Kern County Jails and Detention Facilities

When someone is arrested in Kern County, the family's first and hardest question is simply: where are they? The county's jail system is large and spread out, from a downtown booking center to a sprawling complex on the edge of farmland to small substations in the high desert. This guide walks through each facility we serve so you can understand the system and act fast.

The Kern County Sheriff's Office operates the jails and handles roughly 30,000 arrests a year. Most begin at one booking center and flow outward from there. If you already know where your loved one is, jump to that facility below. If you do not, we will help you locate them at no cost.

How the system flows

Nearly every Bakersfield-area arrest is booked first at the Central Receiving Facility downtown. People who do not post bail quickly are usually transferred to the Lerdo detention complex about twelve miles northwest, which contains four separate jails. Out in the desert, the Mojave and Ridgecrest substations book local arrests before transferring toward Lerdo. The single most useful thing you can do is call before a transfer, because posting bail early often skips a long drive and hours of processing.