The trailer for Investigation Discovery's true crime docuseries The Bakersfield 3: A Tale of Murder and Motherhood—a three-part series based on Marie Claire's 2022 feature "Of Murder and Motherhood"—has finally landed.
The original story, written by Katya Cengel, profiled three mothers in Bakersfield, California, who were united in their search for their missing or murdered children. The first chapter of the docuseries will premiere on Sunday, May 11 on Max.
For her Marie Claire story, Cengel interviewed Diane "Di" Byrne, whose 38-year-old son James Kulstad was shot to death in April 2018; Jane Parrent, whose daughter Baylee Despot, then 20, disappeared in March 2018; and Cheryl Holsonbake, whose son Micah Holsonbake, then 34, went missing that same month and was later found to have been murdered. Together, James, Baylee, and Micah became known as the Bakersfield 3, or BK3.
In the wake of these tragedies and their conviction that the events were somehow connected, Byrne, Holsonbake, and Parrent came together to find answers about what exactly had happened to their children. They were "stronger together," Jane told Marie Claire.
In her story, Cengel introduced readers to each woman and her child. There was quiet, maternal Di and surf-obsessed James, who became addicted to drugs after being hit by a car in 2007 and prescribed opioids. There was "organized, nurturing, and angry" Cheryl and high-achieving Micah, who enlisted to serve his country in 2003, but eventually became addicted to drugs after a surgery. There was reserved, industrious Jane and girly, animal-loving Baylee, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at 20 and survived an overdose.
Baylee was also charged in absentia for the murder of Micah, along with Matthew Queen, the man she was living with at the time.
The Marie Claire investigation told the story of the women's unbreakable bond forged in unthinkable circumstances, and the work they did not only to bring justice for their families but to help fight crime throughout the county through their Bakersfield 3 charity. The moms "[advocate] for so much more than just their own families," as James' daughter Camryn put it.
Now, the Investigation Discovery documentary promises to shed further light on this complicated case—three years on from Marie Claire's report, and following Di's sad passing from ovarian cancer in April 2024. The newly released trailer contains testimonies from all three mothers and follows them on their continued search for the truth.
"When your kid is missing, it doesn't come with a handbook on what to do," Jane says in the video.
"These aren't just three grieving mothers; these are mothers that are in the middle of a full-blown investigation," says local crime reporter Olivia LaVoice, who now hosts a podcast about the case.
Part one, titled "One Mystery—or Three?," premieres at 8/7c. Part two, titled "The Boogieman of Bakersfield," premieres at 9/8c. And part three, titled "Fights Like a Mother," premieres at 10/9c.
