply helping his daughter move to a new location.
  • Said he was given a flyer, which he distributed. Said the flyer indicated Ruben’s address, had Paul’s picture and name, had a $10,000 reward.
  • Said he didn’t say Kristin was stretched like a piano wire.
  • Said he never stepped on Ruben’s property, kept 20 feet away from Ruben.
  • Said he drove by Ruben’s house before the incident, less than 10, more than five times.
  • Said he was told by Greg Coates (Ruben’s former defense attorney) not to go by Ruben’s house. Admitted he was close to Coates when this happened but not nose to nose.
  • Said Ruben’s house is on a public road and that he stayed on the public road.
  • Said his interest was that his daughter was missing and Paul was a concern of his.
  • Said his civil suit against the Flores family is still pending.
  • WATCH: Kristin Smart’s Father Takes the Stand
• Vanessa Shields – lived in Muir dorm
  • Said she was at a party with Paul and Kristin and remembers Paul as being very awkward, wasn’t interested in talking to him. She and others brushed him off. Said Kristin is sweet to everyone and if she were Kristin, she would’ve brushed Paul off faster.
  • Said Paul was staring at Kristin intently.
  • Said she was not at the party Kristin was at over Memorial Day weekend because she had gone home to San Diego.
  • Said when she returned to Muir dorm after Memorial Day weekend, she heard from some girls they hadn’t seen Kristin all weekend. She then went to Kristin’s room, saw her stuff there, thought it seemed strange, didn’t seem right. Said she got concerned because there were key items (e.g., makeup and a hairbrush) she knew Kristin wouldn’t go away with. That’s when she decided to tell an RA.
  • On cross-examination,…
    • Said in her interview with the FBI, she didn’t mention Paul.
    • Said she felt validated that Paul was guilty after she got information from law enforcement. She later affirmed these feelings when Paul was arrested.
    • Said she told her friends and family that Paul was creepy after she found out he was one of the last people with Kristin.
  • WATCH: Kristin Smart’s Friend Testifies
• Kendra Koed – attended party where Kristin Smart was last seen
  • Attended a party Kristin was at, the Friday before Memorial Day weekend.
  • Said, at this party, she asked Paul for some gum and he started kissing her. She pushed him away. During this interaction, someone told her and Paul to get a room. Said this was not a consensual kiss.
  • Said at the same party, later in the night, Paul started to kiss her again. Said she told him thanks anyways and walked away.
  • Said at the same party, she saw Kristin had fallen down. Said she tried to help Kristin up along with another person.
  • Said Kristin didn’t seem sober. Said she didn’t see Kristin drinking but did see Kristin had a drink in her hand.
  • On cross-examination,…
    • Said she didn’t have a lot to drink.
    • Said she did go to 7-11 with friends, got slurpees and put rum in them. Said she didn’t measure the rum.
    • Said she follows Chris Lambert’s podcast, follows Chris Lambert’s Instagram, Chris Lambert follows her, admits they correspond. Was on an episode of his podcast which was titled “The Only Suspect.” When asked if Chris is dedicated to helping Paul get convicted, she said Chris is dedicated to getting justice for Kristin’s parents.
• WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Victim’s Father and Friends Testify
• WATCH: Kristin Smart High School Classmate Talks to Court TV

DAY 2 – 7/21/22

• In the defense opening statement for Ruben Flores, attorney Harold Mesick says his client has been harassed, tailed, chased out of restaurants, insulted, assaulted, had stuff thrown in his yard, people screaming at him – it’s been 26 years of torment.
  • Mesick told jurors to pay close attention to each of these witnesses. Said Prosecutor Christopher Peuvrelle is taking the evidence and “he’s flipping it around.” Said there are “shadings of the evidence.”
  • Said Stan Smart confronted Paul Flores.
  • Said Denise Smart’s letter to her daughter shows lack of trust for her.
  • Said Ruben was accounted for on Memorial Day weekend and no efforts were made to locate him.
  • Said staining in the soil could be decomposing avocado tree roots.
  • Said Paul split from Kristin the night he walked her home.
  • Said Paul’s dorm still had students in it Memorial Day weekend, therefore Paul would’ve had to sleep with a dead body before moving it.
  • Said it doesn’t make sense for Paul and Ruben to bury the body in the most inaccessible spot on Ruben’s property.
  • Said no DNA, no blood, no skin, no bones, no teeth, no hair, no clothing was found on that property.
  • WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Openings and Testimony Begin
• Denise Smart – mother of Kristin Smart
  • Kristin was 6 feet tall and weighed 145 lbs.
  • They talked regularly on Sundays. Kristin was emotionally and financially dependent on her family.
  • Kristin mentioned that Cal Poly SLO was not the right fit, freshman year was a challenge.
  • Wrote a “buckle up buttercup” letter to Kristin on May 5, 1996. Said there are times when you celebrate the achievements of your children and other times when you have to be the parent and redirect them. In the letter, she listed suggestions for Kristin to get back on track. It breaks her heart that it was the last letter to Kristin.
  • Received a May 24, 1996 voicemail from Kristin where Kristin said she had good news. This turned out to be about a biology professor finding a missing scantron sheet.
  • When Kristin went missing, Denise said she couldn’t get info from the dorm, the president of Cal Poly, the resident advisor, the San Luis Obispo police or the Sheriff’s Department.
  • On cross-examination,….
    • Said Kristin went to Napa for junior high school to live with her dad who had accepted a job out there.
    • Admitted Kristin lost a job as a lifeguard but believes Kristin was rehired.
    • Said she’s not aware of a dispute Kristin had with her roommate.
    • Said Kristin went by the nickname, Roxy, didn’t think Kristin was telling people she was a model for the Roxy clothing brand, was not a model for them.
    • Said she hired a lawyer, James Murphy, who sued the Flores family for money but insists the goal of the effort was for information.
    • Regarding the letter, emphasized that even though Kristin was struggling at Cal Poly, this moment in time did not define Kristin’s whole experience as a freshman.
    • Said Kristin did lie to her and her husband about different events.
    • WATCH: Kristin Smart’s Mother Takes the Stand
• Matthew Smart – younger brother of Kristin Smart
  • Indicated his strong bond with Kristin.
  • Said Kristin missed every major event in his life in the past 26 years.
  • Doesn’t recall any major struggles Kristin had, or that she was failing classes, or that she lost any job. Does say Kristin struggled as other struggle in college.
• Stan Smart – father of Kristin Smart
  • Spoke with Kristin regularly, usually Sundays. They were close.
  • Said he spent a great deal of time trying to find her. He came down from Napa, and for three months (June, July, August 1996) looked for Kristin’s remains. Said he talked to many people, estimated a thousand. Said there weren’t cell phones at the time. Would go talk to people around the Cal Poly campus, around SLO, around Arroyo Grande. In September, went back to Napa to work.
  • Said he didn’t see Paul Flores or Ruben Flores helping to find Kristin.
  • Said he went to Ruben Flores’ house and Ruben said he ought to leave or someone might get shot.

DAY 1 – 7/18/22

• In the state’s opening statement, prosecutor Christopher Peuvrelle lays out the timeline of Kristin Smart’s disappearance
  • On May 24, 1996, Kristin left a voicemail for her family saying she had goods new.
  • That evening, she went to a house party:
    • She was seen sober between 10:00 PM – 10:30 PM
    • Matt Toomey saw Kristin intoxicated face down on the ground between 12:00 AM – 12:30 AM
    • Tim Davis saw Kristin intoxicated face down on the ground between 2:00 AM – 2:30 AM
    • Tim Davis and Cheryl Anderson helped Kristin up. This was when Paul Flores came out of the darkness and offered to walk Kristin home. All four of them headed towards the dorms. Paul lived in Santa Lucia dorm and Kristin lived in Muir dorm.
    • Paul was unaccounted for between 2:30 AM – 6:00 AM on May 25, 1996.
    • Paul called his father, co-defendant Ruben Flores, at 9:47 AM on May 26, 1996.
  •  Paul played basketball on May 27, 1996.
  • Paul was interviewed by Cal Poly police on May 28, 1996. They observed a light bruise under his eye. Paul said he had no physical contact with Kristin and didn’t find her attractive.
  • At the end of June 1996, cadaver dogs were sent to Santa Lucia dorm. They showed a strong alert on the corner of Paul’s mattress, which had a light brown stain. It tested positive for human blood. When it was run for DNA, Kristin couldn’t be included or excluded from the sample.
  • Paul went to a skateboarding party, where he told Jennifer Hudson that Kristin was a b*tch and he buried her.
  • When Kristin went missing, her father, Stan, ended up at Ruben Flores’ house. Ruben allegedly said, “You better leave or someone’s going to get shot.”
  • Paul later moved to Los Angeles:
    • Rachel Doe will testify to the Redondo Beach rape case
    • Ronda Doe will testify to the San Pedro sexual assault case
    • Sara Doe will testify to another sexual assault case
  • There was a wiretap on Susan Flores, Paul’s mother, and Paul in 2019. In it, Susan can be heard telling Paul to listen to the podcast and poke holes in that.
  • A neighbor sees a cargo trailer pointed towards Ruben’s deck and hears Susan and Mike arguing. In 2020 a fence exists, in 2021 the fence is removed to allow the cargo trailer onto the residence.
  • Ground penetrating radar found an anomaly under Ruben’s deck – 4 feet wide, 4 feet deep, 6 feet long. This is where investigators found dark staining consistent with human decomposition. The darkest stain tested positive for human blood/primate blood/ferret blood.
• In the defense opening statement for Paul Flores, attorney Robert Sanger details their strategy
  • Law enforcement is aware they didn’t have a case – there’s no eyewitnesses, no body, no physical or forensic evidence.
  • Kristin had at-risk behavior – she was likely to get into a car with a guy and go off.
  • Kristin’s parents were at their wits end with her, she was flunking out of school.
  • The prosecution said Ruben had articles and posters about Kristin. Well, there was a media campaign where wanted posters listing Ruben’s address were issued.
  • The prosecution has a wiretap on Susan and Paul. Information was given to the podcaster to say provocative things. Susan tends to talk a lot. This audio is the best they have. What would any mother say in this situation?
  • You’ll hear from an archaeologist talk about a burial site. She’s not an expert on decomposition or semipermeable wraps. The stains turned out not to be blood. We’ll present a forensics expert on buried remains.
  • Paul had a DUI in Santa Barbara but he was living in Los Angeles at the time. At one point he got his probation revoked and went to jail. Law enforcement planted an informant in his cell. Paul always said he went a separate way from Kristin to this person.
  • At the party Paul was at in 1996, there’s no proof Paul gave Kristin alcohol. At one point he left to go to another party and came back, he didn’t come from the shadows.
  • That night, Kristin’s roommate had a friend over. This friend was too drink to know if Kristin came back and later left to go to another dorm.
  • Steve Fleming isn’t 100% sure Paul was stalking Kristin. Kristin previously reported she was being stalked by another guy.
  • Dog handlers’ dogs often hit on nothing. Once or twice they’ve found a body. A change in their behavior is nothing more than a clue. There were multiple dog alerts in different areas.
  • Ground penetrating radar found multiple anomalies, even at Susan’s house. There’s nothing that suggests the anomaly at Ruben’s house is a burial site.
  • The cargo trailer at Ruben’s house is Mike McConville’s trailer. Mike, the boyfriend of Susan, has cancer, he needed a place for his trailer. The idea that there was ever a body in the trailer isn’t supported by the evidence.
  • READ: Trial begins in case of missing California college student
  • WATCH: The Murder of Kristin Smart: Day 1
  • WATCH: Why Did Kristin Smart Case Take 26 Years to Get to Trial?