Kern County, CA

Background checks for Kern County, California go through state-level agencies, not the county. **Two paths**: (1) **California DOJ criminal history record review** (your own record only) at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints. Get a Live Scan fingerprint capture at any local vendor — Bakersfield area has many: KCSO Live Scan station, IdentoGO, Certifix, A1 Live Scan. Find a vendor at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints/locations. Complete BCIA 8016RR form, pay **$25 California DOJ state fee** plus a rolling fee (typically $20–$50). For an FBI national check, add the federal fee. **Fee waiver** at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints/record-review/fee-waiver. Turnaround 5–10 business days; results mailed only. (2) **Court records** (third-party visible): Kern County Courts portal at https://portal.kern.courts.ca.gov/ and Case Information Search at https://www.kern.courts.ca.gov/online-services/case-information-search — free public name search. (3) **Arrest blotter / current detainees**: KCSO at https://www.kernsheriff.org/Inmate_Info; Bakersfield PD records at https://www.bakersfieldcity.us. (4) **Sex offender check** (Megan's Law): https://meganslaw.ca.gov. **For employment use**, you cannot pull someone else's CA DOJ record without a permissible-use justification under Penal Code § 11105 — most employers go through a Live-Scan-authorized agency or an FCRA-compliant vendor (Checkr, Sterling, GoodHire). **Limits**: CA DOJ check covers California convictions only; federal cases need PACER ($0.10/page); juvenile and sealed cases excluded. Sources: California DOJ, Kern County Courts, Kern County Sheriff, California Megan's Law, Penal Code § 11105.

A probated will in Bakersfield, California is filed at the **Kern County Superior Court, Probate Division** — 2100 College Ave, Bakersfield CA 93305, phone (661) 868-7311 (probate). When a will is filed for probate, it becomes a public record. **Three steps**: (1) **Find the case** via Kern Superior Court Case Information Search at https://www.kern.courts.ca.gov/online-services/case-information-search — free name search by decedent's name. Search returns the case number, executor/administrator, asset summary, and document docket. (2) **Order a copy** from the Clerk's office at the Probate Court — **certified copy fee $40 first 5 pages + $0.50 each additional page** (Cal. Gov. Code § 70626); non-certified $0.50 per page. **Search-record fee** $50 for archived files. The court also charges a **search request fee** if staff must retrieve a closed file. (3) **Visit in person** if the case is older than ~20 years and not yet digitized — the Clerk's archive is at 2100 College Ave; full Kern fee schedule at https://www.kern.courts.ca.gov/forms-filing/court-filing-fee-and-fee-schedules. **Probate filing fees** (for context, Bakersfield/Kern): Petition for Probate (estate <$10K) ~$435, larger estates pay a sliding scale up to ~$1,330 for estates over $10M (Cal. Prob. Code § 8480). **Important**: a will alone does NOT transfer property — it has to go through probate to be enforceable. Estates under **$184,500 in personal property + $61,500 in real property** can use simplified small-estate procedures (Cal. Prob. Code § 13100), which are still searchable in the same court system. **Sealed**: family-conservatorship matters and certain juvenile probate guardianships are not publicly visible. Sources: Kern County Superior Court Probate Division, Kern County Civil Fee Schedule, Cal. Gov. Code § 70626, Cal. Prob. Code § 13100.

Boron is an unincorporated community in Kern County's high desert, so all arrests flow through the **Kern County Sheriff's Office (KCSO)**. **Sources, in order of speed**: (1) **KCSO Inmate Information** at https://www.kernsheriff.org/Inmate_Info — searchable list of current detainees with booking number, holding jail, bail amount, release date. Sortable by booking number (newest first) at https://www.kernsheriff.org/Inmate_Info?sortby=booking-number-descending. (2) **KCSO Inmate Search** at https://www.kernsheriff.org/inmate_search — name-based lookup. **Note (effective June 1, 2025)**: all physical personal mail for incarcerated individuals is scanned and distributed digitally on the inmate kiosk. (3) **Kern County Courts portal** at https://portal.kern.courts.ca.gov/ — KCSO recommends this for up-to-date case info once a charge is filed. (4) **KCSO Arrest Records Unit** at https://www.kernsheriff.org/Arrest_Records — processes bookings at the Inmate Reception Center and booking facilities; phone 661-391-7500. KCSO HQ: 1350 Norris Rd, Bakersfield CA 93308. (5) **CHP** for highway-corridor arrests near Boron (Hwy 58 / Hwy 395). (6) **State prison**: CDCR inmate search at https://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov. (7) **Personal record review**: California DOJ Live Scan at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints, $25 state fee. **CPRA** (Cal. Gov. Code § 7920): 10-day response window; booking photos public per Penal Code § 13300; body-cam OIS footage releasable within 45 days under SB 1421/AB 748. **Boron specific note**: nearest KCSO substation is the Mojave Substation; many arrests transfer to the Lerdo or Central Receiving Facility in Bakersfield. Sources: Kern County Sheriff, Kern County Courts Portal, CDCR, Cal. Gov. Code § 7920.

Lost Hills is an unincorporated community in Kern County's western edge, so property records run through the county. (1) **Kern County Assessor-Recorder** — main office at **1530 Truxtun Ave, Bakersfield CA 93301**, phone (661) 868-3485, https://www.kerncounty.com/government/departments/assessor-recorder. The combined Assessor-Recorder office handles BOTH parcel valuation AND deed recording. (2) **Recorded Documents Index** at https://recorderonline.co.kern.ca.us/ — free public access to Official Records, Marriage Records, and Death Records. (3) **Recording fees** (per the Kern Recorder Fee Schedule and Cal. Gov. Code § 27361 et seq.): Deeds: **$13 first page (8.5x11) + $3 each additional page**; **+$75 SB 2 fee** per document for non-exempt real estate transfers; for the typical 1-page deed, plan on **~$88 first page**. **Documentary Transfer Tax**: $1.10 per $1,000 of value, rounded up. **Combined documents** $13 per each additional title (Cal. Gov. Code § 37361.1). Certified copies $5 per document + $0.50 per page. (4) **Property tax payment status**: Kern County Treasurer-Tax Collector at https://www.kerncounty.com/government/departments/treasurer-tax-collector. (5) **Document recording mail address**: Kern County Recorder, 1530 Truxtun Ave, Bakersfield CA 93301. **Lost Hills specifics**: most parcels are large agricultural tracts (almonds, pistachios, oil/gas leases) — many have mineral-rights severances; the Kern Recorder is also one of the busiest oil-and-gas-recording offices in California. Verify mineral interests before any rural land purchase. **Fraud alert**: free email notification when documents record under your name; sign up via the Recorder portal. Sources: Kern County Assessor-Recorder, Kern Recorder Online, Deeds.com Kern, Cal. Gov. Code § 27361.

Background checks for Kern County, California go through state-level agencies, not the county. **Two paths**: (1) **California DOJ criminal history record review** (your own record only) at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints. Get a Live Scan fingerprint capture at any local vendor — the Bakersfield area has many: KCSO Live Scan station, IdentoGO, Certifix, A1 Live Scan, etc. Find a vendor at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints/locations. Complete BCIA 8016RR form, pay **$25 California DOJ state fee** plus a rolling fee (typically $20–$50). For an FBI national check, add the federal fee. **Fee waiver** at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints/record-review/fee-waiver. Turnaround 5–10 business days; results mailed only. (2) **Court records** (third-party visible): Kern County Courts portal at https://portal.kern.courts.ca.gov/ and Case Information Search at https://www.kern.courts.ca.gov/online-services/case-information-search — free public name search; covers Civil, Criminal, Family Law, Probate, Small Claims; sealed/juvenile excluded. (3) **Arrest blotter / current detainees**: KCSO at https://www.kernsheriff.org/Inmate_Info; Bakersfield PD records at https://www.bakersfieldcity.us. (4) **Sex offender check** (Megan's Law): https://meganslaw.ca.gov — searchable by name, address, or zip. **For employment use**, you cannot pull someone else's CA DOJ record without a permissible-use justification under Penal Code § 11105 — most employers go through a Live-Scan-authorized agency or an FCRA-compliant vendor (Checkr, Sterling, GoodHire) that wraps state, FBI, court, county, and MVR into one report. **Limits**: CA DOJ check covers California convictions; federal cases need PACER ($0.10/page); juvenile and sealed cases excluded. Sources: California DOJ, Kern County Courts, Kern County Sheriff, California Megan's Law.

There's no single master arrest list in California. Records sit with the agency that made the arrest. **In Kern County**, that means **Kern County Sheriff's Office (KCSO)** for unincorporated areas + all county jail bookings, OR a **city police department** for arrests inside a city's limits (Bakersfield, Delano, Ridgecrest, California City, Tehachapi, Wasco, Arvin, Shafter, Taft, McFarland). **Three quick lookups**: (1) **KCSO Inmate Information** at https://www.kernsheriff.org/Inmate_Info — current detainees, booking number, charges, holding jail, bail, release date. Name search at https://www.kernsheriff.org/inmate_search. (2) **Kern County Courts portal** at https://portal.kern.courts.ca.gov/ for case info once charges are filed; free public Case Information Search at https://www.kern.courts.ca.gov/online-services/case-information-search. (3) **Bakersfield PD** at 1601 Truxtun Ave, Bakersfield CA 93301, phone (661) 327-7111 — CPRA records request via the city portal. Other city PDs handle their own jurisdictions. **State prison** (sentenced): CDCR at https://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov — Kern hosts Wasco State Prison, North Kern State Prison, Kern Valley State Prison, and CCI Tehachapi. **Personal authoritative record**: California DOJ Live Scan at https://oag.ca.gov/fingerprints, $25 state fee. **CPRA**: Cal. Gov. Code § 7920 — 10-day response window; booking photos public per Penal Code § 13300; body-cam OIS footage releasable within 45 days under SB 1421/AB 748. Older closed cases require a written CPRA request to the originating agency. Sources: Kern County Sheriff, Bakersfield PD, Kern County Courts, CDCR.