On Valentine's Day 1980, Steven walked out of a Mendocino County cabin with Timmy, carrying the boy when he got tired. In 1985, at the age of 20, Stayner married 17-year-old Jody Edmondson. "I knew both of them. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2009 - 2023 The Excitant Group, LLC. To be clear, Im not an advocate for incarceration as a solution or as a measure of justice in general, but! In February 1999, Carole Sund; her 16-year-old daughter, Juli Sund; and friend Silvina Pelossa, an exchange student from Argentina, were staying at the lodge. On December 4, 1972, seven-year-old Steven Stayner was on his way home from school when Ervin Edward Murphy approached him, pretending to be a dude from the church handing out gospel tracts, as one does. Steven Stayner was 7 years old when he was approached on his way home from school by a Ukiah hotel clerk named Kenneth Parnell. Lenna was just 10 or 11 years old when her mother began a relationship with Cary Stayner, a maintenance worker at the Cedar Lodge right outside of Yosemite National Park. By 1997, hed moved to the Yosemite valley and was working as a maintenance guy at a 206-room motel, Cedar Lodge. He covers news, politics, science, sports, outdoors and Bay Area history. Cary Stayner also wore a hat because he compulsively pulled his hair out. One of the people affected by the Yosemite saga was Steven's daughter, Ashley. Kenneth Parnell is shown in a June, 1981 file photo testifying at his trial for the kidnapping of a 5-year boy. At the time of the murders I was down in San Diego so I was never a suspect or interviewed by the FBI, but people wanted to rent the room that the murders took place in, they eventually turned it into a storage room. He came upon cabin where he met a 26-year-old naturalist named Joie Armstrong and brought up the topic of Bigfoot in conversation. The Autostraddle Insider Issue 103: April 2023. Steven, in a rarity for a kidnapped child, made his way back to his family after eight years of living under an assumed name and identity given by his groomer and attacker Kenneth Parnell.. I Know My First Name Is Steven is a heart-wrenching and emotionally charged true crime story that follows the life of Steven Stayner, who was kidnapped at the age of seven and held captive for seven years. Cary was arrested the same year, and in the trials that followed he was convicted of all four women's murders and sentenced to death. Whereas the film presented conflicts between Steven and his parents, Steven said his actual problems returning home were with his siblings hed lived alone and lawlessly for so long, it was difficult to share and follow family rules. Steven added that relations with his brother are still strained.. On December 4, 1972, Steven was abducted walking home from school - the beginning of a traumatizing, media-heavy journey for the Stayner family. Cary Stayner, now 57, was convicted of the murders of Armstrong, the Sunds and Pelosso, and sentenced to death for all except Armstrong's. In court, a psychiatrist called by the defense testified that the Stayner family had a long history of sexual abuse and mental illness, including a history of dysfunction dating back three generations. A doctor testified that Cary was mentally impaired. He was found sane and convicted on three counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances and one count of kidnapping. She had a very popular personal blog once upon a time, and then she recapped The L Word, and then she had the idea to make this place, and now here we all are! With glassy eyes, Ashley recounts the daily news coverage of Cary's crimes at the time, and how it was hard watching her father's legacy as a hero become overshadowed by something dark. He worked for Cedar Lodge and I work for Yosemite View Lodge. Her throat had been slashed. Friends, they did not give him a ride home! Steven Stayner was eventually reunited with his family and hailed as a hero. One was fairly violent," Flynn said. The three were murdered at Yosemite National Park in 1999 by Cary Stayner, who was sentenced to death for the crime. The two-hour special airs Friday. The day Armstrong disappeared, Cary Stayner was driving his car to Foresta when he saw the young woman. Despite Stayner being outed as a victim of sexual abuse, Parnell wasnt, ultimately, charged with any sex crimes, as under the laws of the time, they apparently wouldnt have added any significant jail time. In 2016, she was nominated for a GLAAD Award for Outstanding Digital Journalism. ", Watch "20/20's" full story, "The Black Sheep," TONIGHT at 9 p.m. After bouncing around to different places, he finally settled down in Yosemite. Cary eventually developed acute paranoia after years of consistent marijuana use, but kept on smoking regardless. But this was something, totally different," says Jody. For seven years, Steven was held captive and sexually molested by Parnell, who forced Steven to call him "Dad" and told him his parents had abandoned him. Neighbors, well-wishers, gawkers and the media crowded the street to witness the . "When Steven came home, Cary was kind of put on the back shelf. "I said, "Well, yeah. Child predator Kenneth Parnell, convicted of kidnapping Steven Stayner and paroled to Berkeley, was sentenced 25 years to life in 2004 for trying to buy a 4-year-old boy for $500. Friends and co-workers would say later that he struggled with impulses he didn't understand and was susceptible to fits of rage. Steven Stayner, 14, is flanked by his father, Delbert (left) during a press conference after Steven and a young boy escaped from a sexual predator on Valentine's Day 1980 in Ukiah, Calif. Police eventually arrested two brothers with criminal records and wrongly accused them of the crimes. Cary then spent the next few hours sexually assaulting Juli. Steven's disappearance was a . "I don't think he did it. "This family captured the imagination of the public for decades," newscaster Ted Rowlands, who covered the Stayners throughout his career, recalls in Captive Audience. It meant putting the victim through hell for a very modest increase in the sentence. Steven Stayner with his parents In their four years together, they welcomed daughter Ashley, followed by son Steven Jr. All three episodes of Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story premiere April 21 on Hulu. Steven Stayner became a household name in 1980 when he returned home after being kidnapped about seven years earlier. I always look forward to a movie or series in this genre! Hi! Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). ", 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. They shouldn't bother. Eventually, he found work doing odd jobs at the Cedar Lodge outside of Yosemite. Rape and molestation victims were seen as damaged goods, Horowitz recalled. That dream ended for Lenna in 1999, when she learned from authorities that Cary Stayner was not only responsible for the brutal slayings of four women in and near Yosemite that terrified residents and tourists, but that he'd also tried three separate times to kill her and her family. Classmates remember him as shy but a good kid who had holes in his shoes. She said he taught her and her sister how to dive, brought them illustrations and bought them toys. I always thought it odd recall it whenever it comes up of course you now tell me it was a massive hit and seen by many. At the age of 18, he married a 15-year-old girl, and they had a daughter and divorced four years later. Two months later, the police said the murder remained a mystery but also had a very involved story of exactly what they thought happened. Is the Stanley Quencher tumbler worth its TikTok hype? Murphy was actually nabbing Steven for Parnell, his co-worker at the Yosemite Lodge, whod told Murphy he wanted to raise an underprivileged child. His sexual abuse of Steven began shortly thereafter and continued throughout Stevens time living with Parnell. In 1981, Parnell was tried for the kidnappings. His death dealt another blow to the family - but not its last. The window was open, the curtain was open, and I can see inside that there was two young women and the mother and no man," Cary Stayner said in his 1999 taped confession, obtained by ABC News. For the first two or three years of his absence, she refused to leave the house unattended in case Steven called. Her work has appeared in nine books including "The Bigger the Better The Tighter The Sweater: 21 Funny Women on Beauty, Body Image & Other Hazards Of Being Female," magazines including Marie Claire and Curve, and all over the web including Nylon, Queerty, Nerve, Bitch, Emily Books and Jezebel. "He's a nice guy. In December 1990, Jesse "Jerry" Stayner, 42, Cary and Steven's uncle, was shot to death in his Merced home. The photographs were released by family members before a jury began deliberations in the murder trial of Cary Stayner. But in 1972, the family would begin a traumatizing and highly publicized journey that spanned 30 years. "One time Cindy (Stayner) and I were outside at night and he exposed himself to us. 20/20: Evil in Eden Special on Steven and Cary Stayner. More than seven years later, when Steven Stayner was 14, he and Parnell were living in Manchester along the coast of Northern California. On Dec. 4, 1972, the Stayner family's low profile permanently changed when 7-year-old Steven Stayner, the middle child, was abducted walking home from school. Hi! The entire time he was right there!". Lenna, who asked that ABC News withhold her last name, said he also taught the two how to dive. "They said they wanted to get away and wash away some bad memories.". ", Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. On July 21, 1999, 26-year-old Joie Armstrong, a park naturalist, was packing for a trip to join friends. Captive America reveals that nearly 40 million people tuned in live to watch the movie's premiere on TV, and the film was later nominated for a Golden Globe and four Emmys. "Now it's tainted, [he's] not the pure hero," Ashley says. The yearbook is owned by Jack Bungart, managing editor of the Vallejo Times-Herald, who was sports editor of The Statesman when Stayner was the cartoonist. I was really excited, I was like, 'Oh my gosh, finally.' Steph Curry killed off the Kings with a smile, On an island of resorts, this Hawaii hotel is the budget option, Low-key Cary Stayner took back seat to kidnapped brother, Why every Californian needs an air quality monitor. Girls found him attractive, but introverted and aloof. Cary Stayner became a lost soul. He was sentenced to death in December 2002 and remains on death row. (AP Photo/Juli Sund, Carrington family). A witness had also identified Cary Stayner's vehicle as being on the road where Armstrong lived around the time of the murder, so authorities went searching for him. On Monday, Cary Stayner was to be arraigned in U.S. District Court in Sacramento for the murder of Joie Armstrong, a Yosemite Institute naturalist. 3. But Steven and his mother didnt want to go through a second trial. That's fantastic. Lenna said police told her family Cary Stayner tried three times to kill them. "Cary was unwell since he was a toddler, as far as I know," Cory says. Shock was a familiar reaction in Merced, a San Joaquin Valley city about 100 miles southeast of San Francisco, where residents considered Steven Stayner a hero for escaping from a child molester in 1980, only to die in a motorcycle accident nine years later. And now this. Even as a kid, Parnell allowed Steven to drink and smoke and drive, but Steven also feared Parnell, whod brainwashed him out of attempting an escape. "I want to speak out for my family, who's been affected. Decades after the Stayner family dominated the news cycle, they are back in headlines once more following the release of Hulu's newest true crime docuseries. "Then you have Steven Stayner get kidnapped, and then he comes back and gets killed in a motorcycle accident. The Stayner family's devastating narrative, particularly the difficult lives of their two boys, Steven and Cary Stayner, is explored in the new three-part Hulu documentary series Captive Audience.' Kenneth Parnell, a guy who operated at the Yosemite Lodge in Steven's birthplace of Merced, California, abducted Steven when he was seven years old . His helmet had supposedly been stolen days before. Overshadowed All His Life, by Stacy Finz and Meredith May for San Francisco Gate (1999) About Carys life and history prior to the murders. Stayner was voted "Most Creative" by fellow students. Strength said Cary Stayner's arrest has stunned the community. asked Lisa Hansell, then Cedar Lodge restaurant general manager. They . He brought the girls illustrations he'd drawn himself and bought them a new Beanie Baby, a popular toy in the '90s, each time he'd see them, she said. Cary Stayner, Steven's older brother, was behind the Yosemite murders that rocked the small farming town of Merced, California in 1999. Silvina Pelosso, a friend of the Lunds from Argentina, was Cary Stayner's second victim at the Cedar Lodge. On the night after Valentine's Day 1999, Cary knocked on the door of the lodge's room 509, saying he had to make a plumbing repair. Cary Stayner's high school 1979 yearbook photo. Juli Sund was found later that month after Cary Stayner anonymously sent a map and note to authorities, telling them where to find her body. After Armstrong was reported missing, authorities went to her cabin and found debris -- broken sunglasses as well as a red mechanics hat -- and tire tracks. 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"He just didn't set off any alarm bells," said former reporter Christine Hanley. The obvious question is whether what happened to Steven caused Cary to do what he did," Flynn said. Would I have been better off if I didnt? Undoubtedly, Steven was carrying around so much unprocessed trauma, its a wonder he was making it through the day at all. Speaking to the FBI, Cary Stayner admitted to killing Armstrong and the three women at Cedar Lodge but he also caught agents unaware, telling them about Lenna and her sister and mother. When authorities realized who Steven was the Stayners were called to come see him, and the grand reunion was met with fanfare. Cary Stayner had a tough childhood before he made his move to Cedar Lodge, where he'd eventually unleash a rage that had been simmering for years, according to people close to him. For seven years, Steven Stayner lived with Parnell, moving from one city to another, as the man sexually abused him. Jesse Houtz, co-owner of Cedar Lodge Restaurants, said Cary Stayner would hang out at the bar, but often kept to himself. One brother, Steven, was the victim of a . It highlights the importance of timely intervention and support for victims of abuse and trauma. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Whatever damage that had [been] inflicted on Cary, I think he kept to himself. It took me so long to move past that and see that these were pretty extraordinary happenings that were mostly coincidentally connected to each other. Cary Stayner was convicted in the 1999 murders of 42-year-old Carole Sund, her 15-year-old daughter Juli, their 16-year-old family. The description is echoed by Cary Stayner's co-workers and friends at the Cedar Lodge near Yosemite Valley, where he lived and worked as a handyman. Click here to make sure you get the news. At the time when I was up there I had just graduated from high school, I had no idea at that time that something had happened to his brother prior. Steven Stayner (April 18, 1965 - Sept 16, 1989) was a kidnapping victim. Steven, then 14, unexpectedly turned up at a police station in Ukiah several hours north of Merced alongside another missing boy, 5-year-old Timmy White. ", Thus began a seven-year ordeal in which Parnell held and sexually molested Stayner, forcing the boy to call him. Cary, his older brother, was one of three sisters he had. Steven Stayner (front right) pictured with his older brother, Cary (center). "He was right under everyone's nose. Soon after, two of the women's bodies were discovered in a charred vehicle, and later, the third victim was found dead. Mike Echolss book about the kidnapping of Steven Stayner, I Know My First Name is Steven, was considered by the Parnell family to be pornographic, dwelling in lurid details. (AP Photo by The Modesto Sleet was falling when an old Buick pulled up next to him as he walked home from school. Bee), Juli Sund, the teenage daughter of Carole Sund, was sexually assaulted and then driven by Cary Stayner along with the bodies of her mother and friend to a wooded area near the Don Pedro Reservoir. One December afternoon in 1972, 7-year-old Steven . The night before the Emmys broadcast, Stayner was hit by a car on his motorcycle on his way home from work and died of fatal head injuries.14-year-old Timmy White was a pallbearer at his funeral.
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