Inside Kristin Smart parents' 26 years of 'long and overwhelming' journey to bring justice to daughter
SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA: Kristin Smart, the 19-year-old girl, has been in the news for over two decades now. As the jury found Paul Flores guilty of first-degree murder and prosecutors claimed he killed during an attempted rape, it indeed brought a huge relief to the long battle for justice for her parents, Stans Smart and Denise Smart.
The duo, who are in their 70s, has been living with the pain of remembering their daughter with their two surviving children, Matthew and Lindsey, and their grandchildren, reports Medadm. Denise, who graduated with a psychology degree from San Jose State University and Stans, a retired teacher, was at the forefront of running their battle to seek justice for their daughter.
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They will be forever remembered for Kristin Smart Campus Safety Act that was passed in 1998 as a result of the missteps in California's university handling of the case.
The parents are also engaged in Kristin Smart scholarship which provides exceptional young female students from both San Joaquin and San Luis Obispo Counties to receive monetary awards to financially assist their quest for a college education, as stated in Kristin Smart.org
Meanwhile, after the verdict on Tuesday, October 18, Stan stated, "Without Kristin, there is no joy or happiness with this verdict." He continued as he described the journey as "long, overwhelming and emotional". He added, "To our Kirstin, almost three decades ago our lives were irreparably changed on the night you disappeared," he said. "Know that your spirit lives on in each and every one of us. Not a single day goes by that you aren't missed, remembered, loved and celebrated," reported ABC.
Her father stated, “Our family is comforted and strengthened by the knowledge that Kristin continues to be held in the hearts and memories of so many people,” Stan said. “We will never be able to personally thank everyone, but please know our gratitude and love goes out to each of you who have been with us for this long, overwhelming and emotional journey. We’re forever stronger together.”
In 2021, the parents filed a case against the father of Paul Flores, accusing him of helping with the murder of their daughter. They alleged that Smart’s body was buried in Ruben Flores’s backyard and he moved the body “under cover of darkness” to another location a few days after investigators searched his property in February 2020, reported recordnet.com. However, he was acquitted in the verdict.
As the father-son duo got arrested in 2021, the family was strong to mark their statement, where they emphasized, “We honor Kristin today and those who worked with unparalleled tenacity and dedication to bring us to this day. Without Kristin in our life, there will never be justice, but we will pray for peace. Unfortunately, the indifference and lack of resolve we experienced early on set the course for many years," reported LA Times. “As you can imagine, until we return Kristin to them, this is not over,” he said. “We have committed to them that we are not going to stop until Kristin has been recovered, no matter what the cost, no matter what the time. Denise also claimed in the Stockton Record in 2008, “You live because you can’t give up. Because it’s not just a battle to find your daughter. It’s a battle to have the right thing done. It’s a battle to have people do their job.”