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Paul and Ruben Flores arraignment postponed in Kristin Smart case

Rachel Showalter
/
via Zoom
Paul and Ruben Flores appear in court for the first time in Kristen Smart case

Paul and Ruben Flores appeared remotely in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on April 15. They both face charges in connection with the 1996 disappearance of Cal Poly student Kristin Smart.

San Luis Obispo District Attorney Dan Dow charged Paul Flores with first-degree murder and Ruben Flores with accessory to murder.

The arraignment was postponed until next Monday, April 19. That’s when both men are expected to enter pleas and present bail arguments.

Paul Flores is in custody without bail and Ruben Flores’ bail is set at $250,000.

Paul Flores’ attorney, Robert Sanger, filed a protective order because of the high-profile nature of the case. A Superior Court Judge approved the motion that prohibits anyone involved in the case from talking about it in public or releasing documents related to evidence.

Officials have not recovered Smart’s remains, but San Luis Obispo Sheriff Ian Parkinson said investigators are closer than they’ve ever been before.

The Smart family issued a statement following the hearing.

“After nearly 25 years of waiting, today’s delay in the arraignment process was not unexpected or surprising,” the statement reads. “Make no mistake, we have begun the final quest to bring justice for Kristin. We know we are in good hands with the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office, and we will wait patiently for the process to commence.”

Next week’s arraignment can be viewed on the San Luis Obispo Superior Court website.

Rachel Showalter first joined KCBX as an intern from Cal Poly in 2017. During her time in college, she anchored and reported for Mustang News at Cal Poly's radio station, KCPR. After graduating, she took her first job as a Producer at KSBY-TV. She returned to the KCBX team in October 2020, reporting daily for KCBX News until she moved to the Pacific Northwest in July of 2022. Rachel spends her off-days climbing rocks, cooking artichokes and fighting crosswords with friends.
Lauren Walike joined KCBX as its news manager in February 2021. In addition to her KCBX work, Lauren also serves as news director for KCPR-FM, Cal Poly’s student-run radio station, and digital director of Mustang Media Group, Cal Poly’s student-run news organization. She will graduate from Cal Poly’s Honors Program in June 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in journalism with minors in Integrated Marketing Communications and Media Arts, Society and Technology.
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