In an emailed statement, the Smarts said their hopes were rekindled when San Luis Obispo Sheriff Ian Parkinson took office, and that the excavation work this week on a hillside at the Cal Poly campus are a confirmation of his departments commitment to the case and a crucial step in bringing their daughter home.
While we are hopeful and it is our fervent prayer for Kristin to be recovered and returned to our family with this effort, our hopes are tempered with the history of the last two decades, Stan and Denise Smart wrote.
Kristin has long deserved the attention, effort and respect that Sheriff Parkinson, his department, the FBI, the District Attorney and Cal Poly are giving to her recovery and our quest for justice, they added. We are confident that the person of interest will soon be held accountable for taking her life and harboring her remains for over 20 years.
We are mindful that with or without the hoped for results from this weeks efforts, we are now on a path that will bring our family peace and comfort, they wrote.