Bakersfield news

• BGLAD hosts 'No Ordinary Hero'

  13-02-2015 23:47
  
  A special screening Thursday night at Valley Plaza for members of our deaf community.
  
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• Port dispute: Retailers fret as products languish on ships, docks

  13-02-2015 23:26
  
  The critical gateways for international trade have become more like parking lots for massive cargo ships that haul a you-name-it selection of consumer goods made in Asia and return there with U.S. exports.
  
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• 'First Look': Nonprofit that puts veterans -- and their cars -- back on the road, seeks space to work from

  13-02-2015 23:02
  
  American Warrior Customs continues to restore service members' and veterans' classic and new cars to get them on the road again but space is still their main concern.
  
  "We need a space, anything at this point," said Tracy Harrelson of American Warrior Customs, Friday on "First Look with Scott Cox."
  
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• 'App Chick' talks Valentine's Day apps

  13-02-2015 22:21
  
  Valentine's Day is upon us, and "The App Chick" has some ideas that you can find with the touch of your fingertips.
  
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• Local band previews Valentine's Day show

  13-02-2015 22:15
  
  Therese & the Sweetness serve as house band for Eyewitness News Mornings.
  
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• Garces high school appoints new principal

  13-02-2015 22:10
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - Garces Memorial has announced the appointment of a new principal.
  
  Myka Peck has been appointed Principal of Garces Memorial High School. Peck's position will become effective July 1. 
  
  Peck will replace Dr. Richard Tucker, who has served this past year as principal in an interim position.
  Peck has been a member of the Garces Memorial staff for the past seven years, serving as an AP psychology instructor, yearbook coordinator/instructor, women's head varsity soc
  
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• Gov. Rick Perry to attend Lincoln Day Dinner

  13-02-2015 21:57
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - The Kern County Republican Party announced today that its annual Lincoln Day dinner will include special guest speakers U.S. Senator Cory Gardner and Texas Governor Rick Perry.Perry is flying in to introduce Senator Gardner and to update the California heartland on his campaign for president.
  "I am very pleased to have Senator Gardner headline our Lincoln Day dinner," said KCRP Chairman Dr. Dean Haddock, "He was integral in winning the US Senate back for the R
  
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• Port shutdown having effect on state's economy

  13-02-2015 21:44
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - New numbers are showing the effect the slow down at west coast ports is having on our state's economy.
  All 29 west coast ports will be partially closed this holiday weekend due to an ongoing labor dispute.     According to the Kern County Farm Bureau, statewide farmers are losing about $40 million a week in beef sales and  $20 million a week in citrus.     Meantime, $15 million worth of almonds are left sitting at ports, waiting to be expor
  
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• Oregon governor Kitzhaber resigns amid ethics scandal

  13-02-2015 21:32
  
  Long-time Democratic Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber on Friday announced his resignation amid allegations his fiancee used her relationship with him to enrich herself.
  
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• Kit fox released after getting help at CALM

  13-02-2015 21:26
  
  A kit fox that was treated at California Living Museum for a skin disease was released back into its habitat Thursday evening.
  
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• SWAT standoff in northwest Bakersfield

  13-02-2015 21:14
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - The sheriff's department SWAT and Bakersfield police SWAT members are out in an area of northwest Bakersfield.
  
  A man is holed up in a home on Cedarcrest Avenue, that's near Norris Road and Patton Way.
  
  The standoff has been going on since early Friday morning.
  
  Just a few minutes ago sheriff's deputies asked us to move down the street saying we were in the line of fire.
  
  There is a deputy here at the end of Cedarcrest Avenue at Norris Road with his gear
  
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• Love stories: TheKepharts

  13-02-2015 20:55
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - It's a love story 65 years in the making. From their "I Do's," business, and the dance floor, they know the importance of having a partner in everything life gives you. 
  Decades before this Bakersfield Driller team gave their blood, sweat and tears on the field, two crazy-in-love teenagers left their hearts on it. 
  "I just fell in love," said James Kephart, laughing. "Really that's what happened. I fell in love."
  James and Claudine
  
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• Love stories: The Kepharts

  13-02-2015 20:55
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - It's a love story 65 years in the making. From their "I Do's," business, and the dance floor, they know the importance of having a partner in everything life gives you. 
  Decades before this Bakersfield Driller team gave their blood, sweat and tears on the field, two crazy-in-love teenagers left their hearts on it. 
  "I just fell in love," said James Kephart, laughing. "Really that's what happened. I fell in love."
  James and Claudine
  
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• Mays gets 8th double-double; Bakersfield beats UTPA 66-54

  13-02-2015 20:44
  
  Kevin Mays led a balanced Cal State Bakersfield attack with 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Roadrunners beat Texas-Pan American 66-54 on Thursday night.
  
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• Whiskey Flat Days this weekend in Kernville

  13-02-2015 20:42
  
  The event includes a parade, rodeo, wild west encampment, carnival rides, food, skits and more, according to organizers.
  
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• Deputies arrest man after chase, crash

  13-02-2015 20:37
  
  Kern County deputies arrested a man Thursday night after a chase and crash.
  
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• Whiskey Flat Days happening this weekend

  13-02-2015 20:20
  
  KERNVILLE, CA - The mountain communities are heading back to the Old West this weekend as they get set for Whiskey Flat Days.
  The annual trip back to the Wild West is held every year up in Kernville.     The event includes fun for the whole family: a parade, free concerts, wild west daze rodeo, frog jumping contest, whiskerino contest and cowboy shoot-outs.      Whiskey Flat Days starts today and goes through Monday.     Organizers said they h
  
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• Deadline to sign up for Covered California this weekend

  13-02-2015 19:56
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - If you're not enrolled in a health care plan, the window to sign up without penalty is closing very soon.
  The last day to sign up through the government website, healthcare.gov, is this Sunday, Feb. 15.
  
  You can also sign up through the Covered California website at coveredca.com.     The affordable care act requires all Americans to have health care or face a penalty.     After the deadline, most people won't be able to sign up through the
  
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• McFarland names 4th police chief in 5 years

  13-02-2015 19:52
  
  Scot Kimble is named the newest permanent police chief of McFarland.
  
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• Teen missing, could be headed to Mexico

  13-02-2015 19:42
  
  A 14-year-old girl is missing, according to the Kern County Sheriff's Office.
  
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• Three displaced after Delano home fire

  13-02-2015 19:33
  
  DELANO, CA - Three people were displaced in Delano after a fire engulfed their home.
  The fire took place at 10th avenue at Princeton Street, and started around five in the evening yesterday.     According to fire crews on the scene, the home was engulfed in flames when they arrived.     A woman inside made it out safely, she and two others who lived there, are being assisted by the Red Cross.
  Investigators are looking into what caused the fire.
  
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• Suspect in custody after standoff, gas leak stopped

  13-02-2015 19:26
  
  A suspect in a peace disturbance situation has been taken into custody in north Bakersfield.
  
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• Officers in standoff, gas leak stopped

  13-02-2015 19:26
  
  A suspect in a peace disturbance situation is in a standoff with officers in north Bakersfield.
  
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• Officers in standoff, gas leak reported

  13-02-2015 19:26
  
  A suspect in a peace disturbance situation is in a standoff with officers in north Bakersfield.
  
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• KCSO asking for help finding a missing teen

  13-02-2015 19:17
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - The sheriff's office is asking for the community's help in finding a missing Bakersfield teen.
  According to KCSO, 14-year-old Marisol Flores was last seen around 6 a.m. in the 1100 block of Monterey Street.     She may be on her way to Guanajuato, Mexico to meet up with Pedro Santiago, according to investigators.     Flores is five feet tall, about 100 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes.    If you have any information on her wh
  
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• Obama in California to focus on cybersecurity

  13-02-2015 19:03
  
  Responding to unprecedented data breaches and cyberattacks, President Barack Obama is trying to spark alliances between policymakers who want to regulate the online world and tech innovators who traditionally shun Beltway bureaucracies.
  
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• local man arrested after high-speed chase

  13-02-2015 19:02
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - A high-speed pursuit through east Bakersfield ended in a crash and a local man arrested with a quarter pound of methamphetamine seized.
  The incident happened about 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 12 when 47-year-old Kevin Kelly lost control during the pursuit and crashed into a fence at Flower Street and Virginia Avenue.     Kelly was taken to Kern Medical Center for pain.     Evidence from the scene also led deputies to a storage locker on Edison Highway con
  
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• Houchin in need of O positive donors

  13-02-2015 17:42
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - If your blood type is O positive, Houchin Blood Bank wants you to stop in and donate. 
  Right now, the blood bank has a severe shortage of O positive blood.there's only enough on hand to deal with one trauma.
  "We have not been able to keep up with the O positive need for several months now. It's the blood type we need the most of because the most people have it. It's most requested by hospitals, and we've just never been able to even get near half an inventory of
  
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• 'First Look': First News for Feb. 13

  13-02-2015 15:59
  
  Lead stories from "First Look with Scott Cox's" Top Stories:
  
  MCCARTHY STATEMENT ON KEYSTONE PIPELINE PASSAGE: The Republican-led Congress gave final passage on Wednesday to a bill to approve the long-pending Keystone XL pipeline, a measure that next goes to President Barack Obama, who has vowed to veto it. The bill passed by 270-152 in the House of Representatives, with only one Republican voting against it and 29 Democrats for it. The legisla
  
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• Local businesses stay busy for Valentine's Day

  13-02-2015 15:52
  
  Sweethearts across town are brining in big money for Kern County business this Valentine's Day. 
  
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• KCSO looking for 14-year-old Marisol Flores

  13-02-2015 14:55
  
  Kern County Sheriff's Deputies are currently searching the Bakersfield area for a missing 14-year-old girl who goes by the name of Marisol Flores.
  
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• City Councilmember calling for safer roads

  13-02-2015 09:24
  
  A 16-year-old high school student hit by a car last week... died of her injuries today.
  
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• Centennial High student dies one week after accident

  13-02-2015 09:00
  
  A 16-year-old Centennial High School student struck by a car last week near the northwest Bakersfield school has died.
  
  According to a release from the Kern County Coroner's office, Ashley Patricia Ross died at 9:20 a.m. Thursday at Kern Medical Center.
  
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• Growers worry about economic damage from ports slowdown

  13-02-2015 08:39
  Central Valley growers are becoming increasingly alarmed at a port slowdown they say has disrupted almond and citrus exports.
  
  Warning of food rotting on the dock and millions of dollars per day in lost produce sales, agricultural trade groups have called on state and federal officials to help resolve a labor dispute delaying shipments through West Coast ports.
  
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• 'Birdman' falls to earth in canceled Wednesday showing

  13-02-2015 08:30
  
  The critically acclaimed "Birdman" failed to take flight in Bakersfield Wednesday as the film did not arrive in time for its 7 p.m. showing at Maya Cinemas.
  
  Theater staff said the hard drive of the Oscar-nominated film was supposed to arrive at 2 p.m. Wednesday, leaving plenty of time for its estimated 45-minute download time. But the hard drive's trip from LAX to Bakersfield hit a snag, an
  
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• Rescued Kit Fox released

  13-02-2015 08:26
  
  A young kit fox that was rescued in southwest Bakersfield last month is back at home, at the PG&E Service Center.  The animal was being treated by the endangered species recovery program.
  
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• Costner to walk red carpet at Maya

  13-02-2015 08:23
  
  Can't wait until next Friday to see Kevin Costner on the big screen in "McFarland, USA"? Bakersfield fans don't have to: The actor will be at Maya Cinemas Sunday for a red-carpet premiere.
  
  Costner, who plays Jim White, the coach who guided McFarland Hight's cross-country teams to nine state championships, will be joined by other stars of the film, director Niki Caro, White himself a
  
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• History with a nod toward Central Valley celebrated

  13-02-2015 08:21
  
  Peter Bennett, 92, pitched a remarkable story in a rather unremarkable fashion to the veteran journalist listening about a year ago.
  
  "It's the God-damnedest story you have ever heard," Bennett told Betsy Lumbye, former executive editor of the Fresno Bee, at their first meeting.
  
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• ASK EMILY: Got an Obamacare tax credit? You may need a tax preparer.

  13-02-2015 08:18
  
  Another in a series of Q&A columns answering consumers' questions about the Affordable Care Act.
  
  Hey, health insurance stragglers, this is your moment. Obamacare's second open-enrollment period ends Feb. 15, which is the last day to apply for health coverage for 2015 from Covered California or the private market. (That is, unless you experience a major life change such as the birth of a chil
  
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• KCSO arrest man in East Bakersfield after chase

  13-02-2015 06:07
  
  A man is at a local hospital Thursday evening after leading Sheriff's deputies on a chase in East Bakersfield.
  
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• The Learner's Permit Do's and Don'ts

  13-02-2015 04:39
  
  After airing our story on AB 60 allowing immigrants to get driver's licenses, many viewers contacted us asking what the rules were, so we talked to the DMV.
  
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• Candidate presents the 'Barber of Seville'

  13-02-2015 04:36
  
  You might say Tomasz Golka was born to be a musician.
  
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• Warm temperatures offset spring allergies

  13-02-2015 04:29
  
  Are you experiencing seasonal spring allergies early this year?
  
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• Challenges in dealing with large homeless camp

  13-02-2015 04:13
  
  Nearby businesses complain about the big group of tents and structures, but city and aid groups say it's taking time to deal with the problems and help the needy.
  
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• Legislative Analyst's Office: Improvements needed in unclaimed property program

  13-02-2015 04:05
  
  The Legislative Analyst's Office now recommends that the Controller's Office improve programs to locate more owners of unclaimed property.
  
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• Deadline fast approaching for health care coverage

  13-02-2015 03:55
  
  With only three days left before the deadline for health care enrollment, the Kern County Department of Human Services helped many uninsured people sign up for coverage Thursday.
  
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• Cupid in Kern County, Part 1

  13-02-2015 03:45
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - What if someone told you they knew where you would find love, and what that person was going to sound like even before you met them?
  
  A local woman listened to the advice, her heart, and followed the signs to what is now a lifetime commitment.
  
  Her name is Krystal Shendo Quidachay.
  
  While many enjoy a beautiful guitar solo, the voice of Vince Quidashay would give Krystal unbelievable goosebumps when the couple was just dating.
  
  "I guess she had ha
  
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• Is closing Ridgecrest jail best option for budget woes?

  13-02-2015 03:40
  
  The city of Ridgecrest is fighting back, saying its residents' safety could be at risk now that Sheriff Donny Youngblood wants to close the local jail.
  
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• Prosecution rests in Jodi Arias' sentencing retrial

  13-02-2015 03:16
  
  The prosecution in the Jodi Arias sentencing retrial has rested its case.
  
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• Kern County Ag industry may be in jeopardy

  13-02-2015 03:06
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - Kern County's Agriculture industry may suffer a tremendous loss of product this month, and be hit hard financially.
  
  County Ag officials say it's because of a damaging labor dispute across the state between shipping companies and dockworkers.
  
  Starting Thursday, 29 west coast seaports will be mostly closed for the next five days.
  
  The slowdowns have caused considerable problems for both importers and exporters in the U.S. and overseas, and right here in Kern
  
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