KGET 17 News KGET News

Some of today's top stories
We begin this morning with a closer look at the "unknowns" of the investigation into Kern County 2nd District Supervisor Zack Scrivner. 
    Despite being a public official facing very public allegations of child sexual assault... so much about Scrivner's case remains private. 
    17's Jenny Huh reports, some residents are calling for his resignation, while others think Scrivner is getting special treatment.It has been a busy week for local firefighters. Another small brush fire broke out yesterday.
    It happened on North Chester and Beardsley Avenues around noon. 
    Thick, dark smoke could be seen hanging over the area before it was eventually put out.  
    This is the latest in a string of small fires in Kern County this week, including one that torched some 12-hundred acres near Maricopa. A firefighter was injured while protecting homes from a different fire in East Bakersfield. 
    This one started around 2 p.m. on Oregon Street near McCurdy Drive. 
    Kern County Fire says dry brush caught fire and threatened at least seven homes.
    But the only property lost in the fire was a shed. 
    A battalion chief who dragged over 300 feet of hose to a nearby fire hydrant is credited with saving the other properties.
    The cause of the fire is under investigation. Near California City, fire crews worked hard to try and save a large home that caught fire early yesterday morning.
    The 42-hundred square foot home on Neuralia Road is located in the community of Cantil.
    Kern County fire says due to its remote location, water had to be trucked in to fight the flames.
    Most of the home was burned along with eight acres of grass.
    The cause of the fire is unknown at this time.

Some of today's top stories
It's been more than two weeks since Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner was accused of sexually assaulting a child. 
     His whereabouts since that night have remained unknown. 
     But Scrivner's attorney H-A Sala released a statement, saying his Scrivner is on "a medical leave of absence."The statement went on to say Kern's interim Chief Administrative Officer was notified of the leave on Monday. 
     It does not say how long the leave will last. 
     It comes after Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting in which Scrivner was noticably absent. 
     Scrivner has not been arrested and he has not been charged with any crimes
Now to your 17 crime watch and a plea this morning from the family of a woman who was shot to death two weeks ago in East Bakersfield.
    The man arrested in connection to the death of Margarita "Maggie" Lopez has since been released from custody.
    17's Cecilia Trevino has more on the family's search for justice.Three pounds.
    That's how much marijuana the Bakersfield Police Department says a local woman tried to turn over to BPD headquarters last week. We've been tracking this story closely.
    Last Friday Erica de La Rosa called 911 when some elementary students found a box full of marijuana stashed behind some bushes near McCullough Elementary School.
    Dispatchers told her to take it to the police station.
    But de La Rosa claims personnel turned her away when she got there, saying the lobby was closed.
    That's when she called us.
    Officers finally came to de La Rosa's door last Saturday.
    They confiscated the marijuana, telling her to throw away the drug paraphrenalia left in the box.
    We reached out to BPD for comment on this story.
    Police explained the delay, saying the calls from De La Rosa weren't a priority that day because the marijuana didn't pose an immediate threat to the public.

Some of today's top stories
we have an update on the investigation into Kern County District 2 Supervisor Zack Scrivner. 
    The Board of Supervisors met for the first time yesterday, since allegations against Scrivner surfaced. 
    While Scrivner was absent, calls for his resignation filled the chamber. 
    17's Jenny Huh has more.shocking new information related to a homicide last month in east Bakersfield.
    A man arrested in connection to the killing, then released, is a teacher in the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District. Paul Magallanes was arrested April 19 in connection to the death of 38-year-old Margarita Lopez.
    However, he was later released when prosecutors sent the case back for further investigation.
    No charges against Magallanes have been filed.
    According to the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District, Magallanes, a teacher in the Alternative Education program, is on administrative leave. The district released a statement that reads in part, "We understand the shock and concern this news may bring to our school community...  The safety and well-being of our students, and our community, are among the District's highest priorities."
    Sheriff's officials say the investigation is active and ongoing.A man in Taft is under arrest this morning after deputies say they found stolen copper wire inside his stolen car. Eriq Cash was taken into custody Monday on Pierce Street. 
    The Kern County Sheriff's Office says deputies were investigating a report of a stolen car left in an ally, and when they searched the trunk, they found several strands of large gauge copper wire. 
    KCSO says its seeing a large rise in copper wire thefts from farmland and oilfields in the southwest portion of Kern County.

Some of today's top stories
Fire crews raced to the scene of a two-alarm structure fire in east Bakersfield early this morning.This is on Fairfax Road near Pioneer Drive...
    You can see fire crews attacking the flames in what appears to be an apartment complex.
    No word on any injuries...
    The cause of the fire is under investigationWe continue our coverage of the investigation into one of Kern County's supervisors, Zack Scrivner.
    Scrivner is under investigation following allegations he sexually assaulted a child....
    And this morning... the Kern County Board of Supervisors is set to meet -- with Scrivner's name still on the agenda. Scrivner has NOT been arrested... NOR have any charges been filed against him.
We also do NOT know if Scrivner will be present at the meeting.
As for what happened...
Sheriff Donny Youngblood says he received a call from District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer two weeks ago... saying her nephew... Zack Scrivner... was armed and suicidal. 
Youngblood says he immediately dispatched deputies to Scrivner's Tehachapi home.
When they arrived it was discovered Scrivner had been stabbed over allegations he had sexually assaulted a child.
The following day detectives arrived with a search warrant for the stabbing and sexual assault. 
They seized 30 guns ... electronics... including his phone... possible evidence of both the stabbing and sexual assault... as well as forensic evidence.
17 News learned last week that Scrivner's wife, Christina Scrivner, asked a judge to keep her estranged husband away from their four children.
However, the accusations she makes against him are completely censored.
There is a family court hearing for the Scrivners scheduled for later this month.
But again, Scrivner has not been arrested...and he has not resigned from his position.
Therefore, his name remains on the meeting agenda, as it always has been...but we do NOT know if he will be present at today's 9 a-m board meeting
A woman brought a box of processed cannabis to bakersfield police after some students found it near their school in a Southwest Bakersfield neighborhood.
    But, Erica De LaRosa says police refused to accept it.
    17's Rob Hagan explains what happened.

Some of today's top stories
Another massive structure fire erupted yesterday morning at a tow yard in Central Bakersfield.multiple explosions from more than a dozen vehicles burning inside the building.
The Bakersfield Fire Department was dispatched to the Ten Eight Tow Yard on Inyo Street about 8am.
Fire crews deployed the ladder truck to attack the flames from above to prevent it from spreading.
The BFD got assistance from the Kern County Fire Dept and both teams deployed their high ladder hoses to keep the flames from spreading dozens of vehicles surrounding the property.
No injuries have been reported.
Thankfully, crews were able to put out the fire and mop up the remaining hot spots. But then, hours later about 1pm the fire reignited calling back fire crews.
One firefighter had to saw open the gate to gain access to the fire.
A man on scene who spotted the reignited fire and called the BFD told 17 news he is the insurance agent for Ten Eight Tow Incorporated.
He claims the estimated damages to the building put the cost somewhere between 300,000 and $400,000.
The owners arrived on scene to the aftermath of the fire that destroyed their business and torched more than a dozen vehicles.
One of the business owners declined to comment saying they were still in shock.
An investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.
And the Bakersfield Fire Dept raced to another structure fire in an apartment complex on Real Road near Garnsey Lane around 2:30pm yesterday.
    Fire crews had to use a ladder to get to the roof to the fire located in the attic crawl space.
    You can see firefighters tearing out roofing tiles to get to the flames.
    No injuries have been reported. 
    The cause of this fire is also being investigated.One person suffered major injuries following a crash in east Bakersfield yesterday CHP says it happened about 3:30pm at the Brentwood Drive and Pioneer Drive intersection.
    The crash was originally reported as a pedestrian hit by a vehicle, but you can see a smashed up bicycle on scene.
    No word yet on the status of the victim or the driver.
    The cause of the crash is being investigatedAnd now to our homelessness crisis... the latest point-in-time count has been released, showing a 37% increase in those experiencing homelessness in Kern The 2024 survey took place in January.
 A total of 2,669 people were contacted... 62-percent were living unsheltered... while about 1,000 people utilized shelters.
 Coming up this morning at 6:20 on Sunrise, we'll speak with the executive director of the Kern Regional Homelessness Collaborative, about this crisis and the rising numbers.

Some of today's top stories
Southbound lanes of Interstate 5 are closed this morning after CHP said a semi-truck overturned.This is just north of Grapevine Road...
    It happened just before 4 a.m.
    Three lanes are closed... you can see traffic moving slowly through.
    It is unclear if there were any injuries in this crash..we continue to follow the ongoing investigation of Kern County District 2 Supervisor Zack Scrivner. 
    17 News has learned Christina Scrivner has asked a judge to keep her estranged husband away from their four children.
    But her accusations are blacked out in page after page of an otherwise public document.
    17's Jenny Huh has more. 32-year-old Rico Herring was found guilty Wednesday in a case that started here in Bakersfield and stretched across the state.
 A jury found Herring used violence and death threats to force a 16-year-old girl into sex work.
 Prosecutors say he met the victim online, bought her a bus ticket, then assaulted her and forced her into sex work. He could face 15 years to life in prison.Hours after they were arrested, some protesters were back at it on the campus of UCLA. According to the L-A-P-D...  210 people were arrested and booked for charges related to unlawful assembly.. and then released.
    Some had occupied the encampment in the ucla quad that was raided yesterday morning and removed...
    Others made up the crowd outside the encampment who failed to disperse as police lines closed in. After the clearing of the campus, Los Angeles mayor karen bass released a statement saying in part "that every student deserves to be safe and live peacefully on their campus. harrassment, vandalism and violence have no place at ucla or anywhere in our city."
    Across the country thousands of demonstrators have been arrested at pro-palestinian protests...
    President biden weighing in on the issue yesterday.