The Kristin Smart murder case is scheduled to have its first hearing in Monterey County next week, according to the online court calendar that also indicates the start of the trial has been pushed back about a month.
The hearing will take place on Monday, June 6, at 8:30 a.m. before Judge Jennifer O’Keefe at the criminal courthouse in Salinas. The case calendar says the hearing will be for a motion, likely one that was filed under seal Tuesday.
In an email to media outlets, court officials said there will be a “week of pretrial motions” June 6 through June 10, but the June 6 hearing is the only one on the schedule so far.
The trial was moved to Salinas after San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Craig van Rooyen ruled that defendants Paul and Ruben Flores would likely not receive a fair trial in San Luis Obispo County because of pretrial publicity. It was originally scheduled to begin May 31, but has been pushed back to July 6.
Paul Flores is accused of murdering 19-year-old Smart after an off-campus party in May 1996, while his father, Ruben Flores, is accused of helping hide the Cal Poly student’s body. The two men were arrested in April 2021.
Ruben Flores’ bail conditions were modified on May 23 to allow him to travel outside of San Luis Obispo County to Monterey County for court proceedings. Paul Flores remained in San Luis Obispo County jail custody as of Tuesday afternoon.
Several court documents, including a motion, were filed in both Flores cases Tuesday, but Monterey County court officials told the Tribune they were filed under seal. It is unclear what the documents pertain to or what the motion could be.
When is the trial?
According to a tentative schedule regarding media seating and access, the trial will begin on July 6.
All pretrial motions will be heard June 6 through June 10. There will be five seats reserved for members of the media and five seats reserved for members of the public. There will also be an overflow room for members of the media and the public who did not get a seat in the courtroom.
Family of the parties involved get first priority for public seating access.
Jury questioning will take place June 13 through June 17. Paul Flores’ jury is expected to be selected June 20 through June 24, and Ruben Flores jury is expected to be selected June 27 through July 1. There will not be seats inside the courtroom, but media and members of the public can access and overflow room.
Opening statements are expected to begin on July 6 and will have the same access as the pretrial motions.
Monterey Superior Court created a web page to keep the public informed about the case. The page can be found at https://www.monterey.courts.ca.gov/ecc.
