Chris Lambert: I think that might have been the biggest misstep that investigators have made to this day. Authorities made clear that they plan to use Flores' alleged predatory behavior against him. The case recently reentered the public eye with the 2019 launch of the popular true-crime podcast, Your Own Backyard, hosted by musician Chris Lambert, who has spent his life haunted by a missing persons billboard featuring Smarts face. James Murphy: And it's 2:30 and 3 o'clock in the morning at Cal Poly this is not a a location from which Paul alone could easily move a body without a vehicle. Cole said investigators checked out the skateboard ramp location but did not find a body. Chris Lambert: A young couple moves into it with their kid. When they were deposed by James Murphy, they also insisted their son was not involved.
PDF KRISTEN MODAFFERI - Federal Bureau of Investigation 1 of 47. Margarita Campos: I was, like, "Kristin, I'm going to go back home. PODCAST EPISODE 1: I googled Kristin Smart's name every few years. Anyone would have been terrified if they heard it..
Dennis Mahon's Podcast - Blubrry Podcasting Paul Flores is charged with first-degree murder and is accused of killing Smart while attempting to rape her. Smarts family issues a statement following the news about Flores going to trial: Yesterday was a very good day and we want to take this opportunity to thank all of Kristins supporters in San Luis Obispo and beyond. In addition, the documents include a phone tap from January 2020 in which Pauls mother, Susan, tells her son: The other thing I need you to do is to start listening to the podcast. SUSAN FLORES: [Long pause, grabs water bottle] Of course not. Im not going to exclude a member of the media (for doing their job).. Paul Flores was identified as a person of interest early in the case. DAN DOW [press conference]: We intend to use evidence of other sexual crimes in this prosecution to prove the facts necessary for the attempted rape in this case. Um, wherever we can punch holes. A jury acquitted Ruben Flores of the charge of being an accessory after the fact. Kristen Modafferi, Kristin Smart & Kent Jacobs. By then, the semester was over and the room had been cleaned out. Weitere Informationen ber die Verwendung Ihrer personenbezogenen Daten finden Sie in unserer Datenschutzerklrung und unserer Cookie-Richtlinie. The defense also tells Lambert he will not be allowed back in the courtroom where he has been covering the hearing as he is now a potential witness. And yes, we did find physical evidence at, at least two homes. Ms. Smart, who was from Stockton, Calif., was a freshman at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. 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.
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. Paul Flores and defense attorney Robert Sanger in court on Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021.
Kristin Smart case: Shy podcaster led cops to arrest in California cold The document said investigators at the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department had biological evidence indicating Smart was once buried under Ruben Flores' deck behind his home in nearby Arroyo Grande. But the judge indicated he would set a reasonable bail amount Wednesday for the father, who has health problems is currently in the San Luis Obispo jail on $250,000 bail. Paul Flores, a fellow freshman at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, was the last person seen with Smart on May 25, 1996. Kristen was in her first year at Cal Poly when she vanished in 1996. Peuvrelle, who said Ruben Flores has helped cover up the crime for nearly a quarter-century, would continue to do so if freed. But you have to understand, she was a really independent free spirit. ", Although suspicion surrounded Flores almost from the beginning, any hopes for an arrest were dashed in May 1997 when then-Sheriff Ed Williams made an admission to the San Luis Obispo Telegraph: "We need Paul Flores to tell us what happened to Kristin Smart so absent something from Mr. Flores, I don't see us completing this case.". every piece of evidence points directly at Paul Flores. But further investigation of the Flores's two trucks seemed impossible. Paul Flores, lower left, remained in jail without bail while Ruben Flores, upper right, was able to post bail after a judge agreed to lower the bail amount from $250,000 to $50,000, San Luis Obispo County Superior Court/Zoom, How a tragic boating crash is connected to the family of Alex Murdaugh, Five deaths with a connection to Alex Murdaugh's family investigated, Chilling details revealed in JJ Vallow and Tylee Ryan deaths, Mother at center of international manhunt speaks out to "48 Hours". Why? Jonathan Vigliotti: There was a lot of focus on how Kristin was drinking what sounded a lot like victim shaming. Specifically, that they had Paul's white Nissan pickup in their possession. But as Chris Lambert learned, Flores's pattern of behavior with women didn't stop. And my roommate actually kicked down the door to make him stop. Lindsey Smart Stewart: I think they're, like, carrying boulders on their back. Chris Lambert: I didn't know the scale. So, they did not immediately get a warrant to search Susan Flores's home.
Dennis Mahon's Podcast But cadaver dogs told a different story. The next morning, Margarita waited to hear from Kristin. We just, "do you know anything about it". James Murphy: There has been no other suspect. to find the next challenge. The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time She loved swimming and skiing. He later argued that the biological evidence found under the deck was not conclusively human blood. Her dorm entrance is right over here. But while campus police weren't doing much, Kristin's parents were doing whatever they could to find their daughter. His father Ruben Flores charged with being an accessory after the factwas found not guilty. 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. Don Kelsen/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images. Ms. Smart, 19, was a freshman at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo when she disappeared in 1996. And it was only 250 miles from Stockton, California, where she grew up with Lindsey and their brother Matt. Please enter valid email address to continue. In the spring of 1996, Kristin Smart, a 19-year-old college student, left an off-campus party in San Luis Obispo, Calif., and walked home to her dormitory. According to a county probation bail report obtained by the San Luis Obispo Tribune, "biological evidence" was found under Ruben's deck. In April 2021, investigators charged Paul Flores, left, with Kristin Smart's murder, and his then-80-year-old father Ruben, as an accessory after the fact. It worked. Prosecutor Chris Peuvrelle asked him if he found the remains of any monkeys or ferrets or any human bodies on the property. Chris Lambert: They're hopeful, but they've also been let down so many times before. PODCAST EPISODE 1: Kristin broke down begging her mother to let her drop out and go somewhere else. And then months and months later, they'd reach back out and say, can you get us in touch with this person again? 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. For more than two decades, her family, friends, and supporters searched for answers and for justice. Chris Lambert: There was a man climbing her trellis and trying to get inside her balcony, very intoxicated and refusing to leave. James Murphy: Paul Flores had a reputation amongst the girls that knew him at Cal Poly as being a creeper that he was always trying to hit on women. Chris Lambert: They just have never given up and are never going to give up on their daughter. But Paul Flores was never charged with any of these incidents. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. It wasn't until Kristin's roommate returned to their dorm room, that Margarita realized Kristin never came home. Let's go." James Murphy: They're interested in seeing Paul Flores get convicted and Ruben Flores get held accountable. The day after my sister disappeared, Paul Flores had a black eye and scratches on him. Axel Koester/Sygma via Getty Images The. They also uncovered videos in a folder labeled practice that featured women wearing ball gags and in other fetish positions. They have not been able to proceed with the civil case while there was an ongoing criminal investigation, but that didn't stop them from following every lead and preparing for an eventual trial. Wednesday, Superior Court Judge Craig van Rooyen rules that having the podcaster testify and release his records would have a chilling effect on the medias ability to do their job. It was turned over to a detective with the San Luis Obispo Sheriff's Office, but Garin Sinclair says, the Smarts never knew it existed until the Lassiters were deposed in January 1997. They were soon joined by another partygoer, Paul Flores. Smart was talking with and socializing with several different males at the party. He'd go anywhere. Cole also testified that the Flores family was wiretapped for 30 days starting on January 5, 2020. The document presented summaries of why prosecutors didn't want either man to be released pending a trial that could be years away. What's going on? Man charged with 1996 murder of college student Kristin Smart. Podcaster Lambert will not be called to the stand during the Kristin Smart murder hearing. Chris Lambert: Kristin became incredibly intoxicated, whether she was drugged or whether she just had a lot to drink in a short amount of time She ends up passed out on the lawn next door. Chris Lambert: And he says he got a black eye playing basketball with his friends. Kristin did not have a purse, money, her I.D. 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! Flores and his parents have always maintained that he had nothing to do with Smarts disappearance. But Paul Flores remained behind bars help without bail. Other witnesses included students who were at the party. Her books are available on Amazon. Alex Murdaugh Found Guilty of Murdering Wife and Son Chris Lambert: That's the upsetting part about it, isn't it? At the time, they did not know about a missing college student.
The Strange Disappearance of Kristen Modafferi - Medium How 'Your Own Backyard' podcast led to arrests in Kristin Smart murder Peterson. Jonathan Vigliotti [with Lambert outside of the the dorms]: Paul and Kristin then make their way here. And I was screaming. And six months later, when Flores was deposed by James Murphy for the Smart's civil suit, he kept quiet. and offers to help. Like what may have been discovered in March 2021 when investigators searched Ruben Flores' house using cadaver dogs and ground penetrating radar. Plans & Pricing . The arrests of the father and son came after investigators using ground-penetrating radar and cadaver dogs discovered evidence connected directly to Smarts death last month during a search at Ruben Flores home, authorities said. 2 men found drugged after leaving NYC gay bars were killed, medical examiner says. At the time of the April 13 arrests, the sheriff said he believed that had enough evidence to win convictions. I did have guilt about that. She disappeared in 1996 after attending an off-campus party and while she was declared legally dead in 2002, her body has never been found. Marital Status: Single Characteristics: Caucasian female with brown hair and eyes. San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office, via Associated Press.
Nineteen-year-old Kristin Smart disappeared Memorial Day weekend of 1996. Margarita Campos: I mean, she was gone. Onuma was evicted from a Kaneohe, Hawaii residence after his connection to the Kristen Modafferi . To think that you're going to finally get some resolution, and then it doesn't happen the way it's supposed to. Lambert says Kristin could not stand on her own, so fellow student Cheryl Anderson who was also at the party began helping her back to campus. Other witnesses are also questioned, but Flemmings testimony is noteworthy as he is the first to say he saw Flores and Smart together before the party. There was no reaction until the dog reached Paul Flores's room. PODCAST EPISODE 4: And he had like a butter knife and he like held it to my neck. The sheriff's office still wasn't convinced they had enough evidence against Flores. It is also what the Smarts have been waiting for for more than a quarter of a century. PODCAST EPISODE 3 | MARY LASSITER: It was like a red thing and it was like a smudge-like fingerprinted look on the back, just red, like maroon, like old looking and the smudge that it was like half a fingerprint. But Parkinson acknowledges it hasn't been easy. Defense Attorney Sanger calls the move a stunning lack of objectivity.. Ms. Smarts family said they had faith in the justice system, comforted in the knowledge that Kristin has been held in the hearts of so many and that she has not been forgotten.. Lambert began looking into what happened to Kristin, collecting articles and documents, chasing down leads and tracking down anyone with information. But one of those friends told police Flores already had the black eye when he arrived. Then, in 2011, Ian Parkinson was elected sheriff. PODCAST EPISODE 2 [LAMBERT READING REPORT] Smart does not have any close friends at Cal Poly. Meanwhile, the hearing is scheduled to conclude on Friday, when the judge will rule if prosecutors have probable cause to go to trial. Ruben Flores was released on $50,000 bail to his ex-wife. First published on November 28, 2020 / 11:10 PM. Lindsey Smart Stewart: It just amazes me the amount of evidence that's available, yet nothing has happened. Nikki Rodriguez, a spokeswoman for the court, said the documents were not supposed to be public. So before leaving, Margarita handed over her keys to get back into Muir Hall. D.A. But as Chris Lambert learned, campus police did not act right away. By the time they called the Cal Poly campus police, Kristin had been missing for more than 48 hours. Defense lawyers have criticized the evidence used to arrest both men last week. James Murphy: Somebody found an earring that they say was Kristin Smart's jewelry in the driveway. Chris Lambert: At that point I don't think they had ever dealt with a missing person, a possibly murdered person. Chris Lambert's podcast caught the attention of millions of listeners and sparked new interest in the decades-old unsolved case of Kristin Smart. Paul Flores, right, in court with his attorney Richard Hutton in 1996. In October 2022, Paul Flores, the man long suspected in her disappearance, was found guilty of murder. James Murphy: That suggests that something bad happened in Paul Flores's dorm room. Cole in 2019. James Murphy: He lied to the police about everything.
Kristen Modafferi | Unsolved Mysteries Wiki | Fandom The podcast, "Your Own Backyard,"has drawn millions of listeners and focused renewed attention on this decades old case. Our family has always known that this was going to be a long, difficult, and emotional journey. A hundred percent that was happening. Sie knnen Ihre Einstellungen jederzeit ndern, indem Sie auf unseren Websites und Apps auf den Link Datenschutz-Dashboard klicken. Flores defense team serves Your Own Backyard podcaster Chris Lambert with a subpoena to serve as a witness in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on August 30th, as he has interviewed several witnesses before they spoke to law enforcement.
The search for Kristin Smart never ends for her family For the next 25 years, I did whatever I could and looked for answers wherever I could, Denise Smart told the court, according to CBS 13, a local television station. I was afraid Id end up missing or buried someplace, she says. PODCAST EPISODE 2 | WOMAN #2: You wouldn't want to be alone in a room with him. On Oct. 18, Paul Flores was found guilty of murdering Ms. Smart. That mother, Mary Lassiter, described it to Chris Lambert. In February 2020, the authorities executed search warrants at four locations in California and Washington State and recovered what the San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office described as items of interest. One location was the Los Angeles home of Paul Flores, KCAL-TV reported. D.A.
What happened to Kristen Modafferi? One man's 20-year search for Sources tell us investigators discovered videos and photographs on Flores' computer showing him engaged in sexual activity with at least 10 different women, apparently in various states of consciousness. Cole went to his White Court home to collect it on May 19, 2021. 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.
James Murphy: Every day. Early on, a small group of volunteers also looked for Kristin. Denise Pearce: She was becoming more and more alarmed, you know? 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. The prosecution upholds the validity of these searches, including one of Flores dorm room that was done after he moved out. Another frustration for the Smarts: at the time Kristin disappeared, investigators weren't aware that Paul Flores's parents were separated and living apart. It would be three more years before the property was searched again. Kristin Smart was a 19-year-old freshman at Cal Poly, California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, when she disappeared after a walk home from an off-campus party early in the. And the complaint has some explosive claims about what led investigators to focus under Ruben's deck in the first place. so eventually he unlocked you know, the apartment door, and I left. Ann-Marie Christian: She was who she was because of her parents, for sure. 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. But a massive search did not happen until she'd been gone for more than a month. But Margarita says, the police did not seem concerned. She writes about missing persons, unsolved murders, and human rights. Just weeks later, Kristin's frustrated parents contacted James Murphy, a local civil attorney. Chris Lambert says, two days after that, when Flores was interviewed by campus police, they asked how he got his black eye as well as scratches on his hands and knees. Griffin Cherry was her close friend: He had a smirk when he said it, like it was a joke, she says. He built the home on White Court for Ruben and Susan Flores in 1991. I knocked on her door, and I thought she was just sleeping, or she went out and about, you know? Also on the stand Tuesday were another cadaver dog handler, an expert in fiber evidence and a district attorney's office investigator. So had Margarita Campos, who lived in the next room in Muir Hall. James Murphy: They brought in the first dog and they'd had the dog go through the dorms. He also said there was suspicious staining in the soil indicative of human remains. 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. James Murphy: There's no way to get evidence back once you've lost it. But the investigation is ongoing. 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. He said a chemical called Bluestar, which detects bodily fluids, was used on the trailer and that there was a reaction on the right side of the trailer showing a stain that could be similar to a human being lying on its side. Klicken Sie auf Alle ablehnen, wenn Sie nicht mchten, dass wir und unsere Partner Cookies und personenbezogene Daten fr diese zustzlichen Zwecke verwenden. The lawsuit claims they were moving Kristin's remains. But on April 13, 2021, after an investigation that spanned nearly a quarter of a century, the authorities announced that two California men Paul Flores, now 45, and his father, Ruben Flores, 81 had been arrested in connection with her disappearance. From the start, investigators. Like so many freshmen, Kristin struggled. After over 25 years, there is no evidence that Paul Flores committed the crimes for which there is no evidence.. DAN DOW [press conference]: But the allegation that he was committing or attempting to commit a rape when he killed her, is the basis for which we are able to file first-degree felony murder charges. So, she slowed down and walked with them. The then eighteen-year-old . Chris Lambert: Kristin's father would come down and hike every trail he could find on the Central Coast. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. James Murphy: I'm not at liberty to describe how it was documented. Jonathan Vigliotti: They thought she was off possibly having fun. PODCAST EPISODE 3: Something shiny catches her eye next to the front driver side tire. Remember, Flores's room had been emptied and thoroughly cleaned.
Scott Peterson set to testify in Kristin Smart slay case - New York Post James Murphy: Having a black eye doesn't make you guilty of anything but if the person you were with disappeared from the planet that's physical evidence. Attorney Harold Mesick said Monday that the evidence against the father was so minimal as to shock the conscience.. He was required to wear an electronic ankle bracelet. It's, like, she has nothing on her. You just don't talk, and you get away with it. Lindsey Smart Stewart: Right. An earring that appeared to match the necklace Kristin is wearing on the billboard. 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. Defense attorney Robert Sanger, in turn, tries to poke holes in Flemmings recollections. Jonathan Vigliotti: She had just 40 yards to go and yet she vanished. It was first reported by The Tribune, and a reporter posted snippets of documents on Twitter. So, when they were invited to a party that Friday night, Kristin was excited to go. The hearing began August 2 and is expected to last into at least next week. Det. The mother is washing her car in the driveway at one point. 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 police searched her dorm room in Muir Hall, finding her wallet and reminders to turn in assignments. Despite the fact that law enforcement had collected substantial evidence that Kristin Smart may have had reason not to return to her dorm room after leaving (fellow party-goers) Cheryl (Manzer) Anderson and Paul Flores and despite the fact that they had collected substantial evidence that there were multiple potential suspects who stalked, harassed or otherwise had conflicts with Kristin Smart, law enforcement made an early choice to change their focus to murder and to Paul Flores as the only suspect, Sanger wrote in a defense motion. but I knew that I could try to do a small part. 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? Smart was declared dead in 2002. He says "no.". Kristen Deborah Modafferi (born June 1, 1979; disappeared June 23, 1997) is an American woman who, in the early summer of 1997, disappeared in mysterious circumstances after leaving her work at the Crocker Galleria Mall in San Francisco, California. There is no evidence of a murder and no evidence of a rape, Sanger added. Kristin Denise Smart (born February 20, 1977 [1] [6] -declared legally dead May 25, 2002) was an American woman who was found to have been murdered by Paul Flores at the end of her freshman year on the campus of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly). Kristen Modaferri Observer file Family and friends of a Charlotte woman who has been missing for nearly two decades are awaiting results after a possible break in the case came Thursday.. Testimony resumes at the Kristin Smart hearing after a week off. When they showed up, it was Paul Flores. And yes, we believe it's linked to Kristin. Plans & Pricing ; Podcast Statistics; PowerPress Plugin . They seized digital devices during the search and, in April 2020, executed another search on Paul Flores property in San Pedro. Margarita soon decided she'd had enough.