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Suspects to stand trial in 1996 Kristin Smart disappearance

Nic Coury/AP

In this April 15, 2021, file photo defendants Paul Flores, top left, and his father, Ruben Flores, bottom right, appear via video conference during their arraignment in San Luis Obispo Superior Court in San Luis Obispo, Calif. The father and son were arrested in connection with the 1996 disappearance of Kristin Smart, a college student at California Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo. A California judge is expected to rule, Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2021, whether the father and son face trial.

By: Associated Press

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SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (AP) — A California judge has ordered the man last seen with Kristin Smart before she vanished from a college campus 25 years ago on the Central Coast to stand trial for murder.

San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Craig van Rooyen said Wednesday there was probable cause that 44-year-old Paul Flores killed his classmate at California Polytechnic State University in 1996. Flores's 80-year-old father, Ruben Flores, was ordered to trial on a charge as an accessory for allegedly helping bury Smart.

Defense attorneys say there is not enough evidence to support the criminal charges. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

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