at california's kern valley state prison, the grooming tools are racially coded., blacks, hispanics and others, those are asians and pacific islanders. >> before you take it out, you have to check with the officers to make sure all the pieces in there. and after the job done, when you turn it in, they have to check it again. have to check again. they don't have to worry about, you know, what's missing and what's not. >> this inmate, a native of cambodia, only services the others, like this fellow cambodian. >> i give haircut by inmates assigned to other slot. he cut the other's hair. we are the minority of the prison. we're the smallest group in the prison. >> could a white barber cut your haircut or a black barber cut your hair? >> no. i mean, if you're really cool with the person, yeah. but i prefer to be cut by my own people. to be safe is better, stick to our own. >> safe. and well groomed. >> he's good because he did that as his profession on the street. so we got one real barber here in prison. so we got one real barber here >>> msnbc takes you behind the wa

a fact dramatically illustrated during our visit to kern valley state prison in california. >> it's always work, work, work. you know? >> when we met james randall, he was working his prison job, helping officers serve food to his fellow inmates. when we sat down to talk in his cell, randall seemed to only have one concern. how his shaved head looked on camera. >> there ain't no lint on my head or nothing. >> want some gel. >> if it ain't light enough i'll some baby oil on it and it will be shining like new money. >> you look good. >> when you interview people in prison, you know they're in there for a good reason. when you meet him, sometimes they're very likable, they could be somebody you might even think you could be friends with. sometimes you end up hearing a jaw-dropping story. the day we met james randall, we heard a jaw-dropping story. >> i originally came to jail february 21st, 1981. i was convicted in san bernardino county for murder and robbery. >> given a sentence of 34 years to life, randall was 18 at the time of his conviction. but his rap sheet started much earlier. >> i've

. >> at kern valley state prison in california, we met inmate aaron yost who participates in another illegal yet very common practice behind bars. tattooing. out what i am, what all this is, what it's all about. you know, the deeper thinking philosophy, i guess you would say. >> i got a couple of females down here on the old legs. bull whips. kind of into that s&m thing, you know. that's my thing. >> this tattoo right here is the joker as a representation of me. the women is a representation of my way or the highway. you know, i mean that was my thoughts in dealing with women and relationships. this is the madness. this is me on crack. that's me. that's before i learned to manage my problem, that was me. >> this is a memorial to my mom. she passed away while i was in here. of course, you know what the word "deviate" means. straying from the norm, other than the standard. and this is kind of like me back in the day. and this is me pulling my own strings. you know, it's like i made -- i became a puppet to myself. >> the tear represents several different things. it can represent gang me

. >>> on the first day of production at california's kern valley state prison our producers set out ton deal with the monotony of being locked in their cells 23 hour as day. they pass reading materials and other items to each other through a process called fishing. >> go ahead. take off. >> though fishing is against prison rules, inmate, tracy washington, was willing to demonstrate how to make a fishing line. >> you get the string made out of the waistband of our boxer. we take the string apart and then we put a little piece of plastic as a weight and we slide it across the floor like this. they might come in here and take my line now that they know i've got it. but i'll make another one. >> shoot it out. >> but our producer was about to find out that there was a far more dramatic story surrounding inmate, washington. >> i was on suicide watch last week and i just came back last week. >> why? what happened? >> they was trying to send me somewhere i didn't want to be. >> so what did you do? >> i cut my wrist with a razor blade. >> washington went on to explain that he cut his wrist to p

. >> we met officer epperson at the kern valley state prison in california. armed only with pepper spray and a baton, he's the lone officer responsible for supervising the inmate kitchen staff. >> i have six, seven inmates back here now. i've got one sitting on the line. granted, i got four, five cops outside that door. that door's locked. there's only one dude out there with the key. you have to trust them to a certain extent. they have no reason to assault me. unless they're totally pissed off or i disrespect them. >> among the inmates epperson places his trust in is the number two cook, carter hill. >> tell me what your sentence is. >> murder. >> you're here for murder? what's your sentence? >> 51 to life. >> you know, it's interesting. sometimes there's this dynamic in prison when you're interviewing somebody, if there's a corrections officer and an inmate together, they'll pretty much watch their ps and qs. they'll tell you into the camera what the other guy wants to hear. but when we met carter hill, we got some real brutal honesty that day in the kitch

. >> we met earl hymer at california's kern valley state prison. >> i have a 37-year sentence. lewd acts on a minor, 14 years old. >> this was not hymer's first time in prison nor his first sex offense. >> my wife deemed it necessary that i be arrested for attempted rape of your wife, as weird as that sounds. you come home drunk and try and take it, and she doesn't want it. that's still a criminal offense. >> hymer lives in the prison's protective custody wing. ironically during his first prison term, he was one of the inmates who targeted sex offenders. >> you know, i've participated in helping hunt for child molesters, you know. well, this guy he's a child molester and this is a child molester, and you catch him out in the yard and you go through his stuff and read his paperwork and see what he's really here for, you know? then, yes, he is, or, no, he's not. >> then what? >> well, generally somebody will catch him in a day room or tv room or whatever and punch him in the mouth, tell him to roll it up now. and if he blinks twice or hesitates just a little bit, like i was sayin

kern county. residents of squirrel valley are returnin >>> one wildfire that spread quickly burned more than 1700 acres across kern county. residents of squirrel valley are returning to piles of ash where their homes once stood. for some, only the chimney remains standing. the county held a meeting yesterday to spearhead debris removal efforts. for those whose homes were spared, they say it's all thanks to a little planning. >> for probably two months out of the year, 2 1/2 months, we weed-eat the whole thing right to the ground. >> cal fire estimates that 93% of the fire is now contained. >>> because of a massive multi- alarm fire in emeryville yesterday, the cause is under investigation, crews have a lead on the cause. fireworks. some neighbors say they heard illegal fireworks going off around the same time the fire sparked. chopper 5 was over the flames on san pablo avenue near the border with oakland. the six-alarm fire spread to nearby townhouses. the destruction was so out of control, cate caugiran shows us firefighters brought in a drone >>> reporter: with a fire this big, can take more tha

. >>> there are at least two wildfires in kern county. 200 acres in bear valley and threatening 100 homes. some people have been told to evacuate and now the fire has zero containment. the other kern county fire has burned 48,000 acres near lake isabella and that fire is 85% contained. in solano county firefighters worked to put out a grass fire last night along i-680. it started before 7 pm near marsh view road. it burned got 13 acres no one was hurt. >>> wildfires threat remains high through the state through august because some arrangement not be as consistent. the chance of a significant fire is also my because of the drought as well as dry grass and trees. the risk will go down in september. >>> we're learning more about the victim of this week's unprovoked stabbing inside a movie theater in santa rosa. these are new pictures of adam lucero courtesy of the santa rosa press democrat. he had just graduated from cal poly san luis obispo with a business degree and had a job set up for later this month. he also reports the attack apparently happened after he got up to use the restroom. th

. >>> more than 1700 acres have been burned across kern county since a wildfire sparked last week. squirrel valley are reduced to rubble. now all that stands are chimneys. it looks like the worst may be over. cal fire estimates that 93% of the flames are contained. the county held a meeting yesterday to spearhead debris removal efforts. >>> and fire crews in emeryville are still trying to figure out what caused this six- alarm blaze. this was the scene yesterday. some neighbors say that they heard illegal fireworks going off. and then it may have landed on top of the building. chopper 5 was overhead. flames expanded to nearby townhouses. it was so bad yesterday that firefighters had to deploy their latest tool, drones. the heat sensor technology fed back images to crews on the ground. with those images, firefighters were able to concentrate on hot spots and avoid flames spreading. the technology also keeps ground crews safe by giving them an extra set of eyes. >> that's a good use of drones right there to help firefighters out there, right? >> because they deployed it themselves, they knew where i

. >>> a wildfire in kern county is threatening 400 structures. the deer fire is burning near bear valley springs. it broke out yesterday. voluntary evacuation orders have been issued. more than 500 fire crews have been assigned to the blaze. >>> firefighters continue to battle a wildfire. the trailhead fire has scorched more than 3300 acres and forced ma mandatory evacuations. >> i think it's really important for the public to realize, if they see or smell smoke and it's bothering them, it's a good idea to stay inside. >> the fire is now 12% contained. 2,000 fire crews are battling the fire which began on tuesday. >>> a holocaust survivor and beloved author has passed away. still ahead, a look at the life and legacy of ellie weissle. >>> plus, we'll tell you how to find legal fireworks in the bay area. >>> and the closed door meeting between hillary clinton and the fbi today that could shape the race for the white house, wh >>> this is "abc7 news." >>> holocaust survivor and nobel laureate elie wiesel has died. he was once called a messenger to man kind. cecilia vega looks back on his li

valley. and some people in el dorado county are under mandatory evacuation orders at this point. the cause is still under investigation. in kern county, firefighters are reporting that the most destructive fire ever is 95% contained. the erskin fire started two weeks ago near lake isabella and spread across 48,000 acres. two people were killed. 300 homes and other structures were destroyed. and investigators are looking into the cause of the fire. >>> 4:39 is the time. and golden state warriors fans, they are welcoming a former mvp. coming up at 5:00, reaction to kevin durant's decision to leave oklahoma city. and what his announcement means for the makeup of the warriors. >> but first -- >> a day of celebration. with a message. the fourth of july sit-in calling for responsible gun legislation. >> good morning. we are looking at a morning commute. and we have had an update on one of the crashes we have been following. and the bay bridge crash is quickly cleared up. and traffic has quickly recovered. >> well, strong delta breeze, gusts to 37, 32 at the altamont pass, and cooler pattern it looks like this week. more on that comi

kern county has spread to 1800 acres. it's now threat knowing 300 structures. the deer fire is burning near bear valleyprings about 50 miles southeast of bakersfield, it was sparked friday. voluntary evacuation orders have been issued. more than 500 crews are on the line. this fire, 40% contained. >>> firefighters also continue to battle a wild fire burning near the american river in eldorado and placer counties, the trail head fire has scorched 3,000 acres and forced mandatory evacuations. air quality officials are asking people to take precautions because of the smoke. >> i think it's important for the public to realize, if they see and smell smoke or it's bothering them or the smell is more than they are used to, it's a good idea to then stay inside. >>> that fire is still 12% contained. 2 thousand crews are battling the fire that began tuesday. let's get a check of the weather forecast. here is lisa. >> going for a high in the low 60s. another eight degrees of warming and the sun trying to come out, and most of you enjoying more sunshine. we will tell you about the holiday weekend and the further c

. >>> the kern county wildfire has burned through more than 1700 acres since it sparked last friday. residents of squirrel valleyve rubble where their homes once stood, some have only a chimney. yesterday the county held a meeting to spearhead debris removal efforts. but it looks like the worst of it is over. cal fire estimates that 93% of that fire is contained. >>> speaking of fires, this was the scene yesterday in emeryville. the fire broke out at a new apartment construction site an san pablo avenue near macarthur boulevard. the six-alarm blaze spread to homes and a nearby business. firefighters deployed drones with special image heat sensor technology to locate problem areas. >> we were able to sense hot spots and able to verify that embers hadn't spread to other locations. and also, make sure that the firefighters were safe down on the scene. >> these images were live streamed to the fire command post for hours as firefighters worked to douse the flames. >>> kids in southern california are embarking on a one month challenge that gets them off the couch and active on the playground. >> this is cool. it's al

valley and volcanoville. but none has been damaged. some el dorado county residents are under mandatory evacuation orders. the cause is under in mitigation. >>> now we go to kern county and firefighters reporting their most destructive fire in that county ever is now almost fully contained at 95%. the erskine fire broke out 12 days ago near lake isabella and has spread across 48,000 acres. you may recall that two people were killed and almost 300 homes and other structures destroyed. investigators also tonight looking into the cause of this fire. >>> to the weather now, slightly lower temperatures, always good news for firefighters as we take a look at the foggy conditions right now. in san francisco, let's go over to bill in the weather center for the latest on all of what the weather is going to be like for the holiday festivities. >> yeah. let's do that again, on the live camera, you can see the fog coming across, fireworks now, coming across the bay, you can already see, it's up getting high and deep, up over a couple thousand feet deep, so this layer as it comes in, fireworks will go off underneath. you knew that of course. it will be cool out there. but

valley and volcanoville. they are under mandatory evacuation orders. >>> and firefighters have announced they have the erskine fire 95% contained. this fire is burning near lake isabella. it's the most destructive five in kern county's history. 48,000 acres have burned. investigators are looking into the cause. >>> 7:24. authorities are looking for a domestic violence suspect who escaped from gilroy police during a standoff. the 41-year-old is wanted for felony domestic violence. police responded to an argument at a home on rancho hills drive yesterday about noon. they ordered the people to come out, but only the victim and another person left the house. while police were surrounding the home, the suspect snuck out the back door. police say they did recover a weapon at the home. now, here is his photo. if you have any information of where he is, call the police. >>> 7:25. certainly fireworks can dazzle a crowd, but they can be rough on your pets. how you can keep your pets happy and bella, in dave's case, keep them calm during tonight's fireworks shows. >>> outside our doors this morning a partly to mostly cloudy sky. we will be mostly clear away from the coastline today. we will check in on the current con

valley and volcano phil, but none have been damaged. some el dorado county residents are under mandatory evacuation orders, but the cause of this fire is also under the station. >>> now we head to kernwhere firefighters are reporting their -- the most destructive fire ever is now 95% contained. the erskine fire broke out 12 days ago near lake isabella and has spread across 48,000 acres. two people were killed and almost 300 homes and other structures destroyed. investigators also looking into what sparked that fire. >>> back here in the bay area, slightly cooler weather, a good thing for firefighters but let's go back to bill in the weather center. to really dive in the forecast. >> that sit-in zach lee. you about the fires from earlier, we're not really talking about fires today which traditionally temperatures in the 90s, one or two brushfires, knock on wood, but this pattern is such that the fire danger is less than it typically would be this time of year especially on the fourth of july which is important to have it. you'll need a jacket out at christie field and alameda beach fireworks. but the upside to that is we're seeing higher fuel moisture's, higher humidity, cooler tempe