Still Missing CA - Kristin Smart, 19, San Luis Obispo, 25 May 1996 *arrests* #2

[Caring4Many]

I found this while looking at another case in CA. Murder of Amber Hill. Her parents suspect Paul Flores in her murder.
2nd page, halfway down first column.
http://californiaregister.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Issue-2-Volume-3.pdf

it’s been awhile since I listened to the podcast but I feel like this case was part of an episode. I may need to go back to listen again. Thanks for this!

 

[Sonny Crockett]

good research, it is a bit worrisome that Paul has such a high profile defense attorney, who is obviously very media savvy if he was Michael Jackson's attorney. I'm just hoping that this drags out enough for the price tag to become too high and eventually by the time this goes to trial, a public defender will be used. Of course I say that without knowing what evidence they have, which must be pretty compelling if they are willing to take a no body case to trial.

Yes, this is a cause for concern. We've all known about/seen cases where someone is clearly guilty, yet since they have a lot of $ to throw at expensive lawyers, they get off scot-free (some obvious examples are Robert Durst, O.J., etc.). The problem with high-profile cases like this is that they attract high-profile attention. And, this attention is a double-edged sword.

I found the fact that he assaulted a classmate seriously in 7th grade (1991), and his parents basically dismissed it, to be very telling. JMO

Not only assaulted, but nearly killed. The podcast featured a current interview with the victim (now an adult), and PF was bullying this class-mate mercilessly over a long period of time. When the kid finally decided to fight back & they got into a shoving match (completely justified on the victim's part), PF snapped and hit/kicked him in the head, causing him to lose consciousness & almost die. To me, this was grounds for criminal charges; and, if PF had been an adult, he probably would have gone to jail. As it stood, he should have gone to some kind of juvenile prison (or whatever criminals go to if they're minors). But, all he got was less than a slap on the wrist.

And yes, I completely agree - this early example of PF's extreme anger when someone fought back against him/didn't do what he wanted is extremely telling.

 

[Kapua]

I've been binging on the podcast this afternoon and evening.

I found the fact that he assaulted a classmate seriously in 7th grade (1991), and his parents basically dismissed it, to be very telling. JMO

I listened to episodes 5-8 between yesterday and this morning. The podcasts are superb. Lambert has REALLY done his homework. He's uncovered several potential witnesses. Hats off to him.

 

[Diddian]

Yes, this is a cause for concern. We've all known about/seen cases where someone is clearly guilty, yet since they have a lot of $ to throw at expensive lawyers, they get off scot-free (some obvious examples are Robert Durst, O.J., etc.). The problem with high-profile cases like this is that they attract high-profile attention. And, this attention is a double-edged sword.



Not only assaulted, but nearly killed. The podcast featured a current interview with the victim (now an adult), and PF was bullying this class-mate mercilessly over a long period of time. When the kid finally decided to fight back & they got into a shoving match (completely justified on the victim's part), PF snapped and hit/kicked him in the head, causing him to lose consciousness & almost die. To me, this was grounds for criminal charges; and, if PF had been an adult, he probably would have gone to jail. As it stood, he should have gone to some kind of juvenile prison (or whatever criminals go to if they're minors). But, all he got was less than a slap on the wrist.

And yes, I completely agree - this early example of PF's extreme anger when someone fought back against him/didn't do what he wanted is extremely telling.

I've been listening to the excellent podcast as well and it sounded to me like PF did not just hit/kick the other kid in the head.

According to the victim, the encounter went like this: PF had been sitting with his rear end on that kid's face and with PF's legs extending down the kid's body. The victim kicked his legs up and caught PF in the face with one foot, so PF jumped off and as the kid was turning over and trying to get up off the ground, PF jumped up and one-foot STOMPED on the kid's head. The head-stomp left the victim so rattled, he could not get himself to the school nurse's office; two other kids had to assist him there. When his father picked him up and took him to his pediatrician and she saw his condition (incl. speaking gibberish and declining rapidly in motor ability), the pediatrician insisted his condition was so serious he must be taken to the nearby ER immediately and she left her own practice to accompany him to the ER in the vehicle as his father drove. The victim (now a man) said that he actually had a footprint from PF's shoe on his face when he was later in the hospital (for five days).

 

[Sonny Crockett]

Yes, you're absolutely right. I should have clarified that in my post. The kid is lucky to be alive, without lasting brain damage. In any case, PF should definitely have been charged for this - I don't care if he was a child when this happened. Again - just to clarify: The altercation happened because PF was picking on & bullying the kid for a long time prior to this - without provocation. RB downplayed this and when questioned by the authorities, made up a b.s. story about PF being attacked by "three other people" and defending himself. What a load of crap.

IMHO, one of the reasons so many people ended up talking to CL for the podcast (even if they had been reluctant to do so initially) was because they had terrible encounters with PF that they wanted documented. I.e., prior to the podcast a lot of these awful crimes (assault, stalking, etc.) had just been swept under the rug. So, the podcast finally gave these victims a voice & a platform to discuss what happened.

 

[Caring4Many]

Your Own Backyard, Episode 3- Denise Smart makes an appeal to SF -one mother to another. She sends her a collage of Kristin with a letter asking the Flores family to share what they know. SF responds with “If I wanted to see pictures of your daughter, I’d ask for them. Look at them yourself.” This was before the 1 year mark. If she knew nothing and thought her son was innocent, why was this her response? It seems way too bizarre to me. I really just don’t see a scenario where anyone in their home doesn’t know what happened.
Of course there are so many things from this podcast but this one I had to put out here.

 

[Diddian]

Your Own Backyard, Episode 3- Denise Smart makes an appeal to SF -one mother to another. She sends her a collage of Kristin with a letter asking the Flores family to share what they know. SF responds with “If I wanted to see pictures of your daughter, I’d ask for them. Look at them yourself.” This was before the 1 year mark. If she knew nothing and thought her son was innocent, why was this her response? It seems way too bizarre to me. I really just don’t see a scenario where anyone in their home doesn’t know what happened.
Of course there are so many things from this podcast but this one I had to put out here.

IMO, combine that response with the performance of Ruben Flores* as he dodges and plays stupid in his deposition (first when asked about the middle school incident in Torrance where PF sent a kid to the hospital and later when asked to describe the route RF drove when he serviced payphones for GTE - he protects that info like it's a state secret) and it's blatantly apparent how a sociopath like PF was forged.

* Episode 5, "Your Own Backyard."

 

[margarita25]

I’m not sure but in the Susan Flores interview from last month, I think she mentions him several times (and not nicely!) as the “Smarts’ henchman.”

I think this is the full interview:

—-

Also, bringing forward:

1 year ago/ video re: search warrants:

 

[margarita25]

San Pedro:

Full PC:

11 months ago:

eta / bumping from 2017:
Four Women Say the Man Suspected of Murdering a College Student Sexually Assaulted Them

 

[margarita25]

Timeline:

—

The long, twisted, frustrating road to an arrest in the disappearance of Kristin Smart


—

5 days ago:

 

[Seattle1]

Matt Fountain[URL='https://twitter.com/MattFountain1']@MattFountain1[/URL]


Good morning. The arraignment for Paul & Ruben Flores in the #KristinSmart murder case will resume this afternoon at 1:30 p.m. in D6. Livestream's found here, and you can follow me or
@SLOTribune
for updates. https://slo.courts.ca.gov/gi/live.htm


9:08 AM · Apr 19, 2021·Twitter Web App

 

[Emi]

The Tribune @SLOTribune Apr 18
“This story is not over, and I’ll have plenty more to say in the coming weeks and months,” Lambert said.


‘Kristin is worldwide.’ Paso Robles vigil and ‘Your Own Backyard’ creator honor Smart
“This story is not over, and I’ll have plenty more to say in the coming weeks and months,” Lambert said.
sanluisobispo.com

 

[Diddian]

I think this is the full interview:

—-

Also, bringing forward:

1 year ago/ video re: search warrants:

SPF is a smart cookie. In that interview, she is playing defense and she knows what she is doing. She brings up issues she hopes will support defense challenges for any evidence that might be collected from the Ford Ranger and the Nissan pickup trucks, both of which have been seized by police. She mentions that one had been traded-in and the other had been stolen, so presumably believes a defense could challenge evidence based on chain of custody. Of course, such a challenge would have to be believable in consideration of all the other evidence that will be presented and my guess - based on likely statements from various witnesses who've come forward as a result of podcaster CL's efforts to track them down - is that it would fail to be so.

Praying LE has also collected evidence at the two homes (White Ct and Branch St) where RF and SPF have been steadily perched like hens hatching eggs for all of the 25 years that Kristin has been missing. No chain of custody issues there (although SPF was sure to bring up that there is no perimeter fence at White Ct, other than the open rail one).

It must have been very hard work to raise PF, navigate around his troubles, and always point the finger at his accusers. SPF amply demonstrates she's had enough experience doing so to become expert at it.

 

[Caring4Many]

Does anyone know where we could possibly listen to the 1997 deposition of SF? I haven't been able to find it. I binge listened to the podcast again this weekend (I may need to do this again while taking notes) and noticed her deposition mentioned a few times and small clips, but never much played or noted where to find it. While I am tempted to believe that SF didn't immediately know Memorial Day weekend what RF & PF had gotten into, I do believe that she figured it out or was told at some point after. She isn't naive enough to mention the things that she did early on, but if she didn't know- ever- there are things that would clearly make no sense. I just would really like to listen to her deposition in full.

 

[Seattle1]

https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/crime/article250699119.html

April 19, 2021

ORCUTT MAN LAUNCHES PODCAST ABOUT KRISTIN SMART CASE

It all began a few years ago, when Lambert met Kristin Smart’s mother at a memorial for her daughter in Shell Beach, where a plaque honoring her daughter is located.

Denise Smart showed up to light a candle and mark her daughter’s birthday.

“I had no idea she was going to be there,” Lambert, who grew up on the Central Coast hearing about Smart’s disappearance, told The Tribune in 2019. “She invited me to come sing with some friends and it was the four of us standing on the cliffs celebrating Kristin’s birthday.”

[..]

His primary mission was to help Denise Smart find her daughter.

“If her body is in my own backyard, I could find it, you could find it, anybody with some sleuthing skills and a shovel potentially could find Kristin,” Lambert said April 15.

[..]

One of Lambert’s theories of the case is that Paul Flores and possibly his father may have used a Volkswagen Cabriolet to transport Smart’s body. At the time, that vehicle was owned by Paul Flores’ sister, Ermelinda Flores, who lived about a mile away from Cal Poly, Lambert said.

Cadaver dogs alerted to the car when they were used to search Ruben Flores’ Arroyo Grande property in mid-March, Lambert said. The podcaster personally observed the dogs’ reaction while watching from a location outside the property, he said.

[..]

He continues to offer “Your Own Backyard” for free to listeners on his website, only taking donations from supporters.

“I want to do this for the right reasons,” Lambert said. “And I also want to maintain my relationships with the Smart family and law enforcement and for me to do that, I think this is the best approach (not to sell his work).”

Lambert said: “The Smart family has told me that they’re okay with me pursuing any kind of career options from this I might choose, but I’m not interested in becoming a crime podcaster or anything like that.”

Lambert plans to complete at least a couple more “Your Own Backyard” episodes based on the latest developments of the case, and then he may call his crime-related research quits, he said.

 

[Emi]

I will be posting tweets from the hearing today

 

[Emi]

Matt Fountain [URL='https://twitter.com/MattFountain1']@MattFountain1 [/URL]49m
Replying to
@MattFountain1
Sorry guys, looks like we're in D1 today -- livestream's on the same page: https://slo.courts.ca.gov/gi/live.htm

 

[Emi]

Megan Healy [URL='https://twitter.com/MeganHealyTV']@MeganHealyTV [/URL]3m
Waiting for Paul and Ruben Flores arraignment at 1:30. Click here, and select Department 1 to watch live https://slo.courts.ca.gov/gi/live.htm

 

[Seattle1]

Matt Fountain[URL='https://twitter.com/MattFountain1']@MattFountain1[/URL]


Paul Flores' attorney asks for bail, argued in filing papers that PF "does not pose a risk to public safety and is not a flight risk."



1:35 PM · Apr 19, 2021·Twitter Web App

 

[Emi]

Megan Healy @MeganHealyTV 37s
Replying to
@MeganHealyTV
The site is crashing probably because too many people are trying to access