Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site on September 23, 2026.
Kern County, California, has about 923,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Kern County starts two cases, a criminal case (in the Superior Court of California, County of Kern) and a license case before the DMV, and leaves three records. This guide follows the arrest from the roadside to the court file and the driving record.
This guide covers the law, the arrest, booking, the court case, the license case, the records and common questions.
Related guides: Kern County public records, Kern County arrest records, Kern County warrants, Kern County inmate search, Kern County criminal records, California arrest records and California inmate search.
The DUI Law in California
In California the offense is DUI, and the limit is 0.08.
Driving in California is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DUI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the DMV, separately from the criminal case.
For charging and sentencing, California counts prior offenses within 10 years.
Who Makes DUI Arrests in Kern County
The Kern County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Bakersfield, Delano, Ridgecrest, Wasco, Shafter, Arvin and four more cities make the DUI arrests in Kern County.
The FBI's agency list also places one campus police department, two other agencies and six state police units in Kern County (the arrest records guide names each one); the Highway Patrol's six offices make the arrests on the state highways.
Together, the ten agencies in Kern County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 18,122 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Kern County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Kern County
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Kern County Sheriff's Office, held about 1,790 people on an average day in 2025 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at kernsheriff.org/inmate-search. The Kern County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
A DUI charge from Kern County is brought by the District Attorney in the Superior Court of California, County of Kern.
The District Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at kerncounty.com.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at kern.courts.ca.gov/self-help/court-records.
California has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The License Case
The court case is only half the record. The DMV runs a separate administrative case over the license, which can suspend it before the criminal case is decided, and the California Department of Motor Vehicles keeps the driving record the conviction goes on.
The Records a DUI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the California Public Records Act.
- The court file: from the Superior Court of California, County of Kern, kept by the Superior Court clerk.
- The driving record: from the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
More on each: Kern County arrest records, Kern County police reports and Kern County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in California?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Kern County heard?
In the Superior Court of California, County of Kern, brought by the District Attorney. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at kern.courts.ca.gov/self-help/court-records.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Kern County held?
At the county jail, run by the Kern County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DUI arrest in California?
The DMV, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
How long does a DUI count as a prior in California?
10 years.
Is this the official Kern County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.