[21] Stayner remembered the kindness "Uncle" Murphy had shown him in his first week of captivity while they were both under the influence of Parnell's manipulation, and he believed that Murphy was as much Parnell's victim as he and Timmy were. He rode a motorcycle to work, but his manager suggested he take the franchises pickup truck home so he could stay dry. I dont believe that it was my brother who committed such things, Sartell said as the defense presented his three sisters in an effort to spare his life. Cary at 6, watching television from the couch. Both actors reflecton the stranger-than-fiction chain of events inCaptive Audience, as well asread Steven and Cary's own words from interview transcripts. Dimmock credited Ashley"and her really trusting inthe weird process of going back over a story that ultimately has been told a lot of times, but digging some new things up and starting again," for helping the series come together with fresh insight from the family. Motivated in part by the young boy's distress, Stayner decided to return the boy to his parents. He was third of five children of his parents and had an elder brother Cary and three sisters. Timmy White, the boy saved by Steven, learned of his death through his grandfather. 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. Much of the testimony that the defense has tried to introduce, such as the molestation of one of Stayners sisters by their father, has been barred because of objections by the prosecution. She said her father became obsessed with finding the youngster, who was held and sexually abused by a kidnapper for seven years. Steven Stayner was the third of five children born to Delbert and Kay Stayner in Merced, California. It was then that Steven's nightmare began as Murphy brought him to Kenneth Parnell, a known pedophile. Jody said (perThe Spokesman-Review): Im very, very, very angry. Steven, hoping to spare another child his fate, had sabotaged so many kidnappings. In early 1989, he helped in the production of a miniseries on his life, 'I Know My First Name is Steven', which was initially broadcast on NBC in May that year. But her strength is waning now. "But he was pretty messed up and he never got any counseling. The next night, Parnell told Steven he had called his parents again, and just as the previous night, they said he could stay over. Dena. Steven's father, Delbert Stayner, died on April 9, 2013, at his home in Winton, California. The next day, Steven was told that his parents had given him up, that they couldnt afford so many children (Steven was one of five children), and they didnt want him anymore. [6], Acting on instructions from Parnell, Murphy passed out gospel tracts to boys walking home from school that day[6][7] and, after spotting Stayner, claimed to be a church representative seeking donations. For the sexual assaults carried out in Mendocino County, prosecutors chose not to prosecute. This case just breaks my heart And the whole story about his big brother, too. Its late and dark when they arrive, and Timothy cant remember where he lives, so they went to the police. On September 17, 1989, he succumbed to head injuries after being involved in a car accident while returning home from work in his motorcycle. White eventually became a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Deputy. I know my first name is Steven, he told the police. When he didnt make it home a few hours later, the family went to the police. One December afternoon in 1972, 7-year-old Steven had been walking home in Merced, California, when he was coaxed into a stranger's car with the promise of a ride home. The alleged driver of the car was later identified by witnesses. ), "I'm very, very, very angry,"his wife Jody, then 21, told a reporter for Knight Ridder that night. Parents Del and Kay, brother Cary and his three sisterswelcomed him back into the fold, but readjusting wasn't easyfor any of them. The attempt was a failure. Mike Echols, who wrote the manuscript for the series, later published a book with the same title in 1991. I feel bad for him,White said. Parnell, along with Murphy, took Steven to a cabin in Catheys Valley, where he was brainwashed to believe his parents no longer wanted him. But the family has since dealt with several tragedies along the way, including Steven's death and his older brother's incarceration for murder. "It's a lot to imagine that any one family could undergo,"Jessica Dimmock, director of the three-part docuseries Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story, now streaming on Hulu, told E! Furthermore, Steven had saved a then 5-year-old Timothy White from the same fate, escaping from the cabin where they were kept. in journalism and creative writing. In April 2022, Hulu released a limited true-crime docuseries "Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story" following the life of Stayner and his family and how the kidnapping impacted their lives. "It happened to me, and I didn't want to see it happen to anybody else.". I don't know sometimes if I should have come home. The teen, by then 5-foot-10 and barely resembling the little boy who disappeared, haddecided he had to escape inorder to save his abductor's latest victim, 5-year-old Timothy White, who was taken not far from his elementary school inUkiah, Calif.about 200 miles away from Mercedon Feb. 14, 1980. In an interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, his sister, Cory, said He got on with his life. He took a job at a local Pizza Hut, and on Saturday, September 16, 1989 a heavy rain fell. At 14 years old, Steven was reunited with this parents, and became a national hero overnight. 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.". Steven eventually escaped after Kenneth abducted another boy named Timmy White. During this time, he was working at Pizza Hut and later joined 'The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints'. He was 79 years old. 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. He then violently murdered all three, according to History.com. Here are 10 you cant miss, I-5 closed through Grapevine as last wave of winter storm hits Southern California, Dictators and criminals fear this USC instructor whos making the case for an Oscar, Photos: Mountain communities buried in snow | More on the way, Prosecutor in controversial Hannah Tubbs case suspended for misgendering defendant, Environmentalists sue to overturn San Diego County climate plan. Kay and Delbert Stayner married in 1960 and had five children together. Parents today are very protective of their children, and for good reason. In high school, Cary was known for being creative, but he couldn't escape Steven's story. Cary pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for killing Armstrong. Cary was 11 years old at time, and deeply upset about his brother's disappearance. On March 1, 1980, after two weeks, Steven had had enough. Around the time Steven disappeared, they lived in an area with lots of children. Featuring interviews with family members, someof whom are speaking in depth for the first time, the show delves into the aftermath of Steven's abduction, the retelling of his story in theindelibly titled1989 miniseries I Know My First Name Is Steven, and the unraveling of his older brother Cary Stayner, who's currently on death row. Stevens drivers license had been suspended, and didnt want to risk an accident in the company truck, so he declined the offer. And so Steven made it home, Timmy was returned to his parents, and two families could breathe again. AP Parnell was convicted on kidnapping and false imprisonment charges. The Mendocino County prosecutors, acting almost entirely alone, decided not to prosecute Parnell for the sexual assaults that occurred in their jurisdiction. They were last seen alive Feb. 15 eating dinner at the hotel restaurant. All rights reserved. I always looked very closely in hopes of spotting Steven.". Steven told him she would probably want to, and the men offered him a ride home. Their mother, Kay, knew Cary to be "artistic, seldom in trouble and quiet," according to The Berkeley Daily Planet. The next day, on March 2nd, both the boys were reunited with their respective families and Parnell was arrested. . "How does that change the way we think about responsibilityand does it bring us into an uncomfortable place?". For Steven though, the adjustment was a little more difficult. In 1981, Parnell was tried and convicted of kidnapping both White and Stayner in two separate trials and was sentenced to seven years in jail, even though he was released on parole after five years. Steven later admitted to sabotaging the efforts. ", 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.''. Initially wanted as an eyewitness, Cary was confronted by police in July of 1999, and ended up confessing to all four murders. [25][28], On September 16, 1989, Stayner sustained fatal head injuries while on his way home from work when his motorcycle collided with a car[28][29] in a hit-and-run accident. I never recognized either one of them.". They hitchhiked to Ukiah. According to our findings, little is known about Cory; nevertheless, Cary Stayner, popularly known as The Yosemite Killer, was condemned over 20 years ago for the 1999 killings of four people while serving as a motel handyman in California. That first night, Parnell molested young Steven. Born on April 18, 1965, Steven Stayner was the third of five children born to Delbert and Kay Stayner. [17], On March 1, 1980, while Parnell was away at his night security job, Stayner left with White and hitchhiked into Ukiah. [24] In an interview with Newsweek shortly after his escape, Stayner said, "I returned almost a grown man and yet my parents saw me at first as their 7-year-old. Particular attention was paid to how the events impacted the life of Cary Stayner. Insisting to police that he "wasn't mistreated the boy clearly has conflicting thoughts about his captor," the article notes. "I don't think he should be executed because he's sick. (There was some impressively stiff competition that year, sothe best miniseries honorwent toWar and Remembrance, which also beat outLonesome Dove. He also convinced the little boy that his parents could not afford raising so many children and as such did not want him anymore. After he failed to find Timmy's parents, he decided to lead the young boy into the police station to get help, as he was not attempting an escape for himself. 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. The parents of five, who had kept all the presents their son never got to open after going missing a few weeks before Christmas in 1972, ultimatelygot their wish thanks to Steven's bravery. Together they had two children, and he moved to work with child abduction groups, making appearances for various groups who search for missing children. Today, the idea of a 7-year old walking home from school alone is almost unheard of. I got put on the back burner, you might say," Cary told J.P. Miller, a filmmaker who wrote a screenplay about Steven's abduction. 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. 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