Bakersfield.com: Kern County news, events, classifieds, shopping, & search

RSS Feed   Print Story   E-mail Story        

Man held in boy's slaying

19-year-old arrested after West High student shot

The Bakersfield Californian | Sunday, Sep 23 2007 10:25 PM

Last Updated: Sunday, Sep 23 2007 10:30 PM

Homicide detectives arrested a man Sunday in connection with the death of a 16-year-old boy, the Kern County Sheriff's Department reported.

Terrell Scott Young, 19, was arrested on suspicion of murder and participation in a criminal street gang.

Joshua Ward, of Bakersfield, was killed early Sunday morning, according to the Sheriff's Department.

Ward was shot at the Fairfax Grange on Fairfax Road about 2 a.m. He was pronounced dead at 2:30 a.m. at Kern Medical Center.

There was a dance at the grange hall, which is rented out for events, said Cmdr. Shelly Castaneda of the sheriff's office.

Ward was a junior at West High School. He started as a freshman at West but did not finish his first year there, said Principal Dean McGee.

Ward returned to West this fall. School administrators were notified about Ward's death Sunday morning.

McGee said West's counselors would be available to help grieving students. The Kern High School District may supply additional counseling personnel if needed.

Ward's MySpace page was filled with tributes from his friends Sunday morning and afternoon, and many of his friends had changed their own pages to remember Ward.