Overview

• Kern County prosecutors have filed pending assault charges against Anita Doran for allegedly beating fellow inmate Graciela Bustamante inside Lerdo Correctional Facility.
• By August 15, outpouring from strangers had filled Doran’s commissary account to its transaction limit, preventing further deposits.
• Doran, who is held on unrelated vehicle theft and evading charges with $70,000 bail, told local outlets that the stepmother’s case “hit close to home” because of her own young cousin.
• Authorities confirmed that Bustamante was hospitalized after the jailhouse attack and has since returned to custody while facing first-degree murder charges alongside her husband, Ray Mata Jr.
• Both the homicide case and the new in-custody assault matter remain open as officials continue gathering evidence and preparing formal charges.