A local mom of two isn't taking any risks when it comes to making sure her daughters get to and from North High School.
Christina Scott said the recent reports of attempted abductions has her talking to her daughters about being aware of their surroundings and staying safe when they're by themselves.
"I'll bring them, I'll pick them up," said Scott.
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office said it's investigating four incidents. Two in east Bakersfeild, two in Oildale that happened over a two week span.
The first happened on May 26th in the area of Park drive and Pioneer. A man driving a white sedan tired to abduct a 10 year old child.
The second incident was on June 7th near north high where a man driving a pick-up truck attempted to kidnap a 17 year old.
The third happened June 8th near Breckenridge Rd. and Royal Way.
In that neighborhood, a man driving a blue car tried to take an 11 year old child by telling them their mother sent him.
The latest incident was June 9th near North Chester and Warren Avenue where a man attempted to get a 14 year old into his car.
TIPS ON HOW TO KEEP YOUR KIDS SAFE
- Parents with young children should practice "touch supervision." Always be close enough to touch your child.
- Parents should remind older kids to not walk with music in their ears or while distracted by their cell phone. They should remind children to stay aware of their surroundings.
- Trust your gut feeling. If you feel uncomfortable address the person and tell them to stay back or find a trusted adult. Kids can also go into a business and tell the workers they don't feel comfortable.
- Make a scene if someone tries to approach you or take you. Young kids should be taught to say "I don't know you" or "You're not my mom/dad".
- Parents should talk through scenarios with their children about what to do in many different situations and include different locations.
- Create code words for the family and for the kids.
- Remind kids that bad people don't look "ugly" or "evil", they can be anyone.
- Remind kids not to get in a car or approach a car without permission.
- Tell kids to always travel in groups.
All of the children were able to get away unharmed.
KCSO's Crime Prevention Unit is reminding parents to talk to their kids about safety.
They say parents should remind kids not to walk while distracted and to pay attention to their surroundings.
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“They need to make sure they can hear someone that is approaching them or hear a car that’s driving next to them," said Ashely Glover, KCSO's crime prevention coordinator.
She also stresses that everyone should trust their gut feeling and then act out if they're uncomfortable.
“If you feel like that feeling that something just isn’t right someone doesn’t belong, maybe someone is a little bit to close to you. Or you notice someone making uncomfortable eye contact or they seem to be following you in cause a scene," said Glover.
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The Kern High School district said some school do have summer school right now and provided the following statement about how they're working to keep students safe.
"The Kern High School District Police Department (KHSDPD) has police officers at every KHSD campus during summer school.
Those officers routinely patrol the school sites and neighborhoods before, during, and after school hours.
The officers also respond accordingly to calls of suspicious activity. The KHSDPD asks staff and students to be vigilant and report anything suspicious immediately."
One of the incidents happened near Voorhies School, Bakersfield City School District sent this statement addressing the incident.
"The District will continue to follow our everyday safety protocols while students are at school and we will continue our ongoing education on safety when they are walking to and from school.
The only thing we would do different if something like this happens near one of our schools is send a letter home notifying parents of the incident and reminding them to speak about safety to their students.
Given this didn't happen at any of our open school sites, we won't be doing that this time."
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"I’m going to keep bringing them and picking them up until I think it might be safe enough. You know this economy and this day and age you just don’t know. I’d rather be safe than sorry.”
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The crime prevention unit holds social media safety classes, child stranger danger training, and kids internet safety courses. They are free and request driven. If you would like to set up one of those classes you can contact the crime prevention unit at crimeprevention@kernsheriff.com.
