Bakersfield news

• Suspect caught hitting child on camera, arrested

  11-04-2015 16:21
  
  UPDATE: 7:33 a.m.: The man seen in a store surveillance video hitting a toddler has been identified by Bakersfield Police.
  
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• 10 things you need to know: Today's guide to the obscure, the possibly relevant & things in between

  11-04-2015 10:32
  
  1) A study released in advance of the 150th anniversary of the tragic night, April 14, 1865, that John Wilkes Booth slipped into Ford's Theater and shot President Lincoln reveals another tragedy: Lincoln, and much of his legacy, is being lost to the ages. According to Daniel Burnett, director of communications at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, half of the American public today doesn't know when the Civil War took place. One in five Americans failed to identify John Wilkes B
  
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• News of Borba sale spurs speculation, reflection

  11-04-2015 09:17
  
  News that one of the once-controversial Borba megadairies is closing down 17 years after their proposal came in with a roar had a lot of people speculating Friday: “What’s next out there?” All we knew for sure was that part of the George Borba & Son Dairy near Taft Highway and Interstate 5 was selling off its entire operation, according to an advertisement in The Californian.
  
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• SOUND OFF: Why don't we pay attention to city's homeless problem?

  11-04-2015 09:05
  
  Reader: I'd like to have a frank conversation about homelessness in Kern County. We have a problem -- and today, it begins with how the city and county have chosen to manage the issue of homelessness and completely disregard the countless homeless individuals who have no place to go other than a vacant field. ... Tonight, as I worked from my home and caught up on the latest local news, I stumbled upon a barely noticeable story put out by KGET on their Facebook page. I didn't see it on th
  
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• Man who hit toddler had rocky past

  11-04-2015 08:45
  
  After thousands of views and shares online, Bakersfield police appear to have found the man responsible for striking a toddler in the face. 23-year-old Justin Whittington is being held on charges of child endangerment. His bail is set at $1 million.
  
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• Farm Bureau president refutes tale of thirsty almond

  11-04-2015 08:30
  
  Almonds are getting a bad rap That was the gist of the Kern County Farm Bureau president’s defense of the ubiquitous, vilified tree nut Friday morning.
  
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• Rep. Valadao appointed vice chairman of ag subcommittee

  11-04-2015 08:21
  
  Rep. David Valadao of Hanford got a promotion this week when the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee appointed him vice chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee. The appointment makes sense -- Valadao grew up in dairy farming and is one of the few members of Congress who can honestly claim to be a farmer.
  
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• Dogs take flight to new homes

  11-04-2015 08:17
  
  Wings of Rescue took another 150 Kern County dogs on Friday to shelters in the Pacific Northwest where they are expected to be adopted into homes within a few weeks. Wings has been flying dogs from Kern to out-of-state shelters where they need adoptable dogs for about the last three years. It has saved nearly 2,000 local dogs in that time. The charity needs local donations to continue the flights and has launched Hightail Bakersfield to keep up the momentum on its fundraising efforts.
  
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• Video of man striking boy goes viral, leads police to make arrest

  11-04-2015 07:50
  
  Local tattoo artist Chris Danaher was seeking exactly the outcome he got when he posted on Facebook a video of a man striking a child in the face in a Chester Avenue market aisle Thursday. The video went viral and attracted police attention.
  
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• Time machine with wings takes to skies over Bakersfield

  11-04-2015 06:52
  
  Have you ever flown a Ford over the farm fields of home? This weekend, thanks to a visit from the Experimental Aircraft Association, local airplane enthusiasts can take a ride on a vintage 1929 Ford Tri-Motor, one of the earliest passenger airliners to fly the friendly skies.
  
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• Woman: 'Spark Energy employee stole my package'

  11-04-2015 06:27
  
  A woman contacted 23ABC claiming that a representative from Spark Energy stole a package from her porch Thursday afternoon and it was all caught on camera.
  
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• Prosecutor: BPD officer investigated for manipulating body

  11-04-2015 04:11
  
  A police officer is under investigation for allegedly manipulating the body of a man killed in an officer-involved shooting.
  
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• Newspaper report: BPD officer investigated for 'manipulating' body

  11-04-2015 04:11
  
  A police officer is under investigation for "allegedly manipulating" the body of a man killed in an officer-involved shooting, according to a report from The Bakersfield Californian.
  
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• Local schools work to reduce water use

  11-04-2015 03:47
  
  Many local schools have already started cutting back on watering campus lawns, but across the Bakersfield area definitive water reduction plans are still in the works. Some districts are further along than others.
  
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• Bakersfield homeless camp wall torn down by city

  11-04-2015 03:09
  
  The city of Bakersfield removed the chained fence and block wall surrounding a large homeless camp on South Union on Friday morning.
  
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• Woman attacked in park: 'My wounds will heal. I want my dog'

  11-04-2015 03:06
  
  A woman was assaulted and seriously injured in a northeast Bakersfield park, but she's most worried about her pet that went missing during the attack.
  
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• Woman attacked in Bakersfield park

  11-04-2015 03:06
  
  A woman was assaulted and seriously injured in a northeast Bakersfield park.
  
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• Colorado man convicted of child porn involving Bakersfield toddlers

  11-04-2015 03:04
  
  A Colorado man was convicted Friday of kidnapping and producing child pornography involving two Bakersfield toddlers following a four-day trial.
  Shawn McCormack, 31, was found guilty of four counts of sexual exploitation of a child and two counts of kidnapping, according to a news release from the office of U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner. He faces a possible sentence of 15 to 30 years in prison for each count of production of child pornography, and 20 years to life for each kidnapping count.
  
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• BPD officer under investigation for allegedly manipulating body of man killed in officer-involved shooting

  11-04-2015 03:03
  
  A Bakersfield police officer is under investigation for allegedly manipulating the body of a man killed in an officer-involved shooting, moving the man's head and pretending to tickle his feet as he lay in a gurney covered in a blood-soaked white sheet.Senior Officer Aaron Stringer grasped the head of Ramiro James Villegas and told another officer he "loves playing with dead bodies," according to the other officer's statements in Bakersfield Police Department reports obtained by The Californian.
  
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• 'Crusin' movie filmed in Bakersfield

  11-04-2015 03:02
  
  Are you a fan of the 'Fast and Furious' franchise? Believe it or not, a version of the film was shot right here in our backyard. However, the director states that his inspiration came from the movie, 'American Graffiti.'
  
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• She runs to promote organ donation

  11-04-2015 02:29
  
  Kathy Vochoska and her friends are trying to promote organ donation by demonstrating that life can be just as healthy and rewarding with one kidney as with two. Vochoska, 54, donated a kidney to her son four years ago, but the surgery hasn't slowed her down. She still hikes the Grand Canyon and runs marathons and relays, including the Ragnar Radar race from Huntington Beach to San Diego, which began Friday and concludes Saturday.
  
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• Bakersfield police looking for robbery suspects

  11-04-2015 01:48
  
  Police are looking for two suspects in a strong-arm robbery.
  
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• Funeral Services for April 11

  11-04-2015 01:09
  
  Services scheduledJose Albertico Cardenas Jr., 32, Ketchikan, Alaska, April 6. Visitation 4 p.m April 15, Basham-Hopson Funeral Care Chapel; Rosary 7 p.m. April 15, Basham-Hopson Funeral Care Chapel; Mass 10 a.m. April 16, Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. Basham-Hopson Funeral Care, 620 Oregon St.
  
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• Shannon Grove set to skydive for charity

  11-04-2015 00:43
  
  TAFT, CA - Assemblywoman Shannon Grove plans to do a tandem sky diving jump in Taft Saturday morning to benefit a Bakersfield-based charity that rescues and cares for abused, oppressed, and abandoned children in India and Nepal. 
  According to Grove's press release, last month the Global Family Care Network held a fund raising dinner, and a skydiving jump with Grove was auctioned off for $450 to benefit the charity.
  
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• Donate Life event to benefit locals in need

  11-04-2015 00:38
  
  BAKERSFIELD, CA - April is Donate Life Month and a time to recognize the thousands of people now waiting for an organ transplant. This is also a time that advocates want to remind everyone of the dire need many are facing as they wait for donations such as blood, plasma, platelets, and marrow.On Saturday April 18, Houchin Blood Bank and JJ's Legacy will honor a 7-year-old local boy  Brayden Eidenshink, who has waited more than 220 days for a heart transplant.Them and many other non-pr
  
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• Transgender teen in California kills self after bullying

  11-04-2015 00:12
  
  A 16-year-old transgender girl who spoke on YouTube about being bullied at school in Southern California killed herself, a support group said, raising questions about what educators can and should do to support students who change gender identity.
  
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• VP talks about workforce training during Bay Area visit

  11-04-2015 00:08
  
  Vice President Joe Biden visited a PG&E power plant in Oakland, California, Friday morning and spoke with veterans in a job-training program.
  
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• San Diego, Los Angeles mayors take stage in drought fight

  11-04-2015 00:01
  
  San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer announced this week that his city would be deploying water cops and offering money to rip up lawns in an effort to save water during an escalating drought.
  
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