Kristin Smart Case - SLOCEA Members Involvement

Kristin Smart, a 19 year old Cal Poly student who went missing in San Luis Obispo in 1996.

The Kristin Smart case has shaken SLO County for two and a half decades. But on March 10, 2023, the Smart family finally got the conviction they had been waiting on all these years.  

The “It takes a village!” proverb couldn’t ring any truer when it comes to this case. Thanks to many experts, county officials, law enforcement, reporters, and the unwavering commitment of community members, Kristin’s murderer, Paul Flores, will now be confined behind bars for the next 25 years.  

Like many millions, I sat listening, reading, and watching news on the Kristen Smart case. I interviewed three County employees and SLOCEA members that were a huge helping hand in assisting Assistant District Attorney Eric Dobroth in bringing home a victory for the Smart Family: Victim Witness Supervisor Beth Raub, Supervisor Witness Coordinator Eloiza Basinger, and Paralegal Rebecca Cripe. The impact these three women had on the case is astounding.

This article will hopefully give you a little insight into the inner workings of such a large, impactful trial.

Beth Raub:

Beth has been a SLO County employee since 2016 as a Victim Witness Supervisor but has been working with victims of intimate partner violence for the past 22 years. Her role within the Smart Trial was Victim Advocate, serving the Smart Family as well as the sexual assault victims that were called to testify.

Beth was assigned to the case as soon as the DA’s office determined that a filing decision was going to be made and an advocate would benefit the family with additional support in the Criminal and Victim Justice System.

As we all have witnessed, the media attention on this case became colossal. There have been reports on NPR, The New York Times, and an episode on Dateline. Beth commented that the media was kind and respectful to the victims and those working on the case.  

Beth tried not to have this case affect her home life, but after the ruling to move the case outside of the San Luis Obispo County, she prepared for a new lifestyle for the next five and a half months. This included extremely long days, hotel living, and only having time on the weekends to visit with her family. Luckily, with technology, Beth had chances during the week to video chat and read books with her 6-year-old granddaughter.

Beth admits that the Kristin Smart case “is definitely the case with the most significant media attention and unique challenges. However, I consider all the cases where we provide services to crime victims as equally important. We strive to provide comprehensive services to all crime victims and their families.”

Eloiza Basinger:

Eloiza has been a legal clerk and Witness Coordinator for the County of San Luis Obispo for 10 years this past May. Her involvement with the Kristin Smart case spans back two years previous to the conviction. Eloiza has been fortunate enough though her 10 years of employment with San Luis Obispo County as to not have to work away from home on any previous cases, so this was her first experience of working away from home.

Eloiza has assisted on a multitude of cases but has never taken the moment to count them all. But each case she has been involved with has been handled equally regardless of the charges.

Rebecca Cripe:

July marks Rebecca’s 17th year with the County of San Luis Obispo. She describes her time with the County as meaningful.

Rebecca was assigned as the Paralegal to the case in February of 2021. She was responsible for ordering and obtaining evidence from multiple agencies. From there she would organize, catalog, stamp and provide the evidence to both Defense Counsels as well as the judge. Rebecca reports that there were 468 trial exhibits and some of which had A, B, and C parts.  Beyond that substantial amount of labor, she also drafted pleadings, stipulations, and orders. She requested transcripts for use at the trial, subpoenaed records, assisted in drafting PowerPoint presentations, and redacted documents for the court. Rebecca’s vast responsibilities extend much past the above list though.

While Rebecca has been involved in thousands of felony and misdemeanor cases, the more extensive cases such as Kritin’s case, total approximately 50. However, this case has been by far the largest she has worked on.

As Rebecca recounts the last two years of her involvement of the case, she stated that she and the members of the team “lived and breathed it” running on the adrenaline caused by the unknown outcome. She constantly found herself thinking about the case even in her personal time, writing notes after hours to later discuss the following day with. This shows the dedication that these professionals had when it came to this case.

Rebecca expressed that she has extremely supportive friends and family and that they understood the sacrifice’s needed to be made for this case. Even months after the conviction, there are still effects of the case, Rebecca describes.

Left to Right: Eloiza Basinger, Beth Raub, and Rebecca Cripe - SLOCEA members who supported the DA’s office and the victim’s family during the Kristin Smart trial.

District Attorney Dan Dow and SLOCEA drafted up a side letter that would provide all three members a stipend during their working time away from their families. This provided Rebecca with the financial support to effectively run her home while she worked in Monterey County for the five-and-a-half-month period. Expenses such as additional childcare and child transportation would have been a burden without the assistance.

There were some experiences beyond the court room. Rebecca unfortunately had to overcome the headache of the bathroom sink overflowing in her hotel room at 3:15am, taking hours of what little sleep she was already getting to get her room repaired. She even told the story of how the elevator was broken in the courthouse and the hardship of lugging boxes upon boxes of exhibits up three flights of stairs the day before the trail began. There were other unexpected delays such as COVID, and schedule changes for jury and witnesses. All of these were issues that were adapted to. It shows that despite how much you can be prepared, there will be situations that arise where you need to adapt.

The challenges also brought more perspective for Rebecca. Previous cases, her focus was solely on the evidence and the discovery. With this trial she had the ability to help solve numerous other issues before and during the trial. One issue was digitally organizing the information from this case so that those in the future who choose to view it can comprehend it in its entirely more easily. She will walk away with an additional skill set that she may not have been able to learn if she wasn’t chosen to be part of this case.

While the stress was undoubtably corpulent, these three women all walk away from this case feeling grateful for the opportunity and are honored to have been part of the prosecution team that brought justice for Kristin Smart, strengthening their confidence in the judicial system.

The Victim Witness Assistance Center serves over 13,000 victims a year.

Watch the SLO Moment video highlighting the efforts by County employees during the Smart trial HERE.

By Briana Dickey, Administrative Assistant