This distinctive insularity has perhaps never been more evident than now. Across the state, public outcry is growing over sheriff’s deputies who beat David Sal Silva, an unarmed man who died less than an hour after his screams for help fell silent. Authorities tracked down witnesses and confiscated their cellphones. A video on one of those phones may now be missing. The case has brought the FBI to Bakersfield.
But in this city of 350,000, residents have remained largely silent.
“I think another community might really nut up over this,” said Lee Yeoman, a 73-year-old retired dentist. “We’ve gotten used to a lot here.”
Some say the muted response is due to a history of trusting law enforcement, others cite intimidation or resignation, and some say it’s just the Bakersfield way.
“We’re a cowboy town,” said a retired deputy, whose idea of a getaway is riding out of the city on his horse with a tin cup and bedroll. He gave nod to an old cowboy proverb: “Never miss a good chance to shut up.”