The Region - News from May 1, 1987

The Kern County Health Department said four female prostitutes who tested positive for the AIDS virus are continuing to work the streets of Bakersfield and are suspected of having infected at least three of their customers, but police have taken no action even though the situation was explained to them. Medical researcher Dave Martin, who conducted the tests, said state law threatens officials who know someone who has AIDS with stiff penalties if they disclose that person’s identity, so the county cannot warn potential customers of specific prostitutes who are infected. A police spokeswoman said the department would have no comment on the report, which appeared in Wednesday editions of The Bakersfield Californian.