IN 1972, the Stayner family had their life turned upside-down after the abduction of their 7-year-old son, Steven.
Hulu is sharing the story on their latest true-crime series, Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story.
What happened to Steven Stayner?
Steven Stayner was the middle child of a family from Merced, California.
He was one of two sons and three daughters to parents, Delbert and Kay Stayner.
On December 4, 1972, Steven was abducted walking home from school – the beginning of a traumatizing, media-heavy journey for the Stayner family.
Steven was given a new identity as Dennis Parnell and allegedly endured years of sexual abuse by his captor, Kenneth Parnell, until he was able to escape in March 1980.
After seven years of hoping their son would return, the Stayner family’s dreams came true.
Steven, then 14, had grown nearly unrecognizable as a 5-foot-10 teenager.
He had escaped while Parnell was out of the house and turned up at a police station in Ukiah with another missing boy, Timmy White, 5.
White was abducted in mid-February of 1980 and both boys were forced to call Parnell their father.
Timmy was Steven’s motivation for escape – he did not want to see the child suffer the way he did, according to reports.
In 1989, the hit TV miniseries, I Know My First Name Is Steven, was based on his story.
On September 16, 1989, the night before the Emmys, Steven was killed at the age of 24, in a hit-and-run crash while riding his motorcycle.
What happened to Cary Stayner?
Cary Stayner was Steven’s older brother, born on August 13, 1961.
In 1999 – years after Steven returned home – Cary murdered four people near Yosemite National Park.
He had begun working as a handyman at a motel in El Portal in the 1990s.
42-year-old Carole Sund, 15-year-old Juli Sund, 16-year-old Silvina Pelosso, and 26-year-old Joie Ruth Armstrong were his victims.
Cary was sentenced to death in 2002 after being convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and remains on death row today.
Where can I watch Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story?
Decades after the Stayner family horror was put on display for the whole nation, they are once again making headlines.
On April 21, 2022, Hulu released a three-part true-crime docuseries revisiting the terrifying events that spanned over 30 years and left a family destroyed.
It not only includes Steven’s story but Cary’s case as well.
Including interviews with the Stayner family – the docuseries delves deep into the core of the tornado that became their life.
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In the show, Kay Stayner describes that “having all of the information out, it was painful for Steve, which affected how he continued to grow.
“He drank heavy. A lot of alcohol and a lot of pot.”
The docuseries can be streamed on Hulu with a subscription.
