famous bakersfield honky-tonk closes for good

famous bakersfield honky-tonk closes for good

Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace, which has played host to nearly every country star and acts as the de facto headquarters of the Bakersfield sound., has closed its doors for good. The 28-year-old restaurant, bar and club in Bakersfield, which occupied more than 21,000 square feet in a two-story Western Revival-style house at 2800 Buck Owens…Read More

teenager killed in suspected drug-impaired crash

teenager killed in suspected drug-impaired crash

Police say speed and drugs may have led to a fatal accident in northeast Bakersfield. Officers went to the 4400 block of Union Avenue Sunday evening to find a crash between a Hyundai and a Jeep. A 16-year-old passenger in the Hyunadai was pronounced dead at the scene. The Hyundai driver and two other passengers…Read More

police: speed and drugs may have led to fatal crash

police: speed and drugs may have led to fatal crash

Police say speed and drugs may have led to a fatal accident in northeast Bakersfield. Officers went to the 4400 block of Union Avenue Sunday evening to find a crash between a Hyundai and a Jeep. A 16-year-old passenger in the Hyunadai was pronounced dead at the scene. The Hyundai driver and two other passengers…Read More

officials call trailer fire suspicious

officials call trailer fire suspicious

Authorities are investigating a fire at a mobile home park in Oildale. The blaze is the third fire at the location in four months. The body of a woman identified as Linda Kelly was found around 2:00 a.m. Friday at a burned-out trailer at Superior Mobile Home Park in the 6000 block of State Road.…Read More

batallion chief injured in fire fight

batallion chief injured in fire fight

A Kern County Fire battalion chief suffered serious injuries when the vehicle he was driving crashed in the Romero Canyon area. James Agee received medical aid at the scene before being flown by helicopter to Henry Mayo Hospital in Newhall after his pickup rolled over during operations on the Canyon Fire in Ventura and Los…Read More

grand jury report highlights cps concerns

grand jury report highlights cps concerns

A recent grand jury report is putting Kern County Child Protective Services under the microscope. The information released in April comes on the heels of the death of Genesis Mata, 8, whose tortured body was found August 2, 2025, inside a bathtub at a central Bakersfield motel. Authorities say the girl’s father, Ray Mata, Jr.,…Read More

tattoo shop targeted over nazi symbol

tattoo shop targeted over nazi symbol

A downtown Bakersfield tattoo shop was hit by vandals after claims that one of its artists has a tattoo of a swastika on his body. The front window at Electric Wizard Tattoo Castle on 19th Street was broken out Wednesday night and the words Nazis F*** Off were spray-painted above the entrance. The owner of…Read More

gruesome details emerge following death of 8-year-old

gruesome details emerge following death of 8-year-old

Troubling new details are emerging following the death of an 8-year-old girl whose battered body was found in a bathtub at a central Bakersfield motel. Police found the remains of Genesis Mata on Saturday at the La Quinta Inn on Riverside Drive, but say she died the day before after allegedly being tortured by her…Read More

eastern kern solar project now online

eastern kern solar project now online

A major solar project in eastern Kern County is now online. The Eland Solar and Battery Center near Mojave held a ribbon cutting ceremony Tuesday. The new facility will power over 260,000 Los Angeles homes and will cover 7% of the city’s electricity. Built by Arevon Energy, the site includes giant batteries to store solar…Read More

two arrested on drug gun charges in mcfarland

two arrested on drug gun charges in mcfarland

Two people are behind bars after a raid in McFarland allegedly turns up ghost guns and fenatanyl. Officers searched a home in the 800 block of Fletcher Street at around 7 a.m. Monday where they arrested Ruben Garcia, 49, and Alicia Garcia, 42. Police say the drugs were packaged and the guns had no serial…Read More