The California Highway Patrol tells 23ABC in 2016, 60 people died in car crashes in Bakersfield. So far in 2017, 45 people have already died, which means Bakersfield is on track to tie or surpass last year's total.
CHP has a program called Start Smart, a free class for teens to learn some driving skills from CHP officers. With this program, they hope to start safe driving education young to keep car crash fatalities low.
Traffic collisions are the leading cause of death among teens ages 16-19. In California alone, teens are responsible for 66% of all accidents.
For one CHP officer, Tuesday evening's class hit home because there was someone near to his heart sitting in the audience of the presentation. 23ABC's Leah Pezzetti shows how Vaughn Cain is connecting his work life with his personal life.
