Kristin Smart killer Paul Flores appealed conviction twice. Is there a limit?
In 2022, a jury convicted Paul Flores of killing Cal Poly student Kristin Smart.
He was sentenced to 25 years to life in Monterey County Superior Court, The Tribune previously reported.
Flores’ conviction came more than 25 years after Smart vanished following a house party in San Luis Obispo.
In the decades since her disappearance on May 25, 1996, authorities have searched for Smart’s remains.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office recently served a search warrant at the home of Flores’ mother, Susan Flores.
Investigators said they didn’t recover Smart’s body, but a soil scientist told The Tribune that they uncovered “very strong” evidence of human remains compounds on the property.
How many times can Flores appeal his murder conviction? What options are available to people found guilty of serious crimes?
Here’s what to know:
How many times has Paul Flores appealed murder conviction?
Flores filed an appeal to reverse his conviction for first-degree murder in 2025, arguing that he did not receive a fair trial.
However, the California Court of Appeal upheld Flores’ conviction in an October ruling.
Paul Flores then filed a petition asking the California Supreme Court to review his appeal.
In January, the California Supreme Court denied Flores’ second attempt to overturn or reduce his conviction — forever holding him responsible for Smart’s murder.
Flores is left with few options to overturn his conviction, unless evidence is found that contradicts the court ruling.
How do appeals work?
Like Flores, people found guilty of crimes in California can file for an appeal to challenge a trial court’s decision and reverse its ruling, according to the Judicial Council of California.
The judicial council said that “an appeal is not a new trial.”
Appeals need to prove two things: that a legal error was made during the trial and that the mistake altered the results of the case.
An appellate court of three judges reviews the appeals but does not “decide the facts of the case as the judge or jury in the trial court does,” the Judicial Council of California said.
The Judicial Council of California lists steps convicted people can take to file an appeal.
Appellants need to file a notice of entry and notice of appeal. They also need to pull court records they want to bring into evidence for the California Court of Appeal, where they’ll present their briefing.
The final step of requesting an appeal is the oral argument. All parties that file a brief are the chance to speak to Court of Appeal justices.
Then, the Court of Appeal has 90 days from the submission date to make a decision.
How many times can a defendant file for an appeal?
“Generally, the defendant may appeal a criminal case result at least once and occasionally more, depending on the appeal’s legal justifications and the jurisdiction’s laws and procedures.,” an appellate law firm, MLP Appeals, said.
A person convicted of a misdemeanor must file a notice of appeal within 30 days of the date of conviction or court order. Defendants in felony cases have 60 days to do so.
Appeals are reviewed by the California Court of Appeal.
If the case warrants another review, it heads to the California Supreme Court.
What can the Court of Appeals final decision be?
According to the Judicial Council of California, a review by the California Court of Appeal can result in one of these outcomes:
- Affirm: The trial court’s judgment is upheld.
- Modify: The trial court’s judgment is changed.
- Reverse: All or part of the trial court’s judgment is reversed.
- Remand: The case is sent back to the trial court for a new trial or hearing.
- Dismiss: The appeal is dismissed.
If the person who filed the appeal is unsatisfied with the court’s decision, they can petition for a rehearing to reconsider the results.
“Generally, the court will agree to a rehearing only if the mistake is a major error of fact or law, or if an important argument was not considered in the court’s decision,” the judicial council said.
The appellant can also petition for the California Supreme Court to review the decision. As the highest court in the state, the court is not required to hear all cases filed, and chooses which cases it wants to review.
After the review period has passed in both the Court of Appeal and the California Supreme Court, you can file a remittitur.
“A remittitur is a document that transfers jurisdiction over the case back to the trial court,” the Judicial Council of California explained. “It also indicates whether any party is eligible to recover costs from the appeal.”
What are last-resort options to overturn court rulings?
You can file a legal petition known as a writ of habeas corpus with a California court to challenge an inmate’s conviction or sentencing conditions.
“Habeas corpus refers to the principle of freedom from unlawful detention,” Los Angeles law firm Eisner Gorin LLP said.
“It is considered a last legal resort after other legal remedies and appeals have been exhausted,” the law firm said.
In order to file a habeas corpus writ, Eisner Gorin LLP said, you must have exhausted all possible appeals
Habeas corpus can be granted if there is “new evidence discovered in the case, ineffective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial misconduct, incompetence to stand trial, and challenging conditions of confinement,” Eisner Gorin LLP said.
If both the state Court of Appeal and the California Supreme Court both deny an appeal, the appellant can petition the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case.
“The court usually is not under any obligation to hear these cases, and it usually only does so if the case could have national significance, might harmonize conflicting decisions in the federal Circuit courts, and/or could have precedential value,” the law firm said.
Out of 7,000 cases submitted to the Supreme Court for review each year, only 100 to 150 cases are accepted.
This story was originally published May 16, 2026 at 12:00 PM with the headline "Kristin Smart killer Paul Flores appealed conviction twice. Is there a limit?."
