today vanished college student disappears after a party that's every parent's worst nightmare. newly released video showing the man who was the last to see her alive. some of the things are telling us aren't adding

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good evening and thank you for joining us. i'm trevor ault. we begin with every parent's worst nightmare. 19-year-old college student kristin smart vanished without a trace after an off-campus party 26 years ago. her family fighting for decades to hold her killer accountable. that long and winding road to justice. what they finally heard in a california courtroom today. here's abc's mona kosar abdi. >> reporter: it's the dramatic end to an american true crime saga. >> our loving, tenacious, and beautiful daughter's life was stolen by a cowardly rapist. the life as we knew it was gone forever. >> paul chose to take the life, my sister kristin's life, a beautiful life. he must now pay. >> reporter: more than 25 years after 19-year-old kristin smart vanished without a trace -- >> people had seen her, they kind of knew where she had been.

and then suddenly, she's gone. disappears. >> a lot of people i've spoken to think of kristin almost like their own daughter. that's every parent's worst nightmare. >> reporter: the convicted killer, paul flores, finally sentenced to 25 years to life after seeming to evade responsibility for decades. >> what this sentencing will provide is accountability. mr. flores, you have been a cancer to society. >> reporter: tonight, a closer look at the winding road to justice for kristin. from the shocking details of the crime -- >> the alleged bloodbath ring underneath his home -- >> reporter: to the newly released video capturing the moment flores emerged as the prime suspect. >> some of the things you're telling us aren't adding up. >> reporter: the family's long fight. >> there is no answer that's acceptable except finding kristin. >> reporter: a viral podcast. >> i realize not a lot of people know the full details. >> reporter: helping investigators crack the case and the mysteries that still remain.

♪ memorial day weekend, 1996. mariah carey's hit "always be my baby" blasting from every fm radio. ♪ the first "mission: impossible" movie was breaking box office records on its opening weekend. that spring, kristin smart was a 19-year-old freshman at california polytechnic state university, known as cal poly to locals. >> kristin was your normal college-aged freshman. she was very close with her family. she liked to surf, she loved being outdoors, she loved the beach. >> what can you describe to us about kristin that you've learned through her parents? >> whatever she chose to do, she could have probably achieved it. >> reporter: on may 25th, kristin headed to an off-campus house party. she met fellow student paul flores there.

>> later that night she was found very, very intoxicated face-down in the front lawn of this house. eventually one person did get her up and began to walk her home with another girl. that's when paul flores came along, "i'll walk them home." >> reporter: flores had a reputation. >> his reputation allegedly at cal poly was that he was "creepy paul" or another name for him was "chester the molester," according to court testimony and documents. >> reporter: authorities say kristin never made it home. she was last seen walking with flores. >> he admits he was walking with her, but he says he left her, and he could see her walking towards her dorm. >> reporter: her backpack, identification, all sitting untouched in her dorm room. it takes three days after kristin is last seen for a formal report to be filed. >> the first few days are critical in a missing persons investigation. each hour makes a difference.

>> reporter: two days later, flores is brought in for an interview with investigators. >> how much did you have to drink that night, paul? >> too much. >> reporter: flores at first cooperates. >> it may come down to this, but i'm wondering, are you familiar with the term "polygraph"? lie detector? that sort of thing? >> yeah, i've heard of that. >> would you be willing to take one if necessary? >> yeah. >> reporter: a month later, flores appears agitated when authorities question him for a second time. >> do you want to give a polygraph? >> i told you i have to talk to my parents and stuff. >> if you're telling us the truth, why do you have to talk to your parents to take a polygraph? >> because i do. >> he knows he would fail the polygraph. i have had suspects in murder cases say early on in the interview, "sure, i'll take a polygraph." none of them ever had any intention of taking the polygraph. >> reporter: flores seemingly caught in a lie. after kristin's disappearance, he'd been seen with a black eye. >> when the last person to have

seen the victim alive has a huge black eye, that's a big deal. >> last time we talked, you had a black eye. >> yeah. >> remember that? >> yeah. >> okay. and what did you tell us? >> i told you i got it playing basketball. >> that's right. where did you get it? >> in my car. >> well, no. why was it so hard for you to tell us you got the black eye hitting the steering wheel? >> it didn't really matter. oh, it's not really lies, it's a fib. it's so -- so minute. it's not -- well, i guess you can call it a little white lie. >> he crosses his arms. he sticks his hands up into the sleeves of his t-shirt. those are all anxiety-induced behaviors. they don't tell you a person's guilty or innocent, but it tells you that you've hit a nerve with them. >> reporter: flores quickly emerged as a primary suspect, but even with mounting suspicion against him, there wasn't enough to make an arrest.

>> just having been the last person to have been with her and giving an inconsistent statement about an injury isn't enough for an arrest. >> reporter: he kept living his life, even being asked in this video from june 1996 about kristin's disappearance. >> hey, paul, do you have any information on that missing girl? what'd you do with her? >> reporter: over the years, kristin's family continued to pursue him as their daughter's killer. >> we're just looking. it will come out soon. >> i want paul flores to remember our daughter is still missing. as long as he can go about his life and be uninterrupted, that's an additional pain for me. i want him to always remember. >> what makes this remarkable is the tenacity of the smart family. just going, going, going like energizer bunnies to hold this boy responsible.

>> reporter: for years the investigation seemed to go to this dastin's by never been found. but in 2019, a podcast called "your own backyard" thrust kristin's case back into the spotlight. >> i'm going to try to learn everything i can about kristin smart and what happened to her. in the only way i know how, by talking to people. >> reporter: created by podcaster chris lambert, who was 8 years old when kristin disappeared, "your own backyard" quickly went viral. >> there have been a number of big podcasts lately of either unsolved or controversial cases. where the fact that people were talking about it led to more information coming forward. >> reporter: a newly released wiretapped call between paul and his mom revealing they were following the podcast too. >> the other thing i need you to do is start listening to the podcast.

i need you to listen to everything they say so we can punch holes in it. wherever we can punch holes. maybe we can't. you're the one that can tell me. >> reporter: in 2021, a huge break in the case. officials searching the home of flores' father, ruben, making a horrifying discovery. >> and they find blood there. it changes the game. >> that's where the key evidence is really found, which was the alleged bloodbath ring underneath his home. law enforcement tested the soil found underneath his deck, it tested positive for human blood. but there was not enough substance to test for dna. >> reporter: nearly 25 years after kristin went missing, paul flores is arrested and charged with murder. his father is also arrested and charged as an accessory after the fact. both men plead not guilty. >> people in the county celebrated, they told us that it was such a relief that they finally were going to see justice, that paul was finally

going to pay for his crimes. >> reporter: flores was tried alongside his father with separate juries deciding the fate of each man. ruben ultimately found not guilty on his charges. paul found guilty in october of 2022. >> when paul's verdict was read that he was guilty, there was a sigh of relief. denise, kristin's mom, started crying tears of joy. stan smiled and hugged her. >> paul flores maintains his innocence. what is your reaction to that? >> i'm sure if you took any sociopath, they'd be happy to tell you they're innocent. this guy's guilty. he's been found guilty. i totally disregard anything he's ever said. >> reporter: today, kristin smart's family addressing the court, their relief and resolve on display. >> we cajoled, pushed, pulled, begged. we never gave up. >> reporter: while still holding on to the hope of receiving full closure. >> paul took her life and hid her body.

we will never rest until kristin is properly laid to rest by her family. this fight is far from over. >> our thanks to mona. next, the oscars. the glitz, the glamor of hollywood's biggest night. what to expect on the champagne carpet. my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...the burning, the itching. the stinging. my skin was no longer mine. emerge tremfyant®. with tremfya®, most people saw 90% clearer skin at 16 weeks. the majority of people saw 90% clearer skin even at 5 years. tremfya® is the first medication of its kind also approved for adults with active psoriatic arthritis... ...and it's 6 doses a year after 2 starter doses. serious allergic reactions may occur. tremfya® may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms or if you had a vaccine or plan to.

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♪ the countdown to the 95th academy awards is on. will "everything everywhere all at once" win it all? will angela bassett be the first actor in a marvel movie to win the gold statue? it could be a night of historic firsts.

the biggest night in hollywood is sunday, the oscars. with 11 nominations, the genre-bending "everything everywhere all at once." >> i've seen thousands of evelyns. >> reporter: starring michelle yeoh, ke huy quan, jamie lee curtis, and stephanie hsu all nominated. yeoh could make history as the first asian actress to win her category. the 60-year-old earning a golden globe for her performance. >> along came the best gift. "everything everywhere all at once." shout-out, please. >> reporter: this year the category comes with an unexpected twist. andrea riseborough's nomination for "to leslie," sparking controversy about the process after grassroots efforts by a-list actors and actresses may have helped secure her spot,

leave no room for "the woman king's" viola davis or "till's" actress danielle detwiler. >> what came so controversial wasn't so much that people thought it was an undeserved nomination, it was the manner in which she achieved it. this just really puts into motion the academy's need to update its rules, because when they created their rules regarding social media policies, there was no instagram and tiktok at that point in time. >> reporter: riseborough calling the situation confusing, telling "the hollywood reporter," "i do not know what will encourage meritocracy. i've been working to discover them and will continue to." the backlash reminiscent of 2015 when no people of color were nominated for acting, sparking #oscarssowhite. >> what people have often made the mistake of doing is blaming the oscars for lack of representation at the oscars. and while it is the academy

members' job to nominate, they're a symptom of the issue. hollywood needs to green light more projects for people of color by people of color. >> reporter: breakout star stephanie hsu speaking to abc's linsey davis about the importance of diverse stories in film. >> one of the things i'm most proud of with our movie is that it's so wild, so imaginative, so big-hearted that it somehow transcends identity politics, that it actually just becomes about a family. the heart of it's a story about immigration, then it goes so far beyond that. when my mom came to see it at the premiere, she was in tears, pointed to the screen, she said, "that's me." i realized it was the first time my mother has ever seen her story on a screen. >> reporter: another favorite for this year's actress in a supporting role, angela bassett for her performance in "black panther: wakanda forever." >> i am not a woman who enjoys repeating herself.

>> reporter: three decades after her first nomination for "what's love got to do with it?" >> when you were doing the line, did you realize the magnitude of your character, of your portrayal? >> oh, no, i didn't think that far ahead. but i know -- i felt the power even in the first reading of the script, of that line, of that moment. and the truth of it, you know? how it resonates for that character. she truly has her entire family, and she's given her life and her energy to her country, and she's lost her family. >> reporter: this year's lead actor could go to "elvis" star austin butler. ♪ >> are you ready to fly? >> i'm ready. ready to fly. >> reporter: abc's chris connelly sat down with him earlier this year. >> what's that feel like for you? >> this has been such a long journey. not just me, but the entire team

behind the film. i'm just so happy for everyone and really so honored to be here. >> reporter: butler winning the golden globe for the role. the last time he would see lisa marie alive. >> being on stage and getting to look down into her eyes and seeing how moved she was after the globes when i just got to hug her, just hold her hand -- it's my memories from that night that make me smile. >> reporter: this year will have a few changes. the iconic red carpet gone. instead, it's champagne-colored. >> i think the decision to go with a champagne carpet shows how confident we are that no blood will be shed. >> reporter: host jimmy kimmel alluding to last year's shocking moment when will smith struck chris rock during the live broadcast, the oscars now implementing a crisis response team for the first time in the awards' 95-year history. >> i think after a year, we are all slapped out. we want to see how we can move forward.

but the academy, like all award shows, are looking for a way to exist today. >> reporter: but the biggest prize of the night, best picture, is anyone's guess. >> at this year's academy awards, all signs are pointing to "everything everywhere all at once" as the favorite to win. but we are in unprecedented times where the academy could throw us some curveballs. >> special coverage of the oscars begins at 1:00 p.m. eastern with the red carpet preshow. it all leads up to the big show at 8:00 p.m. eastern, 5:00 p.m. pacific, right here on abc. coming up, shakira. how the global icon is making musical history with her post breakup track "music sessions volume 53." volume 53." ♪ moderate to severe eczema still disrupts my skin. despite treatment it disrupts my skin with itch.

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♪ ♪ finally tonight, new honors for international superstar shakira, breaking 14 guinness world record with her "heartbreak." ♪ ♪ >> the best-selling female latin artist in history and producer bisra sharing the honors for the dish track "music sessions volume 53" throwing shade with lines like "you traded in a cas" eymost-streamed latin track on spotify in 24 hours, most-viewed latin track

on youtube in 24 hours, among other titles. ♪ ♪ her duet "tqg" with fellow colombian singer carol g. is also climbing the charts around the world. ♪ ♪ ♪ shakira shakira ♪ >> that's "nightline." watch full episodes on hulu. see you right back here at the same time on monday. have a great weekend, and thanks for staying up with us. good night, america. but do they really? do they see that crick in your neck? that ache in your heart? will they see that funny little thing that wasn't there last year? a new bounce in your step? the way your retinal scan connects to your blood sugar?

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