BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — After Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer abruptly ended the Open Door Network’s partnership with the Family Justice Center in January, she and her staff declined to say how they chose Bakersfield Recovery Services as a replacement.
Victims’ advocates had questions.
Among them: Did Bakersfield Recovery meet the law’s requirements to operate a victims shelter?
Through the Public Records Act, 17 News received a mountain of documents about the transition from the Open Door Network to Bakersfield Recovery Services.
Hundreds of documents, containing hundreds of emails between Zimmer’s office, the Family Justice Center staff and the Open Door Network. Most of it shows they had a good working relationship.
But one email is very telling.
On Jan. 20, a month and seven days before the DA’s office fired the Open Door Network from the Family Justice Center, Assistant District Attorney Ken Russell sent an email.
The email is to Ganesh Archarya — the CEO of Bakersfield Recovery Services.
Russell described the grants the Open Door Network was using to staff the Family Justice Center. Then he described how Bakersfield Recovery Services could get those grants.
“Our Victim Services Unit is able to train your staff on the skills necessary to operate as a nonprofit for those grants,” the email read.
But that’s not all. Russell wrote that the DA’s office could apply for a 2nd-tier sub award — part of a grant that will let the DA pay a Bakersfield Recovery employee to work at the center until the grant funding year is over.
“In the next funding year, the grants would be distributed directly to you,” Russell wrote in the email.
Supervisors table Family Justice Center staffing controversy
Russell said without ODN, the areas the DA needs assistance with is confidential case management, emergency shelter and housing, counseling and 24/7 response to law enforcement and medical facilities.
Ganesh wrote back, two days later, accepting the offer.
Russell replied, “Thank you again and I think this will be a big bonus for both organizations.”
As with Bakersfield Recovery Services, Acharya is also the CEO of the Psychiatric Wellness Center.
It is the exact place disgraced former Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner is getting mental health treatment for his felony child abuse charges, as well as allegations of molesting his preteen daughter. Scrivner is Zimmer’s nephew.
Archarya also donated $2,000 to Zimmer’s reelection campaign.
We’ve tried to interview Zimmer about the Family Justice Center, asking through a DA spokesperson multiple times. We either got no response or were told Zimmer was unable to speak on camera.
17’s reporter Andres Armenta got a chance to ask her at the Crime Victims’ Vigil in April:
Armenta: “The Family Justice Center, what is your response to the…”
Zimmer: “C’mon. We’re here tonight to talk about the Victims’ March.”
Armenta: “I know but we haven’t had the chance to talk to you yet and I think we’ve covered a good amount–“
Zimmer: “Thank you, thank you very much. We’ll see you tonight.”
Armenta: “You don’t have any comment on the Family Justice Center or your connection to it?”
Zimmer: “That was wrong.”
We asked the DA questions about this email thread, if it was normal to help nonprofits apply for grants and to bring them up to government laws in order to staff the FJC. We received no reply.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KGET 17 News.