A juvenile has been arrested after making false reports of a shooting at Murray Middle School in Ridgecrest. Police report on Thursday a mother got a distressing call from her son who claimed there was a shooter on the campus on Drummond Avenue. Police officers and school administrators responded to find no shooter and no…… Read More
discrimination suit filed
An employee of the Kern County Superintendent of Schools has filed a lawsuit alleging harassment, racial and gender discrimination, and retaliation. Candace Neal claims she was demoted and intimidated by Superintendent John Mendiburu. Neal is the Director of the Developer Fee Joint Powers Authority and is the first African American and woman to hold the…… Read More
bakersfield man arrested in chicago
A Kern County man accused of sexually abusing several children was arrested in Chicago as he tried to board a flight to Mexico. Bryan Munoz, 36, was arrested Jan. 16 and is awaiting extradition to Bakersfield to face seven counts related to the sexual abuse of minors including children 10 years old or younger. Detectives…… Read More
hughes fire burns near castaic
Another Southland wildfire is burning, this one closer to home. Firefighters on the ground and in the air rushed to battle a rapidly-spreading brush fire that exploded near Castaic on Wednesday, forcing evacuations around Lake Castaic and impacting traffic on Interstate Five. The Hughes Fire was reported shortly before 10:45 a.m. on the east side…… Read More
city leaders want bakersfield fire plan
Bakersfield city leaders want a plan in place to avoid the type of devastation happening from the wildfires in Los Angeles County. Vice Mayor Manpreet Kaur has asked city staff to draft Bakersfield’s first fire master plan including the construction of another fire station. The city council on Wednesday approved the purchase of two new…… Read More
inmate gets years added to sentence
A prisoner with prior convictions for attempted murder and assault has been found guilty of attacking another inmate at Kern Valley State Prison in Delano. Jonathan Pugh, 40, was convicted last week of stabbing an inmate in the face and upper body with a makeshift knife in a prison dayroom in June 2022. The victim…… Read More
person rescued from elevator
First responders with the Kern County Fire Department rescued a person who was performing maintenance on top of an elevator twenty feet above the ground. Firefighters from Los Angeles County also joined the efforts Tuesday evening to free the person who became injured and stuck while performing maintenance on the elevator at a building in…… Read More
Police search for missing teen
The Bakersfield Police Department is asking for the community’s help to locate a missing at-risk 14-year-old boy last seen near Ridgeview High on Tuesday evening. Michael Hernandez was last seen at around 6:00 PM on January 21, 2025, in the 5600 block of Poso Ridge Court, near McKee Road and Mountain Ridge Drive. Hernandez is…… Read More
rain — and fire relief — coming to LA county
Rain is on the horizon after a day of strong winds that helped fuel small scattered fires across Southern California. In L.A. County, where the Palisades and Eaton fires have carved a devastating path this month, most areas should expect to see under a third of an inch of rain this week. The Palisades Fire…… Read More
Pair arrested after police pursuit
Two men have been apprehended after a police pursuit that ended near Arvin. It started at around 4:00 p.m. Tuesday when police who were searching for a man wanted on felony charges spotted a suspect vehicle on Towerline Road. The chase ended when the vehicle struck a dirt mound at Malaga and Panama Roads. The…… Read More
