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Testimony to resume Wednesday in Kristin Smart murder trial

Flores court 8-24.JPG
Posted at 8:33 AM, Aug 24, 2022
and last updated 2022-08-24 11:34:07-04

The trial for Paul and Ruben Flores is set to resume Wednesday in Monterey County.

The father and son are on trial for the murder of Kristin Smart, who disappeared from the Cal Poly campus in May 1996 after attending an off-campus party.

Paul is charged with her murder. His father, Ruben, is charged with accessory after the fact, accused of helping hide the body.

The last people on the stand before court took a weeklong break starting last Wednesday were dog handlers who testified about their search at Cal Poly following Kristin’s disappearance.

Monterey County Superior Court Judge Jennifer O’Keefe has indicated that the trial is expected to last into at least October.

The pair are being tried together but each have separate juries who will ultimately hand down separate verdicts.

Over the course of the trial, there will be times when one jury may not be present in the courtroom as testimony or evidence being presented only pertains to one defendant’s case.

So far, there are four remaining alternates for Paul’s jury and three for Ruben’s jury down from eight each at the start of the trial mid-July.

The trial was moved out of San Luis Obispo County and is taking Place in Salinas.

If convicted, Paul faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. Ruben faces a maximum sentence of three years in jail.

KSBY anchor Richard Gearhart is in the courtroom Wednesday for the trial and will have more on what takes place on KSBY News at 5 and 6 p.m.