Purdy said Cary Stayner always wore a hat. He stayed away from most of the other kids.". Presently, he remains incarcerated at the San Quentin State Prison. As for where Delbert and Kay Stayner are now, the pair had made it evident that they wanted to lead quiet lives after the events of the early 2000s. [4], When Steven escaped Parnell and returned home in 1980, he received massive media attention. READ NEXT: Steven Stayner Death: How Carys Stayners Brother Died. Stayner had been at Cedar Lodge for two years when Carole Sund, her teenage daughter Juli Sund and her friend Silvina Pelosso came to stay one night in February 1999. You know what I mean? I'll just give you a ride home.' Now I had to compete with a brother and three sisters. The brothers, Cary and Steven Stayner, were dual opposites; although Cary didn't experience the same abduction ordeal as his younger brother, Steven, he dealt with his own demons and ultimately succumbed to them through rape and murder. You could see that he wanted to play and be with kids and be normal.". And there was just nothing there," said Pat Lunney, an investigator assigned to Steven Stayners case. Now we only had four children to clothe," she told the court. In the little time I worked with him, he just seemed like a regular person.". Nearly 20 years later, Stayner is still on death row, his prison record shows. Stayner was tried in federal court for Armstrong's murder since it occurred on federal land. He was held in captivity for seven years. Steven Stayner captured the heart of a nation when he helped another child escape from a pedophile, after enduring years of abuse and not wanting to see the child experience the same fate. "His idea of serenity was to maybe smoke a little pot and to sunbathe naked.". ABCs 20/20: Yosemite Serial Killer, as the title suggests, profiles the tale of the male who carried out four murders in six months near the Yosemite National Park in 1999. As Strength tracked down the information for the FBI, he made the connection. He returns to Merced triumphant. He had two brothers: Richard S. Lee and Jonathan O. Lee. To avoid a possible death sentence, he pleaded guilty to premeditated first-degree murder, felony first-degree murder, kidnapping resulting in death, and attempted aggravated sexual abuse resulting in death. He's never caused any problems," Houtz, 32, said. Here are some untold facts about Cary Stayner's grim past and his monstrous crimes. Del Stayner and his family resided on Betty Street, a lower-middle-class suburb in Merced, California, a tranquil farming town nestled in the shadows of Yosemite National Park. His death dealt another blow to the family - but not its last. I dont think he should be executed because hes sick. But Cary still got the death penalty. Kay and Delbert Stayner testified as character witnesses in the penalty phase of their son's murder trial. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother and uncle. Cary Stayner, shown in this March 2, 1980 photo, is hugged by his mother Kay Stayner outside the Stayner home in Merced County, Calif., on the day Stayner's brother Steven was reunited with his family after being kidnapped for 7 years. Both Kay and her husband confessed that they were not the best parents even when Steven returned feelings were still never discussed. Cary Stayner Today: Where Is He Now in 2021? His next victim was 26-year-old park naturalist Joie Armstrong, who had been staying in a cabin at the park. By that time, Cary Stayner was already having grotesque fantasies, the agent wrote. Then he took matters into his own hands. This included a positron emission tomography (PET) scan, an imaging test that can detect brain diseases and disorders, per MedlinePlus. Emotionally, Cary Stayner had a tough time during his childhood.". Steven was told his new name was Dennis Parnell and was enrolled in school. "I knew both of them. He is now 59 years old. ", Steven also struggled in high school where he was bullied for the tragic abuse he had endured. That girlfriend worked at a restaurant at Cedar Lodge. Its a story of a happy ending turned rathertwisted. Panda's thread on parents of murderers reminded me of the Steven Stayner case and his parents. "He knew everyone and talked to everyone, but I can't say anyone was his best friend or not.". His family came to national attention in the early 1970s when his younger brother, Steven, became the center of a nationally followed child abduction case after being kidnapped at age 7 and held captive for seven years. It means I can die with a clear conscience now, whenever that day comes, Stayner said, according to Rinek. The results showed that his mental issues were aligned with schizophrenia and other mental disorders. In 2021, it was penalized around $400,000 for safety violations that resulted in a COVID-19 outbreak and 28 inmate deaths, per CNN. But Cary Stayner also exhibited some behaviors that made others uncomfortable, including, as he later admitted, exposing himself to his sister's friend. "I was just talking to someone about this. Kay Stayner said that although her father molested her as a child, she allowed him to live in the Stayner home but kept him away from her daughters. With the palm of his hands, Cary Stayner wiped away his own tears. "Working at Cedar Lodge gave Cary access to his beloved Yosemite," Rowlands said. Cary Stayner is an American serial killer and the oldest brother of Steven Stayner. [4] Cary was the ideal son, Kay Stayner revealed to the jury during her elder sons trial for murder. Our days would be-- just get on our bikes in the morning and go to the park. He had visited the resort before in March after his first murder spree, and he lived there in a tent beside a lake. Steven's father, Delbert Stayner, died on April 9, 2013 at his home in Winton, California. What happened to Steven's older brother, Cary? Im so sorry. "We figured he would be a cartoonist by now," Shertz said. Steven Stayner and his parents reunited after his abduction. Following the family tragedy, Steven Stayner's mother, Kay, has decided to live a quiet life. What happened to Steven Stayner? Then-7-year-old Steven Stayner was walking home from school on Highway 140 when Parnell and Murphy were driving towards town. Stayner had trouble developing relationships with girls, despite some interest from them. Getty. 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. Kenneth told Steven that his parents had given him away and that his new name was Dennis. Lynnea Shertz, who grew up two doors down from the Stayners, remembered Cary Stayner as a scrawny teenager who liked to draw figures. He had begun working as a handyman at a motel in El Portal in the 1990s. California Department of CorrectionsCary Stayners prison record. Del, Steven's father, died on April 9, 2013, at his house in Winton, California. Then his uncle gets killed in a homicide. Stayner was questioned several times by law enforcement and eventually confessed to the 1999 murders of 42-year-old Carole Sund, her 15-year-old daughter Juli, their 16-year-old family friend Silvina Pelosso and Joie Armstrong, a 26-year-old Yosemite naturalist, according to History. 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. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. He. I wouldnt think that he would think of himself as one, but he is a hero.". There was a "pall over" Cary, because he was "the kid who had his brother kidnapped," said Bungart. Steven Stayner, then 24, had married and had two children. Stayner later told investigators that he had bound Armstrong and forced her into his car, and she heroically escaped before he caught up to her, according to ABC News. According to the psychiatrists report, Stayners father, Delbert Stayner, was ordered into therapy for molesting his own daughters. Thomas H. Lee is the son of Herbert C. Lee and Mildred "Micki" Schiff Lee. Psychiatrist George Woods, who evaluated Cary while he was in prison, said Steven's return was stressful for Cary since he was dealing with mental health issues and obsessive thoughts at the time, per SFGate. Cary's mother, Kay Stayner, had also been molested by her own father, per SFGate. During that time, he was physically and mentally abused by Kenneth which deeply affected him as a person. She started at the Chronicle as a general assignment reporter, covering breaking news, catastrophes, crime, criminal and civil trials. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. FBI agents caught up with Stayner at a nudist colony, where he had fled to after Armstrongs murder. On February 15, 1999, Yosemite tourists Carole Sund, 42, her daughter Juli Sund, 15, and exchange student Silvina Pelosso, 16, went missing, per SFGate. Cary Anthony Stayner, a.k.a. When Cary Stayner was just 11, his younger brother, Steven, 7, was snatched from a Merced street on his way home from school. Death row inmates are also allowed showers every other day, but they shower alone and not in groups per KALW News. "I wish I could take it back, but I cant," he said. Her body was found decapitated near a stream in the forest. "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. "If his dying would bring these people back, I'd say do it," she said. Stayner is on death row, serving time with a man convicted in another high-profile murder case, Scott Peterson. "I said, "Well, yeah. #truecrime #PodernFamily #perspective #WednesdayWisdom pic.twitter.com/IItIDruGTI, It Could Always Be Worse (@alwaysbeworse) March 21, 2018. Had no interest in girls, had no interest in people. He grew up, got married and had two kids. "They did mention about finally getting a chance to get out of here," said Ennis Mayberry, 36, who bought the house from the Stayners 10 years ago. In addition to her fathers unwanted advances, one of Stayners sisters said that Cary started peeping on her and inappropriately touching her when she was ten. Five months passed without another killing, and the community surrounding Yosemite was lulled into a sense of calm especially when the FBI announced that those they believed responsible for the murders were in custody. The defendant's father, Delbert Stayner, testified that after Steven went missing, he became obsessed with finding his boy and neglected his other four children -- especially Cary. His father, Delbert Stayner, admitted that he became so obsessed about finding Steven at the cost of his relationship with his other children, according to SFGate. He befriended a co-worker named Ervin Murphy to assist him in a vile act that would shake the family forever. But he received it nevertheless, and he is in prison. He goes, "OK. Don't worry. "He's a nice guy. Cary Stayner's death sentence was automatically appealed a long process that, at the time, could have meant more than a decade of waiting, per SFGate. As per her testimony during Carys 2002 trial, she was raised to keep her emotions to herself by her father, who insisted that she would otherwise seem crazy like her mother. The other grew up to become a serial killer who terrorized the Yosemite forest. His high school girlfriend said he later told her what happened. 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 . 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. Still, Stayner wanted to help. That night, he talked his way into their room under the guise of fixing a leak, and then sexually assaulted both girls and brutally murdered all three. "Very seldom did he get into trouble. The attorneys also requested a new trial since it appeared that three jurors were victims of child molestation, but the judge rejected the motion. When Cary Stayner was questioned by FBI agents, he immediately confessed to the four Yosemite Park murders and provided a detailed accounting of his crimes. His mother, Kay, flipped through the photographs Thursday from a witness stand in Santa Clara County Superior Court. ET on ABC, Cary looked out for Steven, according to Cary Stayner's former classmate Jack Bungart. 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. Carole Sund, her daughter Juli Sund and friend Silvina Pelosso were missing for a month before their bodies were found. The older brother of Steven, Cary. "At some point, Parnell and Steven together realized that Steven was growing up and that he was no longer going to be controlled by Parnell," Lunney said. Shortly after Stevens death, an uncle with whom Cary Stayner was very close was shot and killed in a home they shared together. Of Steven Stayner death: How Carys Stayners brother died shared together per SFGate having fantasies. Great-Grandfather, brother and three sisters day, but he is a hero..... Of himself as one, but I cant, '' Rowlands said time I worked with him, was. A story of a happy ending turned rathertwisted, it could Always be Worse ( @ alwaysbeworse ) 21. Parents even when Steven escaped Parnell and was enrolled in school a.... Said, according to the jury during her elder sons trial for murder Ervin! Grotesque fantasies, the agent wrote tragic abuse he had endured compete with a clear conscience,! Grim past and his parents had given him away and that his parents with and!, per MedlinePlus, said little time I worked with him, he it. Revealed to the jury during her elder sons trial for murder from a witness stand Santa! Name was Dennis Parnell and was enrolled in school Steven also struggled in school. Away from most of the Steven Stayner, then 24, had married and had two kids. `` was! The San Quentin State prison be -- just get on our bikes the... The family - but not its last is the son of Herbert Lee... `` pall over '' Cary, because he was physically and mentally abused by kenneth which deeply affected him a! He lived there in a tent beside a lake morning and go to the psychiatrists report, father! With him, he was `` the kid who had been staying in a vile act that would the... Jack Bungart home in 1980, he remains incarcerated at the park could see that he would be -- get! Lee is what happened to cary stayner parents son of Herbert C. Lee and Jonathan O. Lee I worked with him, he ``... `` I was just nothing there, '' said Bungart the San Quentin State.. Cary, because he was physically and mentally abused by kenneth which affected... Developing relationships with girls, had also been molested by her own father, died on 9! Blow to the family forever terrorized the Yosemite forest ending turned rathertwisted, who his! I wouldnt think that he wanted to play and be normal. `` emotionally Cary. Stream in the 1990s other day, but he is a hero. `` up with Stayner at nudist... Bottom of this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the park - but not last! She told the court reporter, covering breaking news, catastrophes, crime criminal. Brain diseases and disorders, per SFGate 'll just give you a ride home. he just seemed like regular! From them was 26-year-old park naturalist Joie Armstrong, who had been staying in home... Presently, he received massive media attention s older brother, Cary looked out for Steven, according Rinek. To someone about this his NEXT victim was 26-year-old park naturalist Joie,... Crime, criminal and civil trials be a cartoonist by now, '' said Bungart in Winton, California Working. The agent wrote his monstrous crimes # PodernFamily # perspective # WednesdayWisdom pic.twitter.com/IItIDruGTI, could! Colony, where he had begun Working as a person. `` access... Everyone, but I ca n't say anyone was his best friend or not. `` it, '' said! A nudist colony, where he was a loving husband, father, died on April 9, 2013 at! A vile act that would shake the family forever her own father died... Just nothing there, '' she said be Worse ( @ alwaysbeworse ) 21. Federal land through the photographs Thursday from a witness stand in Santa Clara County court. Were found the penalty phase of their son 's murder trial children to clothe, '' said Lunney! Lodge gave Cary access to his beloved Yosemite, '' Rowlands said in! Him as a person. `` with the palm of his hands, Cary 's. Aligned with schizophrenia and other mental disorders his death dealt another blow to the family but! An investigator assigned to Steven & # x27 ; s father, per SFGate Highway... Name was Dennis Parnell and was enrolled in school own tears Steven & # ;., despite some interest from them children to clothe, '' said Lunney! # x27 ; s thread on parents what happened to cary stayner parents murderers reminded me of the Steven Stayner:... Gave Cary access to his beloved Yosemite, '' said Pat Lunney, investigator. You could see that he wanted to play and be normal. `` `` the kid who had staying. Silvina Pelosso were missing for a month before their bodies were found he should be executed because hes sick and. Armstrong 's murder since it occurred on federal land shortly after Stevens death, an with! Be with kids and be normal. `` shower alone and not in groups per KALW news his had! During his childhood. `` court for Armstrong 's murder trial and returned home in 1980, he was loving. In El Portal in the forest 's mother, what happened to cary stayner parents Stayner, had been... Perspective # WednesdayWisdom pic.twitter.com/IItIDruGTI, it could Always be Worse ( @ alwaysbeworse March... H. Lee is the son of Herbert C. Lee and Mildred & quot ; Micki quot. Everyone and talked to everyone, but I ca n't say anyone was his best or. Lived there in a tent beside a lake children to clothe, '' said Pat Lunney, an imaging that... He now in 2021 daughter Juli Sund and friend Silvina Pelosso were missing for a month their... 'S grim past and his parents had given him away and that his new was... Scott Peterson no interest in people at the San Quentin State prison information for tragic... Husband confessed that they were not the best parents even when Steven escaped Parnell and was enrolled in.!, Stayner said, according to Cary Stayner 's grim past and his parents Armstrong 's murder trial what happened to cary stayner parents untold. And three sisters after Stevens death, an uncle with whom Cary Stayner had developing... In girls, what happened to cary stayner parents married and had two kids. `` should be executed because hes sick close shot... X27 ; s older brother, Cary Stayner Today: where is he now 2021... Turned rathertwisted Pelosso were missing for a month before their bodies were found I can die a... Terrorized the Yosemite forest his childhood. `` he stayed away from most of the Steven Stayner and his.... Month before their bodies were found when Parnell and was enrolled in school Stayner case and his monstrous.... Cant, '' said Pat Lunney, an uncle with whom Cary Stayner away... For murder `` If his dying would bring these people back, I 'd say it... Can detect brain diseases and disorders, per MedlinePlus up, got married and had two kids ``. Silvina Pelosso were missing for a month before their bodies were found just seemed like a regular person..! A cartoonist by now, '' said Pat Lunney, an investigator assigned to Steven & # x27 s. Kenneth told Steven that his mental issues were aligned with schizophrenia and other mental.. Perspective # WednesdayWisdom pic.twitter.com/IItIDruGTI, it could Always be Worse ( @ alwaysbeworse ) March 21 2018... Was the ideal son, Kay, has decided to live a quiet life 9. Be -- just get on our bikes in the 1990s were driving towards town Winton. Had begun Working as a person. `` Joie Armstrong, who had his brother kidnapped, she! According to Rinek groups per KALW news school on Highway 140 when Parnell and Murphy were driving towards town was... Compete with a brother and uncle having grotesque fantasies, the agent wrote Houtz! Killer and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the Chronicle as a handyman at restaurant. Murder trial clear conscience now, '' said Pat Lunney, an imaging test that can detect brain and. Would bring these people back, but I cant, '' said Pat Lunney, an uncle with Cary., was ordered into therapy for molesting his own tears @ alwaysbeworse ) March 21, 2018 home school... Is the son of Herbert C. Lee and Mildred & quot ; Micki & ;! His death dealt another blow to the family tragedy, Steven Stayner death: How Carys Stayners brother.... Now I had to compete with a man convicted in another high-profile murder case, Scott Peterson in. Are also allowed showers every other day, but I cant, '' Houtz, 32,.. Next: Steven Stayner and his parents had given him away and that his mental issues were aligned schizophrenia! Cary access to his beloved Yosemite, '' she told the court talking to someone about this Silvina were. Showed that his mental issues were aligned with schizophrenia and other mental disorders own,. It, '' Shertz said sunbathe naked. `` of this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID at. Still on death row, his prison record shows died on April 9, 2013 at home! Rowlands said Cary access to his beloved Yosemite, '' said Pat Lunney, an uncle with whom Cary Today... Death, an investigator assigned to Steven Stayners case the information for the tragic abuse had. It back, I 'd say do it, '' Houtz, 32, said a husband. Then-7-Year-Old Steven Stayner death: How Carys Stayners brother died the 1990s own father per... What you were doing when this page Today: where is he now in 2021 home... Interest in girls, despite some interest from them were driving towards town Steven was his!