KGET Features

Each week, 17’s Jim Scott takes an in-depth look at the issues that concern Kern County. Click here for Kern County In Depth.

Since 2000, more than a thousand local people have been shot, beaten or strangled to death. KGET is now tracking these crimes, creating a database of local crime and punishment and offering resources for families of victims. Click here for the 17 News Homicide Tracker.

17 News has partnered with the US Marshal’s Office to help get Kern County’s Most Wanted off the streets. Click here for Golden Empire’s Most Wanted.

December 21, 2020. Brothers Orson and Orrin go missing without a trace out of the home of their adoptive parents in California City, California. A year later still no trace of them, no suspects and no answer to the question: Where are the boys? KGET follows the case that has captivated people nationwide and the community that has come together hoping for their return in the past year. Click here for full coverage of the Missing Cal City Boys.

Drunk driving is a major problem that is 100-percent preventable. shine a spotlight on alcohol addiction, help addicts find resources available for treatment and highlight law enforcement arrests and cases prosecuted against suspected drunk drivers. Click here for Kern’s Sober Reality coverage and resources.

Kern’s Meth Epidemic is one of the signature issues we’ve been following at KGET since 2015. Kern’s Meth Epidemic shines a spotlight on meth addiction, help addicts find resources available for treatment and highlight law enforcement arrests and cases prosecuted against dealers and criminals accused of sensational crimes while high on the drug. Click here for 17 News’ ongoing coverage of Kern’s Meth Epidemic.

Infant deaths due to unsafe sleeping are 100-percent preventable. We teamed up with Kern Medical to provide portable cribs for parents who qualify for them and a program called Safe Home, Safe Baby to help educate them on safe sleeping practices. Click here for our Safe Sleeping coverage.

Domestic violence is a major problem in Kern County. Click here for KGET’s Domestic Violence coverage and resources.

The story of the death of Victoria Hampton takes shape once she decided to go after one of her prized possessions: a rare Dodge Hellcat. Muscle Car Murder.

April 19, 2023 marks the 160th anniversary of a tragic and brutal scar on Kern County history: The Keyesville Massacre. In the midst of the bloody American Civil War a continent away, an atrocity of stunning cruelty occurred right here in the mountains east of what would one day become Bakersfield. 17 News reporter Bob Price presents The Keyesville Massacre of 1863.

Fentanyl – in the same chemical family as opium and heroin but manufactured by amateurs in garages or kitchen sinks – is tearing Kern County families apart. Many don’t know what’s happening until their children are dead. Now, families affected are warning others to look for those warning signs and encouraging parents to have these conversations about drugs with their children before it’s too late. Click here for Fentanyl: The Counterfeit Killer.

A husband. A son. A father. An avid reader. Jamie Osuna’s family described him as all of these things once. Now he’s an inmate. A confessed murderer. He’s tattooed most of his face to look like a comic book villain, and he plays the role just as notoriously. Reporter Olivia LaVoice looks into each façade, uncovering far more than she ever expected from The Man With a Thousand Faces.

Our county’s fiscal health continues to improve, but there’s still a major strain to the budget. It’s coming from the county fire department. Click here to see Alex Fisher’s year-long investigation: Fire Facts.

It’s been one year since magnitude 6.4 and 7.1 earthquakes shook Ridgecrest to the core. Located about two hours northeast of Bakersfield with a population of about 27,000, it’s a city of many people who say they feel forgotten. 17’s Karen Hua makes a Return to Ridgecrest to see how these communities are recovering without federal aid.

A year-long investigation by KGET’s Olivia LaVoice asks: Does Bakersfield have a Secret Serial Killer? Click here for Bakersfield’s Secret Serial Killer.

Did Kern send an innocent man to Death Row? Event the state’s top prosecutors say “false evidence” was used to send a Kern County man to Death Row. KGET’s Olivia LaVoice investigates. Click here for Kern County’s Questionable Conviction.

Derrick Penney and Logan August made local headlines in 2017 when they were sentenced to probation and community service after admitting to using their department-issued keys to access a KCSO evidence facility where they stole marijuana. Click here for Kern Corruption.

It’s been 18 years and Kathleen Heisey’s family and friends still cry out of for justice. They say they aren’t getting it from the Bakersfield Police Department, so they reached out to us. By the dozen. They wanted us to tell them what detectives wouldn’t. They wanted us to make sure the case wasn’t forgotten. They want justice. They want to know: Who killed Kathleen Heisey? Click here for Who Killed Kathleen Heisey?

The murder trial of Sabrina Limon has become one of the most highly watched cases in Kern County Superior Court in years. Click here for 17 News’ coverage of the Sabrina Limon Trial.

April 16, 2016, a massive 7.8 earthquake has leveled many towns in the South American country of Ecuador. 17 news reporter Lori Lizarraga is visiting the country when the quake hits. A year later she returns documenting the recovery efforts. Click here for 17 News’ coverage of the Ecuador Earthquake Special.