In 1999, against the wishes of the Stayner family, Echols wrote an additional chapter about Steven's older brother Cary at the request of his publisher, which then re-published the book.[34]. He told TheSan Jose Mercury Newsthat watching his children play was like having another childhood the childhood I didnt have., Steven was bravely going about reconstructing his life,JK Miller said. Together they had two children, and he moved to work with child abduction groups, making appearances for various groups who search for missing children. "A lot of attention went to Steven we all got a little jealous," says one of the Stayner sisters in Hulu's upcoming docuseries Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story. Steven was beaten and allowed to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana. That statement later became the title of a book and movie. Parnell had also moved from one menial job to another, some of his work requiring travel and leaving Stayner unguarded, causing an adult Stayner to remark he could have easily used these absences as opportunities to flee, but was unaware how to summon help. But it wasn't until the age of 37 that he would become a murderer. Kay Stayner never gave up hope that her son would return home safely, and she was glad to see it become a reality. He had problems adjusting because, with Kenneth, there were no rules; he was used to drinking and smoking. (The other driver, Anthony Loera, actually left the scene but ultimatelyturned himself in. And there was just nothing there. Little did they know, Steven was being held at a cabin in nearby Catheys Valley. Now I had to compete with a brother and three sisters., Steven had to learn the rules, he was used to coming and going as he pleased, drinking and smoking, and suddenly that wasnt allowed. Stayner, 41, faces the death penalty for the killings of Carole Sund, 42, her daughter, Juli, 15, and their Argentine friend Silvina Pelosso, 16, while they were staying at the motel where he worked as a handyman outside Yosemite National Park in February 1999. Parnell was not charged with the numerous sexual assaults on Stayner and other boys because most of them occurred outside the jurisdiction of the Merced County prosecutor or were by then outside the statute of limitations. He convinced Mathias to lure another young boy into his car. While there's not much information about what Steven was like as a child, there is some insight to Cary's early life. ", Rowlandsreported that the then-37-year-old also said he had dreamed of killing women for 30 years and these four were "at the wrong place at the wrong time.''. When 14-year-old Steven Stayner turned up at a police station, more than seven years after he was kidnapped while walking home from school, it felt like . He was allowed to come and go virtually as he pleased, he could have fled, gotten help, but he didnt know how. Police first linked him to Armstrong's July 21 murder when his vehicle was reported to be near her cabin an hour after she was known to already be dead. Stayner, 41, faces the death penalty for the killings of Carole Sund, 42, her daughter, Juli, 15, and their Argentine friend Silvina Pelosso, 16, while they were staying at the motel where he. Click to reveal Even though missing fliers circulatedall over the place, including some of the schools Steven attended, no one evercame forward to say they recognized him. He then violently murdered all three, according to History.com. Things were pretty rough for a while, bouncing from one job to another, some would say wandering aimlessly. Then he met Jody Edmondson, and in 1985, when he was 20 and she 17, they married. Those sorts of comparisons have been used a lot in these two brothers and I started to think, is it more complicated?". "He was spunky. This dog had been given to Parnell by his mother, who was not aware of Stayner's existence during the period when he was being held by Parnell. Within a week, Steven was calling him dad. Yet Stayner also said that he had no desire to see him again.". Cary with his little brother, Steven . According to reports, Cary Stayner and Cory Stayner are Steven Stayner's two siblings. He was not kept in captivity, and in the following years, was enrolled into a number of schools where Parnell identified himself as his father. He was a good student, a good artist, and he was very lovingIf his dying would bring these people back, I'd say do it. "[23], After returning to his family, Stayner had trouble adjusting to a more structured household as he had been allowed to smoke, drink and do as he pleased when he lived with Parnell. ", HetoldNewsweek in 1984, "I returned almost a grown man and yet my parents saw me at first as their 7-year-old. At 14 years old, Steven was reunited with this parents, and became a national hero overnight. Theme: Baskerville 2 by Anders Noren. This idea was eventually rejected and the honor was instead given to another Merced resident, because Stayner's brother Cary confessed to, and was convicted of, killing four women in Yosemite in 1999; Merced city officials feared that the name "Stayner Park" would be associated with Cary rather than Steven. . Yet inanother perversely tragic twist of fate, Whitealso died young, suffering a pulmonary embolism on April 1, 2010, when he was 35. But this time hes the one who is staying strong for Kay., Delbert mourned the tragedy but expressed relief in the certainty of death. When the police checked into his background they found a previous sodomy conviction from 1951. Steven, hoping to spare another child his fate, had sabotaged so many kidnappings. Sadly, Stayners triumphant return didnt last long, as he died several years after the daring escape. FBI agent Jeff Rinek, one of the agents who arrested Cary and then spent 90 minutes in the car withhim driving to bureau headquarters in Sacramento, remembered to the San Francisco Chroniclein 2002 howthe suspect willingly talked about what happened to his brother. When she took the witness stand Thursday and was asked if she knew Yosemite killer Cary Stayner, his sister began to cry. Miller toldPeople: He was kind of a reckless kid after he came back home he wrecked a couple of cars and I talked to him about being careful, because he could kill himself. in journalism and creative writing. Parnell made Steven go by "Dennis Parnell," and as they moved from town to town in California he posed as the boy's father and enrolled him in school. Cary had been interviewedearly on in the investigationa massive undertaking involving local and federal authoritiesand ruled out as a suspect. April 22, 2022 Steven Stayner's miraculous story of escape from his kidnapper in 1980 garnered national headlines at the time. "The Abductions That Changed America", Article by Tim Bragg (staff writer) printed in the, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, List of child abuse cases featuring long-term detention, "Crash ends life scarred by childhood abduction", "Kidnapper arrested, accused of trying to buy a child", "Kidnap victim reunites with 'mystery woman', "Alleged attempt to buy child leads to arrest of kidnapper", "Stayner, serial killer Cary Stayner's brother, was abducted for 7 years - Crime Library on truTV.com", "17 Years Later, a Tv Miniseries Forces Steven Stayner to Relive the Horror of His Childhood", "Mormon News for WE 01Aug99: Stayner family's woeful history", "A Hit-and-Run Crash Ends the Life of Kidnap Victim Steven Stayner", "A Kidnapping Victim Rates The Film About His Ordeal", "OAKLAND / Child predator sentenced to 25 years to life / Steven Stayner's kidnapper tried to buy 4-year-old in Berkeley", "Sex offender Kenneth Parnell dies in Vacaville", "Ukiah Daily Journal: Timothy White, boy saved by Steven Stayner, dead at 35", "Timothy White, victim of 1980 kidnapping, dies", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Steven_Stayner&oldid=1141810053, Articles with dead external links from February 2019, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 26 February 2023, at 22:53. While adjusting to his new life at home, and being bullied in school for the abuse he experienced, Steven also had to deal with Parnell during his 1981 trial, a year after his return home. Steven Stayner testifies about his abduction in 1972 by Kenneth Parnell and his seven years in captivity in this 1981 photo. Investigator Pat Lunney said, Merced was the lead police department, and so they really mounted a large effort to search. And if I didnt take care of it now, it would just get worse, said Lori Duke, Stevens girlfriend, who only knew him as Dennis. According to The Berkeley Daily Planet, the then 11-year-old felt responsible for his brother's disappearance and felt forgotten by his parents, who were consumed by their son's kidnapping. Timmy White, the boy saved by Steven, learned of his death through his grandfather. Hulus Captive Audience takes a look at this case through the eyes of the family, including interviews with Stevens children, sister, and mother. Timothy, back home with his family, adjusted well, and things returned to normal. The sexual abuse also went on at night, until, as Steven remembered, Parnell told him he was getting too old and came home with Timothy White, the child's blond hair already dyed a darker shade. Throughout the first week, Stayner repeatedly told Parnell that he wanted to go home, to which, Parnell told him that he had been granted legal custody of him by his parents. Sister Cynthia Sartelltestified that their dad was "on a mission" after Steven disappeared, and looking for their brother consumed his time and energy, to the detriment of his other kids. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Before and after photos from space show storms effect on California reservoirs, 19 cafes that make L.A. a world-class coffee destination, Dramatic before and after photos from space show epic snow blanketing SoCal mountains, Shocking, impossible gas bills push restaurants to the brink of closures, The chance of a lifetime: Five friends ski the tallest mountain in Los Angeles, Im visiting all 600 L.A. spots on the National Register. Jody was last seen in Montana, accordin Kenneth told Steven that his parents had given him away and that his new name was Dennis. [9] Parnell began raping Stayner thirteen days later, on December 17, 1972. Parnell allowed Stayner to begin drinking at a young age and to come and go virtually as he pleased. ", Though the ready assumptionwas that Steven's sadly short lifehad been defined by his troubles, Jody said he'd been "a very happy man" of late, and they'd been living "a normal life with two beautiful kids.". That first night, Parnell molested young Steven. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. On September 17, 1989, he succumbed to head injuries after being involved in a car accident while returning home from work in his motorcycle. In addition to writing and editing entertainment news, she also spotlights the Hispanic and Latinx community through her work. White, despite losing touch with Steven and remembering little about his brief abduction, was a pallbearer at Stayners funeral. He died on April 1, 2010, at age 35 from pulmonary embolism. But for the Stayners, this seemingly closed hellish chapter of their lives turned out to beonly the first of the worst-nightmare scenarios that they faced. He was about 14 years old and had been kidnapped by Kenneth Parnell, who sexually abused him. Five months later, he killed Joie Armstrong, a Yosemite Institute employee. The driver, Antonio Loera, drove off, leaving Stayner helpless on the rain-soaked highway. He [Steven] got on with his life but he was pretty messed up,Stevens sister said in 2007. ", Kay told the jury of her surviving son,"Very seldom did he get into trouble. During this time, Parnell kidnapped another child, Timothy White, while he was on his way home from school, according to The Modesto Bee. He was at times eerily nonchalant about what happened to him and even took to making jokes about it himself. Steven refused to reveal the details of his sexual abuse and endured bullying in school for being molested. The next night, Parnell told Steven he had called his parents again, and just as the previous night, they said he could stay over. Steven Stayner got married to Jody Edmondson in 1985. [25] He joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints just before his death. Proudly powered by WordPress [1] He had three sisters and an older brother, Cary. Cary saw the attention that his brother received after returning home and their relationship was never the same, according to TIME. All three episodes ofCaptive Audience: A Real American Horror Storyare streaming now on Hulu. He had sustained a fracture at the back of his skull. It wasn't, but when Cary didn't show up for work the next day, authorities put out an APB andthe FBI arrested him at a nudist colony in Wilton, Calif. (He was wearing shorts when agents found him sitting in the camp restaurant. And so Steven made it home, Timmy was returned to his parents, and two families could breathe again. Sometimes I blame myself. JP Miller, the co-screenwriter ofI Know My First Name Is Steven,a mini-series about Stayners abduction and escape, said Steven struck him as a man unafraid of death. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. And they searched. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. Parnell was convicted first of kidnapping Timmy in June 1981, Steven tellingThe Evening Newshe was "glad" about the verdict and hadn't been worrying too much about the next trial, at which he'd be called to testify. Steven Stayner escaped Kenneth Parnell when he was 14 years old. In 1999, a proposal to name a park after him was rejected as the officials feared that 'Stayner Park' may point to his brother Cary, who had just confessed to killing four women in Yosemite. So, on December 4, 1972, Kay was supposed to pick him up from school but had stopped to pick something up from Delbert. I know my first name is Steven, I'm pretty sure my last is Stainer [sic], and if I have a middle name, I don't know it. The alleged driver of the car was later identified by witnesses. Steven Gregory Stayner was an American kidnapping victim popularly known for being abducted in Merced, California by child molester Kenneth Parnell on December 4, 1972, at the age of 7 years. He also had a small, speechless role in the TV series as one of two policemen who escort his 14-year-old self to his onscreen parents. Carole and Silvina's charredremains were found March 19 in the trunk of their burned-out rental car, which was abandoned along a utility road off the California 108 highway at the edge of the Sierra Foothills. However, prosecutors were intent on seeking the death penalty for the murders ofCarole, Juli and Silvina; he pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity but was convicted on all charges in August 2002. This caused Parnell to believe Stayner lacked the means to be an accomplice. His wife, Jody Edmondson, lashed out at Antonio for leaving the scene. I guess seven years changed him, too. AP Parnell was convicted on kidnapping and false imprisonment charges. I have covered them both in the same article. Seven-year-old, Steven Stayner lived with his parents, Kay and Delbert and his three sisters and an older brother in the small Californian city of Merced. When 14-year-oldSteven Staynerturned upat a police station, more than seven years after he was kidnapped while walking home from school, it felt like a miracle. Ukiah, California, U.S. In the epilogue to his book, Echols describes how he infiltrated NAMBLA. Parnell continued to abuse Steven for years, telling the boy that his parents weren't looking for him. [13], For a period of eighteen months, a woman named Barbara Mathias lived with Parnell and Stayner. But to see that all of these people continued to think about him and remember him, and feel so much guilt for not knowingalthough I don't know how any of them could have knownI think that was really impactful to see.". Steven Stayner (April 18, 1965 - Sept 16, 1989) was a kidnapping victim. Parnell bounced from one job to another, some requiring him to travel and leave Steven home alone. While they were lovingly raised among almond groves and peach orchards by Delbert and Kay Stayner, their lives in the farming town of Merced were unfortunately in dangerous proximity of a monster. I think my last name isStayner.". It reads: "My name is Steven Stainer [sic]. In 1975, Parnell felt he needed another boy. The FBI acknowledged at the end of March that, while they were looking closely at a few men who (unlike Cary) had criminal records, no arrests or charges were "imminent.". It really made me think about shifting sympathies. They found recordings of executives discussing proposed audience-friendly tweaks, and the Hulu series examines "both what really happened and also the way what really happened was digested and made into something with a Hollywood narrative.". A Yosemite Institute employee at 14 years old, Steven was like as a child, is... 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