What was his cause of death? However, none of them panned out. Kenneth Eugene Parnell was born in Amarillo, Texas[1][2] to Cecil Frederick and Mary Olive (ne Pollard) Parnell, during the region's dust bowl era during the Great Depression. He was held by his abductor 38 miles away in Mariposa County, California, and later in Mendocino County, California, until he was aged 14, when he managed to escape with another of Parnell's victims, Timothy White. However, his brother Cary also suffered throughout the entire ordeal. . ? When Steven didnt make it home from school, his parents sounded the alarm. He told Hartman that his parents "didnt change that much," but his brother and sisters, "they changed a lot. ", "He stated that he felt like jumping in a truck, driving it through the shop and killing the boss and killing everybody in the office, and then torching the place," friend Mark Marchese said in 1999. This is the story of a seven-year-old boy named Steven Stayner. Stayner was lured into the vehicle and abducted. He worked odd jobs delivering food, doing security, and packing meat in a factory until he met Jody Edmondson, whom he married in 1985 when he was 20. I heard stories about him going out and wishing on a star, that his brother would come home.. Read More: Where is Kay Stayner Now? Stayner's wife, Jodi, who The Spokesman-Review reported married Steven when she was 16, said he was her first love and the couple met in high school. Accident or not, someone lost their life. "There wasnt really much time for us to speculate on whether this was related, I mean it quickly became related," said Des Kidd, former medical director at Yosemite who participated in search and rescue. In February 1980, Parnell kidnapped his next victim, five-year-old Timothy White. Date Of Death: September 16, 1989 Cause Of Death: N/A Ethnicity: White Nationality: American Steven Stayner was born on the 18th of April, 1965. I suspect this death is what caused Cary to snap, too, so theres more lives ruined because of the hit and run driver. Parnell worked at a nearby lodge, and on Dec. 4, 1972, he convinced co-worker Ervin Murphy to accompany him into Merced, per ABC News. In addition to participating in the abuse of Stayner, she attempted to help Parnell kidnap a boy who was a member of the Santa Rosa Boys' Club. He was sentenced to a total of 25 years in prison. According to SFGate, his friends and coworkers described him as being impulsive and prone to seemingly abrupt and violent fits of rage. "I heard stories about him going out and wishing on a star, that his brother would come home.". Then, Del served in the US Army for four years until 1957 as a Staff Sergeant. In 2005, Timothy landed a job as a Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy, according to the New York Times. However, he was convicted in Utah and was not known as a criminal in California. On the afternoon of December 4, 1972, 7-year-old Steven Stayner was walking home from school in Merced, California, when he was approached by a man passing out religious pamphlets. Shortly after Steven's death, an uncle with whom Cary Stayner was very close was shot and killed in a home they shared together. Yes, they're related because Cary is Steven's older brother; they're also related because Steven's bumpy return to the Stayner family, as well as his untimely death in 1989, could have . 1 reference. "He was spunky. After convincing the boy his parents did not want him anymore, he changed his name to Dennis Parnell. On March 1, 1980, in Mendocino County, California, he and Timothy White, another of Parnell's victims, managed to flee. When he returned, Stayner was constantly in the public eye, and he struggled with returning to his normal life after being kept captive for seven years. The devastation of losing their son twice within 10 years was excruciating for Steven Stayner's parents. The Stayners suggested that one park could be called Stayner Park, in memory of Steven. When he was 24, he died in a hit-and-run motorcycle accident. He befriended a co-worker named Ervin Murphy to assist him in a vile act that would shake the family forever. He said, 'I want you to get a hold of some producers in Los Angeles. Here is all you want to know, and more! Shulze, of Oak Park, California, earned Academic All-Big Ten honors for the 2020 and 2021 cross country seasons, as well as 2021 for track. Marshal from the Fresno County Jail in Fresno, Calif., Aug. 6, 1999 on his way to an arraignment in federal court. Steven Stayners fame was short-lived. [9] Weeks afterward, Stayner escaped Parnell's house with White; he later said he did not want the boy to suffer the abuse that he had endured. 3. But for the Stayners, this seemingly closed hellish chapter of their lives turned out to be . [3] Parnell was raised mostly without his father, who abandoned the family when Parnell was six. Unfortunately, less than a decade after his incredible escape, Steven Stayner died in a motorcycle accident at the age of 24, leaving behind a wife and two children. A family was torn apart. Soon after, he confessed to murdering Carole Sund, Juli Sund and Silvina Pelosso. In 1997, Stayner got a job as a handyman at the Cedar Lodge, seven miles from the gate of the national park. American sex offender, child rapist and kidnapper (19312008), Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Youth Abducted Seven Years Ago Goes Home Again", "Alleged attempt to buy child leads to arrest of kidnapper", "Sex Offender Kenneth Parnell Dies in Vacaville", "Steven and Cary Stayner: The tale of two brothers' horror and heroism", "Kenneth Parnell, kidnapper of Steven Stayner, dies at 76", "Kenneth Eugene Parnell, A Notorious Child Molester Dies In Prison", abducted man posing pastor launched-daring-escape, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kenneth_Parnell&oldid=1133639900, American people convicted of child sexual abuse, American people who died in prison custody, Prisoners who died in California detention, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from May 2022, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 14 January 2023, at 20:40. Stayner was stolen on December 4, 1972, in Merced, California, by child molester Kenneth Parnell. He had been under hospice care for some time. Stayner died in 1989 of injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.[12]. "Cary was very upset," childhood friend Mike Marchese told ABC News in a 1999 interview. Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. At the time, Parnell was convicted for kidnapping and false imprisonment. I guess seven years changed him, too. The Famous People reports Parnell then took the boy to a remote cabin near Catheys Valley, California. Watch: The Truth Behind Our Obsession With True Crime Stories. Kenneth Eugene Parnell (September 26, 1931 January 21, 2008) was an American convicted sex offender, child rapist, and kidnapper infamously known for perpetrating the abductions of 7-year-old Steven Stayner and 5-year-old Timothy White in Merced, California. Our days would be-- just get on our bikes in the morning and go to the park. Stayner died in 1989 in a motorcycle accident while driving home from work. Overnight, Steven Stayner became a national hero, especially as Kenneth Parnell was arrested the very next day March 2, 1980. "But he was unable to develop any sort of interpersonal relationships with any women.". He was seven when he was abducted. After that time he was in and out of juvenile custody for car theft and arson.[4][5]. "I wa. He is now 59 and on death row in San Quentin State Prison, according to his prison records. By that time, Cary Stayner was already having grotesque fantasies, the agent wrote. And so Steven made it home, Timmy was returned to his parents, and two families could breathe again. . When he didnt return home, Stevens parents Delbert and Kay Stayner alerted the authorities but there were no leads. Stayner lived as Parnell's "son" for seven years, during which he was repeatedly sexually abused. In an interview with SFGate, Michael Kollman, who was a longtime neighbor of the Stayner family, said, "I think it must have really affected Cary," said Michael Kollman. "Steven didn't understand the rules that he was now expected to live by. "Cary, as the older brother, had a very strange relationship now with his younger brother, Steven, who was getting all of this attention and who was a different person," Rowlands said. 0 references. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. Then he took matters into his own hands. Stayner was buried at a family plot alongside his grandparents, at a funeral attended by 450 people. Kenneth Parnell was ultimately convicted of kidnapping and conspiracy to steal a child. Steven Stayner was just 7 years old when he was kidnapped in California in 1972 (via theLos Angeles Times). "For seven years I have been supposedly an only child. While Steven was grappling with life after his escape, his brother was out of high school with his own troubles. Parnell died in 2008 at the age of 76 of natural causes in the state prison hospital at Vacaville, SF Gate reported. Sean Poorman, Stayner's schoolfriend who abetted Parnell in the White kidnapping, was sentenced to a term in a juvenile work camp. A new Hulu miniseries thoughtfully explores a family's surreal life in the true crime spotlight. But on Sept. 16, 1989, Stayner died in a motorcycle crash. According to The Famous People, the couple eventually had two children, named Ashley and Steven, Jr. At a press conference outside the Stayner house, "everyone was smiling, there was a lot of jubilation, but if you look in the background, there's something worth noting, and it's Cary in his baseball cap, and he's not smiling at all," according to Flynn. Age at Death: 24. Stayners parents withdrew emotionally after Steven went missing, Rinek wrote. You could see that he wanted to play and be with kids and be normal.". Losing perspective? Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Parnell was arrested that day,[14] subsequently telling authorities "I wanted a family". The Big Conn | Official Trailer | Apple TV+, https://i.ytimg.com/vi/M88ZzxKyrTg/hqdefault.jpg. But, at the age of 24, Steven Stayner, by then a husband and father of two, was killed in a motorcycle crash. In 1989, he tragically died in a motorcycle accident. Thankfully, they were unable to follow through with the kidnapping attempt. READ MORE: Tales Of Demons And Gods Chapter 377: The Audience Awaited The New Chapter! Steven's last name is spelt "Staynor" on the cover but is actually spelt "Stayner." The author also states that Steven was missing for 7 years, then later on in the book he says 9 years. At the time of Stayner's kidnapping, Parnell was employed at the Yosemite Lodge, which according to ABC News, was approximately two hours away from Merced. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. I returned almost a grown man and yet my parents saw me at first as their 7-year-old, he told Newsweek in 1984. By age 19, Stayner had amassed $1,100 in unpaid traffic tickets, which led to his drivers license being suspended, according to the Los Angeles Times. Carole Sund, her daughter Juli Sund and friend Silvina Pelosso were missing for a month before their bodies were found. Parnell was registered as a sex offender when he lured 7-year-old Stayners into his car as the boy walked home from his elementary school in Merced, California. Parnell forced Stayner to take on the name Dennis Parnell, and shuttled him from remote towns to isolated cabins all around Northern California, according to the Los Angeles Times. Carey Stayner is currently sitting on death row in San Quentin. "He was kind of a quiet guy. Hours after Steven Stayner reported Parnell's crimes, . Now I had to compete with a brother and three sisters. He eventually got a job as a trainee manager at Pizza Hut in Merced, and spent the rest of the time lecturing about stranger danger at local schools. On December 4, 1972, seven-year-old Stayner was abducted in Merced, California, by child molester Kenneth Parnell.He was held by his abductor 38 miles (61 km) away in Mariposa County, California, and later in Mendocino County, California, until he was aged 14, when he managed to escape with . Cary Staynar tried to protect his younger brother and looked out for him, according to ABC News. As Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story, a Hulu docuseries that streams today, shows, the two boys bravely testified against Parnell at his trial. He sexually abused Stayner repeatedly until Stayner fled in 1980 when he was 14. Parnell was sentenced to 25 years to life under California's "three strikes" law. Hang out with friends or skateboard," Purdy told ABC News. Im not sure there is any direct cause and effect," Flynn said. This poor family! On July 24, 1999, Cary confessed to killing four women, who had all been guests at the lodge where he was employed. According to The Press Democrat, Kay Stayner said she "never did lose [her] hope" of finding her missing son. The two brothers of the Stayner family are both famous, both tied to the wonder of Yosemite National Park, and both knew unspeakable horror. [8] Parnell denied in that same interview having been sexually abused himself, although Mike Echols' book I Know My First Name Is Steven states that he was indeed molested at the age of 13 by a boarder in a rooming house that his mother owned in Bakersfield. He died behind bars in 2008 from natural causes. The top global causes of death, in order of total number of lives lost, are associated with three broad topics: cardiovascular (ischaemic heart disease, stroke), respiratory (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lower respiratory infections) and neonatal conditions - which include birth asphyxia and birth trauma, neonatal sepsis and infections, and preterm birth complications. Prior to his kidnapping of Stayner, The Famous People reports Parnell had at least two criminal convictions, including armed robbery and the sexual abuse of a young boy. Refocus, and listen as we honor the memory of Steven Stayner, a boy kidnapped in his youth, only to tragically die shortly after escaping captivity. He sexually abused Stayner repeatedly until Stayner fled in 1980 when he was 14. sibling. However, that happiness was short-lived because he had difficulty adjusting back to life with his family. He was convicted of both kidnappings and served five years of his seven-year prison sentence. Cary's defense team argued that he suffered from mental illness, in part from the trauma he suffered when Steven was kidnapped. Hulus latest documentary, Captive Audience, revisits the tragic story of Steven Stayner in 1972 what happened to the young boy and where is the perpetrator now? Steven Stayner's grave./Steven Stayner. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students, according to research conducted by the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention and ranked in the top nine leading causes of death for people between the ages of 10 and 64, as well as . In 1972, seven-year-old Steven Stayner was kidnapped by a pedophile named Kenneth Parnell in Merced, California and held captive for the next seven years. Kidnapping On the afternoon of December 4, 1972, on his way home from school, Stayner was approached by a man named Ervin Edward Murphy, who had met convicted child rapist Kenneth Parnell while working at a resort in Yosemite National Park. Watch "20/20's" full story, "The Black Sheep," TONIGHT at 9 p.m. While Parnell was working as a night security guard, the children hitch-hiked to Ukiah, California, Timothys home town. By Mike Moran of the Confessional Podcast : "He had a great personality," said Lori Duke, who dated Steven in high school but knew him as Dennis. The boy agreed and gave the man his address. Steven Stayner's Death - Cause and Date Born (Birthday) Apr 18, 1965 Death Date September 16, 1989 Age of Death 24 years Cause of Death Traffic Collision The Steven Stayner died at the age of 24. In 1999 a proposition was put forward to rename several local parks in the Merced area to honour outstanding citizens of the city. A plaque bearing the names of other missing children in Merced County will later be added.. Stayner died in a motorcycle accident at the age of 24. Hulus latest three-part documentary recalls the devastating kidnapping of Steven Stayner, a seven-year-old boy living in Merced, California. Stayner was seven years old at the time. Wellman said Parnell "was looking for one last hurrah. When Parnell kidnapped 5-year-old Timothy White that year, Stayner fled on foot along with the kindergartner and then hitchhiked to safety, a journey that thrust the two kidnapping survivors into the national spotlight. . Tragically, Steven Stayner was killed in a 1989 motorcycle accident at age 24. "When Steven came home, Cary was kind of put on the back shelf. As reported by ABC News, Kenneth Parnell treated Steven Stayner like a son. Stayner had a traumatic childhood involving sexual abuse, the kidnap of his younger brother by a pedophile, and feelings of blame that he could not protect his brother, FBI Special Agent Jeffrey Rinek wrote in his book, In the Name of the Children: An FBI Agents Relentless Pursuit of the Nations Worst Predators. Rinek wrote that even though the abuse likely poured fuel on a fire for Stayner to eventually commit murder, it was one that had already begun to smolder before he was sexually abused and before his brother was kidnapped. I was disappointed however on some of the inconsistencies, misspellings, and grammatical errors. Parnell was convicted on February 9, 2004, on the charges of attempting to purchase a child and attempted child molestation, even though no child had been targeted. ", "Its difficult for me to picture what Cary has done and knowing Steve because their personalities are completely opposite," Duke, Stevens former girlfriend, said. A year later, he was sentenced to life, which was, at the time, the harshest sentence handed down under the the "three strikes" law. On December 4, 1972, seven-year-old Stayner was abducted in Merced, California, by child molester Kenneth Parnell. The Stayners were in the news yet again after Cary, Stevens older brother, confessed to murdering four women, including two teenagers. At one point, Steven mentioned in an interview, Ive been talking to reporters for nine years. Prosecutor Tim Wellman had largely argued his case before the jury by showing a slideshow of Stayner marked "1", then of White marked "2", and a blank screen marked "3" to show the nonexistent child that would have been abducted had police not been notified. Later that year he married again and had another daughter. Steven Stayner died in 1989. And if I didnt take care of it now, it would just get worse,'" Duke said. Stayner and White were not Parnell's only victims. And it wasn't that he was just a loner, he was a bit of a creepy loner," Flynn said. As Steven got older and entered puberty, Parnell's sexual interest in Stayner waned and Parnell sought a new boy to "build his family". Surrounded by endless complainers? convicted of kidnapping both boys and sentenced to seven years of state prison time. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Desperate mountain residents trapped by snow beg for help; We are coming, sheriff says, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles, Winter storms ease drought conditions in California, report shows, 19 cafes that make L.A. a world-class coffee destination, Newsom, IRS give Californians until October to file tax returns, This fabled orchid breeder loves to chat just not about Trader Joes orchids, Best coffee city in the world? He'd bought a brand new white and blue Kawasaki EX-500 motorcycle with money from a miniseries based on his childhood kidnapping, called "I Know My First Name Is Steven."