Paul Flores, the 47-year-old convicted of killing disappeared college student Kristin Smart in 1996, was attacked for the second time Wednesday in a California prison.
Officials at Pleasant Valley State Prison witnessed another inmate stab Flores in the recreation yard around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) told The Associated Press. .
The attack, which is being investigated as an attempted murder, was ended by verbal orders from staff, and two “weapons that appear to be inmate-manufactured” were recovered after the incident, CDCR said.
Flores was taken to a medical facility outside the prison for treatment of his injuries and returned to prison in good condition. He did not injure any other inmates.
Christine Smart killer Paul Flores sentenced to 25 years in prison for California murder
Paul Flores was sentenced in October 2022 for the murder of Christine Smart, a 19-year-old California college student who disappeared in 1996. She was declared legally dead in 2002.
The Department of Corrections announced that the unidentified inmate believed to be responsible for the attack was placed in restrictive housing.
This week’s attack on Flores is the second time he has been stabbed at a Central California prison since he was sentenced to 25 years to life in March 2023.
Paul Flores was attacked and stabbed by another inmate in the yard of California’s Pleasant Valley State Prison. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)
Flores was hospitalized for two days after being slashed in the neck by inmate Jason Budrow during an attack in the prison yard last August.Budrow pleads not guilty to felony charges, It also includes attempted murder and assault by life-sentence inmates.
Authorities have not disclosed a potential motive for either attack on Flores.
California inmate charged with attempted murder of Christine Smart’s killer
Paul Flores was arrested on April 13, 2021 in the San Pedro neighborhood of Los Angeles for the murder of Christine Smart. (San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, via Associated Press)
Flores was arrested in 2021 on suspicion of killing Smart, a 19-year-old Cal Poly student who was last seen on Memorial Day weekend 28 years ago. He was convicted of this crime in 2022.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Smart was pronounced dead in 2002, and his body has never been found.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
