SLO radio host sets up GoFundMe for Kristin Smart podcaster. Here’s why
Radio host Dave Congalton has established a GoFundMe account to help Kristin Smart podcaster Chris Lambert cover his legal expenses.
Congalton — the longtime host of the “Hometown Radio” program on KVEC — started the “Chris Lambert Defense Fund” on Wednesday with the goal of raising $8,000.
Lambert’s “Your Own Backyard” podcast has garnered millions of audience downloads and helped raise attention on the case against Paul Flores.
Flores currently faces trial in April for the murder of Smart, the Cal Poly student who went missing in 1996. Flores’ father, Ruben, is accused of helping his son cover up the crime.
Congalton wrote in the GoFundMe post that Lambert was reluctant to publicly discuss the cost burden of opposing a subpoena that demanded he reveal notes involving confidential sources whom “Chris had sworn to protect.”
As of Thursday morning, the fundraiser had collected nearly half of its target amount.
Judge Craig Van Rooyen denied the subpoena, citing the California shield law that protects journalists from having to reveal confidential sources.
The judge said that compelling Lambert to testify and release his records would have a “chilling effect” on reporters’ abilities to communicate freely with sources.
“Chris did not want to give up his research notes to the defense,” the GoFundMe states. “Nor did he wish to testify in the case. So Chris had no choice but to retain legal counsel, attorneys who specialized in First Amendment issues. Attorneys from Davis, Wright & Tremayne in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., stepped in and saved the day, protecting the First Amendment rights of Chris and exposing the questionable defense tactics.”
Congalton said the decision ended well for Lambert, but now the legal bills are due.
“He has been reluctant to ask for help, but his many friends and supporters have come together to ask you to donate to Chris Lambert’s Defense Fund,” Congalton wrote. “Every dollar donated goes to paying the legal fees from the pre-trial hearing.”
Lambert has repeatedly turned down offers from major streaming and entertainment companies to sell his show’s rights, saying he started the podcast to find Kristin and help the Smart family and that remains his goal.
“I want to do this for the right reasons,” Lambert said in an April Tribune article. “And I also want to maintain my relationships with the Smart family and law enforcement and for me to do that, I think this is the best approach (not to sell his work).”
Lambert also has a donate tab on his website for a Kristin Smart scholarship, with the goal of “helping young women achieve their dreams in Kristin’s name.”
This story was originally published November 4, 2021 at 11:57 AM.
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