Arraignment Postponed For Menifee Man Accused Of Killing Record-Holding Shoe Collector

UPDATED AT 5:30 P.M. JULY 25, 2013:  A Menifee man who allegedly killed his 58-year-old girlfriend -- a renowned footwear collector found dead in her backyard swimming pool -- was charged today with murder.

Justin Charles Smith, 29, was arrested Monday afternoon in connection with the death of Darlene Flynn, whose vast collection of shoes and shoe- related products landed her in the Guinness Book of World Records in 2006.

(Watch the attached TLC video clip featuring Flynn and Smith.)

Along with the murder count, Smith faces a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a deadly weapon -- a baseball bat -- during the commission of a felony.

Smith made his initial court appearance today before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Helios Hernandez, who appointed him a public defender and rescheduled his arraignment for Aug. 8.

Hernandez set Smith's bail at $1 million. The defendant is being held at the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside.

Sheriff's deputies were called to the victim's residence in the 28800 block of Stone Lane around 2 p.m. Monday after receiving calls about a domestic disturbance involving a man and woman, screaming at one another.

Deputies knocked on the front door of the house repeatedly but received no response, said sheriff's Sgt. Todd Torrenti.

"While attempting to make entry, deputies noticed a shirtless male running from the rear of the residence," Torrenti said. "A perimeter was established, and the male was located (hours later) near the intersection of Briggs Road and Highway 74."

Smith was arrested without incident.

Back at the house, deputies pulled Flynn out of the pool and conducted a preliminary examination to determine a possible cause of death. Torrenti said the fatally injured woman "had injuries consistent with blunt force trauma."

Flynn, dubbed "The Shoe Lady" and the "Queen of Sole," had amassed more than 16,000 shoes and shoe-related products. The collection, which includes heels, sneakers, boots, stockings -- even pillows shaped as shoes -- has an estimated value in excess of $500,000, according to published reports.

Smith has a prior misdemeanor conviction for grand theft from September 2012, which District Attorney's Office spokesman John Hall said was the result of the defendant selling Flynn's car without her permission.

Smith was sentenced to three years probation in that case. --City News Service