Goodbye 2007
The Bakersfield Californian's year-end features.
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Top stories and videos of 2007 Kern's environment and health in 2007 The Year in Entertainment Many Kern athletes left it all on the field in 2007 People to watch in 2008 The Year in Dining Chief photographer Felix Adamo's favorite photos from 2007 are ... Photographer picks favorite 2007 images Remembering Kern residents we lost in 2007 The weirdest news of 2007 December 07 January 08 February 08 March 08 April 08 May 08 June 08 July 08 August 08 September 08 October 08 November 08 December 08 January 09 February 09 March 09 April 09 May 09 June 09 July 09 August 09 September 09 October 09 November 09 
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ENVIRONMENT
Good news/bad news for Kern air
Kern County choked on news that it will take 17 years, possibly more, to reduce smog. Regional air regulators released a smog cleanup plan requiring an 11-year extension on the federal government's 2013 deadline to clean the air. Environmental and health advocates fought for stricter rules on business, given the enormous public health burden. A few tweaks were made, but nothing substantial enough to clean the air before 2024.
On the bright...
This year, Bakersfield, you braved a concert in a Wal-Mart parking lot, rocked hard at Rabobank Arena and paid homage to our musical ambassador Buck Owens, gone more than a year now. While there’s not enough space to list every act that dropped by — well, maybe that’s just another sign our city is growing up.
STAR POWER
Patti LaBelle: “Lady Marmalade” gitchy-gitchy-ya-ya’d the Fox in March.
Gwen Stefani and Akon: The ultra-cool red-mouthed siren...
From racing to wrestling, Kern County athletes enjoyed an immensely successful year. Some of the 2007 success happened close to home, and some was achieved by Kern County natives in other parts of the state or country.
Here is a list of feats in 2007 that may or may not include your favorite accomplishments. Got an addition? Let us know! Send your thoughts to sports@bakersfield.com.
BC makes run at state title
Bakersfield College was the only unbeaten JC football team in the state during...
Kern County has more than its share of trendsetters, torchbearers, innovators and leaders. Some lead by example. Others lead by persuasion. Some inspire admiration. Others derision.
Following is a sampling of Kern County residents who, for better or worse, are poised to make a splash in 2008.
In God we trusted
Longtime Bakersfield City Councilwoman Jacquie Sullivan has become known for championing a single issue: getting In God We Trust on school posters and government walls whenever and...
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
In a year in which booming Bakersfield finally took a breath (somewhat) and stopped growing like Las Vegas without the slot machines, the city’s restaurant scene evolved in old and new ways. The trend toward diversity in our dining continued, and some national chains discovered us. According to a news report last month, we apparently reached the specific population profile needed to support a Hooters.
Hey, there’s a civic...
Chief photographer Felix Adamo shares his favorite photos of the year in this audio slide show.
Check out longtime staff photographer John Harte's picks for the best photos of 2007.
Kern County lost several local history makers in 2007.
Some left their mark on the county’s face and culture.
Some forged the way for underrepresented populations.
And some were just plain interesting.
Larry Kleier
Larry Kleier, the former Kern County Sheriff responsible for building Lerdo Jail, died
Jan. 5. He was 72.
Kleier, sheriff from 1983 to 1987, joined the sheriff’s department as a deputy in 1958.
He was sheriff during the probe into a satanic...
Bakersfield is a wild news town and 2007 didn’t disappoint in delivering wacky headlines.
Prosecutor prosecuted
Some party.
Her husband bit a casino security guard, prosecutors allege, and she battered three men, including a Kern sheriff’s deputy.
Misdemeanor charges, sure.
But they’re filed against a Kern County deputy district attorney.
Andrea and Gregory Kohler face criminal charges in Santa Barbara County following
their October arrest at a Santa Ynez...
Check out Casey Christie's best photos of the year. He explains his choices in the audio slide show.
Check out assistant photo editor Alex Horvath's best shots of the year. He explains why he thinks these are his best shots in the audio slide show.
One of the grisliest murder cases in Bakersfield history came to an end in 2007.
Vincent Brothers was convicted in May of brutally murdering his wife, Joanie Harper; their three children, Marques, Lyndsey and Marshall; and Joanie Harper’s mother, Earnestine in July 2003. He was sentenced to death.
The verdict divided much of the community. Some thought Brothers was getting what he deserved, while others argued that the jury was racially biased and Brothers didn’t receive a...
Several criminal cases this past year proved that things aren’t always what they seem.
The following were some of the notable incidents requiring police response in 2007:
Murder-for-hire plot goes bad
Steven Troy Stewart had a feeling from the moment someone first shot at him that an ex-girlfriend might be the cause.
Turns out he was right.
Investigators say Francis Giangrossi hired his stepbrother, Jim Skiba, and others to kill Stewart because Giangrossi believed Stewart...
Check out assistant photo editor Michael Fagans' best shots of the year. He explains why he thinks these are his best shots in the audio slide show.
David Crisp and Carl Cole, the image-makers of Bakersfield’s bygone real estate boom, ended the year deep in a quagmire of home loan defaults, allegations of deceptive borrowing practices, civil lawsuits and an ongoing FBI investigation.
Although Cole, 60, left the now-defunct Crisp & Cole Real Estate agency in 2006, the pair were still talking up ambitious deals at the year’s start.
In January, Cal State Bakersfield granted conceptual approval for Cole and Crisp to...
There was no avoiding news about the housing slump this year. But just as the residential real estate industry flagged, other local industries surged, such as retail and wind energy.
Mortgage meltdown
The record-setting home value appreciation that swept the city two years ago was replaced by reports listing Bakersfield as one of the nation’s hardest hit cities, both in terms of foreclosures and the prevalence of subprime lending.
Home values are down, inventory is up and city...
Kern High School District Trustee Chad Vegas offered up another controversy this fall in the form of a proposal mandating all 2,000-plus district classrooms display a poster of the national motto created by a Christian organization.
The debate over “In God We Trust” roiled for months as board members eeked out changes to the initial proposal and eventually birthed a plan that may cost the district thousands in production costs and possibly more in legal fees.
On Dec. 10, the...
Kern County’s 2007
Freeway wrangling
Bakersfield’s transportation future was a hot topic in 2007 — sparking heated debate between city of Bakersfield leaders and Kern County officials for months on end.
City officials argued they could find money to fund a massive web of new roads and freeways, using the $630 million in federal roads cash secured by former Congressman Bill Thomas, before he left office, as seed money.
County officials said there weren’t...
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