CA Cary Stayner

[Kell1]

Cary Anthony Stayner (born August 13, 1961) is an American serial killer and the older brother of kidnapping victim Steven Stayner. He was convicted of the murders of four women between February and July 1999: Carole Sund, her teenage daughter Juli Sund and their teenage traveling companion Silvina Pelosso, and Yosemite Institute naturalist Joie Ruth Armstrong.

The murders occurred in Mariposa County, California, near Yosemite National Park. Stayner was sentenced to death for the four murders, and is still on death row at San Quentin Penitentiary in California.

Early life
Cary Stayner was born and raised in Merced, California. His younger brother, Steven Stayner, was kidnapped by child molester Kenneth Parnell in 1972, when Cary was 11. His brother Steven was held captive for more than seven years before escaping and being reunited with his family. Cary later said that he felt neglected while his parents grieved over the loss of Steven.

When Steven escaped from Parnell and returned home in 1980, he received massive media attention. A true crime book and TV movie, both titled I Know My First Name Is Steven, were made about the ordeal. Steven died in a motorcycle accident in 1989. The following year, Cary's uncle, Jesse, with whom he was living at the time, was murdered. Cary later claimed that his uncle molested him at the same period as when Steven was kidnapped.

Stayner is reported to have attempted suicide in 1991, and was arrested in 1997 for possession of marijuana and methamphetamine, although these charges were eventually dropped.

Crimes
In 1997, Stayner was hired as a handyman at the Cedar Lodge motel in El Portal, California, just outside the Highway 140 entrance to Yosemite National Park.[4] Between February and July 1999, he murdered two women and two teenagers: 42-year-old Carole Sund, her daughter, 15-year-old Juli Sund, Juli's friend, 16-year-old Argentine exchange student Silvina Pelosso, and Yosemite Institute employee Joie Ruth Armstrong, a 26-year-old naturalist.

The first two victims, Carole Sund and Pelosso, were found in the trunk of the charred remains of Sund's Pontiac rental car. The bodies were burned beyond recognition and were identified using dental records. A note was sent to police with a hand-drawn map indicating the location of the third victim, Sund's daughter Juli. The top of the note read, "We had fun with this one." Investigators went to the location depicted on the map and found the remains of Juli, whose throat had been cut.

Detectives began interviewing employees of the Cedar Lodge motel where the first three victims had been staying just before their deaths. One of those employees was Stayner, but he was not considered a suspect at that point because he had no criminal history and remained calm during the police interview.

When the decapitated body of Joie Ruth Armstrong was found, eyewitnesses said they saw a blue 1979 International Scout parked outside the cabin where she was staying. Detectives traced this vehicle to Stayner, which led to him becoming the prime suspect in the case. FBI agents John Boles and Jeff Rinek found Stayner staying at the Laguna del Sol nudist resort in Wilton, where he was arrested and taken to Sacramento for questioning. During his interrogation, Stayner shocked the agents when he confessed not only to Armstrong's decapitation, but to the murders of Pelosso and the Sunds, and the sending of the map for finding Juli Sund's body as well. His vehicle yielded evidence proving his link to Armstrong.

Stayner claimed after his arrest that he had fantasized about murdering women since he was seven years old, long before the abduction of his brother.

Trial and conviction[edit]

2007 mugshot of Stayner
Stayner was tried in federal court for Armstrong's murder since it occurred on federal land. 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. During the sentencing hearing, Stayner stunned the courtroom when he suddenly broke down in tears and apologized. "I wish I could take it back, but I can’t," he said. "I wish I could tell you why I did such a thing, but I don’t even know myself. I’m so sorry. I wish there was a reason. But there isn’t. It’s senseless." Lesli Armstrong, Armstrong's mother, started crying as she listened to Stayner, and said afterwards that she believed his apology was genuine. Stayner was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Stayner pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the other murders in state court. His lawyers claimed that the Stayner family had a history of sexual abuse and mental illness, manifesting itself not only in the murders, but also his obsessive-compulsive disorder and his request to be provided with child in return for his confession. Dr. Jose Arturo Silva testified that Stayner had obsessive-compulsive disorder, mild autism, and paraphilia.He was nevertheless found sane and convicted of three counts of first degree murder with special circumstances and one count of kidnapping by a jury on August 27, 2002.[14]

Sentencing and wait for execution
In 2002, during the sentencing phase of his trial, Stayner was sentenced to death and thereafter entered housing in the Adjustment Center on death row at San Quentin Penitentiary in California. Stayner remains on death row as of November 2021 though there have been no executions in California since a 2006 court ruling over flaws discovered in the administration of capital punishment in the state.

Media portrayals

• Stayner's case was featured in an episode of American Justice produced in 2002.
• Stayner was mentioned on Criminal Minds, in the season 5 episode 19 "A Rite of Passage".
• In 2011, Stayner's investigation and arrest were featured in an episode of FBI: Criminal Pursuit, titled "Trail of Terror", airing on Investigation Discovery.
• In 2013, the history of Stayner's progress from student to convicted murderer was told in an episode of the U.K. television series Born to Kill? titled, "Yosemite Park Slayer."
• The American Court TV (now TruTV) television series Mugshots released an episode on the Stayner case titled "Cary Stayner – The Cedar Lodge Killings".
• In 2018, the Reelz channel aired an hour-long documentary about the murders titled Yosemite Park Killer.
• On January 26, 2019, ABC News broadcast a 20/20 episode covering the Stayner brothers, titled "Evil in Eden".
• August 30, 2020 HLN aired "The Yosemite Murders: The Missing Women (Part 1)" and "The Yosemite Murders: The Evil Side (Part 2)", from the documentary series How It Really Happened.
• October 31, 2020, Casefile, an Australian true crime podcast, released the first of two episodes on Stayner with the title "The Yosemite Sightseer Murders". The second episode was released on November 7, 2020. The podcast had released an episode on Steven Stayner's kidnapping earlier in 2020.

 

[kadman]

Interesting point my wife raised when I told her about Cary and Stephen. How different would Cary's actions have been if he was the one kidnapped considering his early thoughts of murder?

 

[FrankieFalzon]

Interesting point my wife raised when I told her about Cary and Stephen. How different would Cary's actions have been if he was the one kidnapped considering his early thoughts of murder?

He'd certainly find a crowd of excusers declaring him "the real victim", proclaiming his innocence and demanding his release.

 

[Kell1]

Interesting point my wife raised when I told her about Cary and Stephen. How different would Cary's actions have been if he was the one kidnapped considering his early thoughts of murder?

Very interesting, thankfully well never know, but my feeling (personal opinion) is that it would've mattered little , as with these types the makings of the future murderer are in place from a young age, it may have done nothing more than change the victim profile from female to male , but thats speculative.

Very interesting question though .

 

[kadman]

Very interesting, thankfully well never know, but my feeling (personal opinion) is that it would've mattered little , as with these types the makings of the future murderer are in place from a young age, it may have done nothing more than change the victim profile from female to male , but thats speculative.

Very interesting question though .

I just wondered whether Cary would've tried to kill Kenneth Parnell.

 

[Kell1]

I just wondered whether Cary would've tried to kill Kenneth Parnell.

Maybe, but remember psychopathy is part nature part nurture, therefore subjecting a fledgling killer who is already experiencing intense violent sexual urges to abduction, captivity and sexual abuse by an adult male, as a hetero sexual male himself , i would bet there may have even been more murders , I certaiy wouldnt have put it past Stayner to kill his captor.

Again well never know , but we know he is a vicious killer, with no remorse.

 

[tezi]

He'd certainly find a crowd of excusers declaring him "the real victim", proclaiming his innocence and demanding his release.

He may, however, I think he knows why he did what he did. No matter the speech he gave at his Federal trial. I am just interested in researching him more.

 

[DS2021]

Potential victim

CA Post in thread 'CA- Sharalyn Murphy, 23,SW, her naked, headless body, found 6 miles from her hands in garbage bag, along New Melones Reservoir, '93,*New initiative*'

Sep 21, 2024

FBI looks for link to death in Calaveras

Decapitation of woman in '94 similar to Yosemite case Lode Bureau Chief SAN ANDREAS -- The FBI is investigating whether the accused killer of a Yosemite National Park naturalist has any connectio…

www.recordnet.com

They were looking at a link between her murder and serial killer Cary Stayner.

• DS2021

• 

 

[Noirdame79]

There was a lot more going on in this family, and articles from The San Francisco Chronicle at the time of Cary Stayner's trial revealed that there was a dark family history. There's also a lot about Cary's case that is left out of documentaries, etc. Check out YouTube interviews with private investigator Stephen Sanzeri and his book Ultimate Prey for more details.

 

[Noirdame79]

Excerpt from The San Francisco Chronicle, May 21, 2002

Defense To Fight For Stayner's Life/Lawyers Cite Report Detailing A Life Of Being Abused

Psychiatrist George Woods, who evaluated Cary Stayner at the Fresno County Jail over the course of a year, talked to relatives and reviewed court records, said in his report that Stayner's family had a history of dysfunction dating back three generations.

Stayner was molested by an uncle, and his sisters were abused by their father, according to Woods' evaluation. In 1986, according to the report, Stayner's father, Delbert Stayner, was accused of sexually molesting his daughters and was ordered into therapy by state authorities.

A Stayner relative told Woods that she believed that sexual abuse of children "has been going on for so long, it's like a sickness in the family."

Efforts to reach Delbert Stayner on Monday were unsuccessful.

When Cary Stayner was 11, his younger brother, Steven, was kidnapped.

Shortly afterward, Cary Stayner was abused by an uncle who had been convicted of child molestation, according to the report.
"Although (the uncle's) sexual proclivities were well known to Cary's older male cousins, he was nevertheless allowed to take boys for overnights in his tiny apartment," Woods wrote.
One evening, the uncle showed Stayner and his cousin nude pictures of young girls. Then Stayner and his uncle went to sleep in the same bed. Stayner awoke to find the uncle removing his underwear and attempting to molest him, the evaluation says.

"By the time Cary Stayner was in high school, he had a reputation as a quiet loner, though a talented cartoonist," the doctor wrote. "He was teased because he wore a hat all the time to cover the bald patches left by his compulsive hair pulling. His sexual relations with girls were almost nonexistent, and were often frustrated by his inability to achieve and sustain an erection."

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/defense-to-fight-for-stayner-s-life-lawyers-2820211.php

Excerpt from The San Francisco Chronicle, October 4, 2002

Stayner's Parents Fear Losing Another Son

When Cary Stayner was just 11, his younger brother, Steven, 7, was snatched from a Merced street on his way home from school. His abductor kept and sexually abused Steven for seven years. He finally ran away and turned himself over to a nearby police department. When he returned home, he was a promiscuous teenager with an alcohol problem and later died in a motorcycle crash. His story was turned into a television miniseries.

"We got Steve back, not Stevie," said Kay Stayner, who spent a lot of time telling the jury about the toll her youngest son's disappearance took on the family and how it affected Cary.

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.
"I didn't socialize with him," he said. "I yelled at him a lot."

It was common for the couple to load the kids in the car and take off in search of a new tip that could lead them to Steven. The trips always ended in a wild goose chase, according to testimony.

What was worse, Kay Stayner said, was that family members never talked about their feelings -- because in the Stayner home emotions were taboo. Only Kay Stayner's father voiced his opinion, she said.
"He said we should be glad that Steven was gone. Now we only had four children to clothe," she told the court.

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.

But according to court testimony, the girls weren't safe. State authorities said Delbert Stayner molested them.

The Stayners admit they weren't always the best parents. But they said they can't imagine losing another son.
"My son is very sick right now," Delbert Stayner told the court while sobbing. "I don't think he should be executed because he's sick."

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Stayner-s-parents-fear-losing-another-son-2789304.php

 

[Noirdame79]

Much of the testimony the defense has tried to introduce, such as the molestation of one of Stayner's sisters by their father, has been barred due to objections by the prosecution.

Sister Tells of Stayner's Troubled Childhood

Courts: Younger sibling says the man who killed three Yosemite tourists isn't the brother she remembers. Judge orders defense to curtail repetitive testimony.

www.latimes.com

Stayner's three sisters testified briefly Thursday about their chaotic

family life, but much of what they tried to say was blocked by the judge who

said it was becoming repetitive.

Appeal from Stayner’s parents:

SAN JOSE -- If Cary Stayner's death could restore the lives he took, ''I say do it,'' his mother said in a tearful appeal to jurors Thursday. ''But executing Cary is not going to bring back those people. They're gone and there's no bringing them back,''

www.pressdemocrat.com

Now we know why the parents refused to get their children professional help, even though Cary especially needed it from a young age.

 

[Noirdame79]

Again well never know , but we know he is a vicious killer, with no remorse.

This is not true. All of the psychiatrists who examined Cary Stayner have concluded that he is not a psychopath; Park Dietz, who evaluated him for the prosecution, went so far as to say that he is empathetic. That, along with the lack of physical evidence against him in the Sund-Pelosso murders, should have created major issues with the state's case, but it was a rigged trial (see my previous post in this thread on this subject). The defense went with an insanity plea because they felt that was the only way they could potentially save his life; they knew the bias against their client was overwhelming.

Joie Armstrong's mother believes he was genuinely remorseful when he apologized to her and her family in court and hopes she can forgive him someday. She was moved to tears by his apology and felt that he was devastated by his actions.

He is mentally ill; some of that was inherited, some of that was due to brain damage in utero, and some was due to trauma he suffered. Cary was most likely in need of psychiatric care all his life but never got it due to parental negligence. Stayner also has one of the worst backgrounds, which is not talked about enough (I posted articles about this). There is a lot of misinformation about him and the case that has been presented in the media. Behind the scenes, many people, including some of the victims' family members and his mother, know that he was the fall guy in the three murders for which he was sentenced to death. There is a reason why his being a serial killer has never made sense, and that's because he isn't one.

A false narrative continues to be presented to the public due to the incompetence and corruption of local law enforcement.

JMO

 

[Kell1]

This is not true. All of the psychiatrists who examined Cary Stayner have concluded that he is not a psychopath; Park Dietz, who evaluated him for the prosecution, went so far as to say that he is empathetic. That, along with the lack of physical evidence against him in the Sund-Pelosso murders, should have created major issues with the state's case, but it was a rigged trial (see my previous post in this thread on this subject). The defense went with an insanity plea because they felt that was the only way they could potentially save his life; they knew the bias against their client was overwhelming.

Joie Armstrong's mother believes he was genuinely remorseful when he apologized to her and her family in court and hopes she can forgive him someday. She was moved to tears by his apology and felt that he was devastated by his actions.

He is mentally ill; some of that was inherited, some of that was due to brain damage in utero, and some was due to trauma he suffered. Cary was most likely in need of psychiatric care all his life but never got it due to parental negligence. Stayner also has one of the worst backgrounds, which is not talked about enough (I posted articles about this). There is a lot of misinformation about him and the case that has been presented in the media. Behind the scenes, many people, including some of the victims' family members and his mother, know that he was the fall guy in the three murders for which he was sentenced to death. There is a reason why his being a serial killer has never made sense, and that's because he isn't one.

A false narrative continues to be presented to the public due to the incompetence and corruption of local law enforcement.

JMO

Its completely true , as much as I admire Dr Deitz, he also believed 100% everything Richard Kuklinski fed him, even rendered a diagnosis , when the majority of what he said turned out to be completely fabricated.

I wont get into the "it was as set up" discussion, because the overwhelming majority of times, that is what is not true. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, I could list a few , but this isn't one of them.

Never base anything off how an individual reacts in court, if there's one thing I've learned over the years, is the the big show (the trial) is often filled with theatrics,

If the sentence for murder were simply community service, or having to pay a fine they'd be grinning from ear to ear, the only reason they cry is because their freedom has now ended. I don't care how "genuine" they appear

I could've retired 20 years ago if I had a dollar for every killer I"ve seen break down in court , seen them fall into a heap on the floor and beg for mercy , seen apologize to the families, but they are never so remorseful to turn themselves in, or to maybe not murder another innocent person in the first place.

And Ive seen them wipe those tears right off their face, in the elevator and walk into the SDF and start laughing, sometimes even telling the other inmates what they did.

You have to understand with psychology and human behavior there's no "this" or "that", nothing fits into a nice little box, it all follows along a continuum, hence why personality disorders are now diagnosed in "clusters" therefore people can be mentally ill, AND a psychopath, the key is 1) what was the driving factor in committing said crime(s) and 2) what was their mental state during.

Mental illness often worsens over a period of years even with treatment , so how he is now, i don't know.

Psychopaths suffer from a type of frontal lobe insult en utero which has to do with hormones and chromosomal issues, that usually leads them to have different reactions to perceived stimuli, and this can have varying degrees of it .

And to most peoples amazement, most psychopaths do not become criminals

The family environment they are immersed in further shapes this, and it alone can determine how the adult psyche forms . For example if you take a child without said frontal lobe disorder, and immerse them in a world of violence primarily sexual , or any other criminal activity they will often adapt traits of what they observe over a period of years, this isn't 100%, but it happens enough for us to know that behavior is often learned.

Now take the same individual with the roots of psychopathy and do the same... You have a ticking time bomb.

Some say Psychopaths cant love, they have no empathy , but that's untrue, they often have relationships that have evolved, around the noticeable less desirable traits they often are loving parents to their children, they are sometimes warm and caring to those in their circle.

When a murder is committed for personal (often sexual) reasons that is due to some unfilled need the offender feels they need to address.

Stayner wasn't so psychotic that he didn't know right from wrong, he did , he wasn't powerless against his desire , and wasn't so "remorseful" that he turned himself in or was seen walking around covered in blood etc...

He did it because he liked it , and if he had not been caught, he would've continued despite what his diagnosis was.

 

[Noirdame79]

Its completely true , as much as I admire Dr Deitz, he also believed 100% everything Richard Kuklinski fed him, even rendered a diagnosis , when the majority of what he said turned out to be completely fabricated.

I wont get into the "it was as set up" discussion, because the overwhelming majority of times, that is what is not true. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, I could list a few , but this isn't one of them.

Never base anything off how an individual reacts in court, if there's one thing I've learned over the years, is the the big show (the trial) is often filled with theatrics,

If the sentence for murder were simply community service, or having to pay a fine they'd be grinning from ear to ear, the only reason they cry is because their freedom has now ended. I don't care how "genuine" they appear

I could've retired 20 years ago if I had a dollar for every killer I"ve seen break down in court , seen them fall into a heap on the floor and beg for mercy , seen apologize to the families, but they are never so remorseful to turn themselves in, or to maybe not murder another innocent person in the first place.

And Ive seen them wipe those tears right off their face, in the elevator and walk into the SDF and start laughing, sometimes even telling the other inmates what they did.

You have to understand with psychology and human behavior there's no "this" or "that", nothing fits into a nice little box, it all follows along a continuum, hence why personality disorders are now diagnosed in "clusters" therefore people can be mentally ill, AND a psychopath, the key is 1) what was the driving factor in committing said crime(s) and 2) what was their mental state during.

Mental illness often worsens over a period of years even with treatment , so how he is now, i don't know.

Psychopaths suffer from a type of frontal lobe insult en utero which has to do with hormones and chromosomal issues, that usually leads them to have different reactions to perceived stimuli, and this can have varying degrees of it .

And to most peoples amazement, most psychopaths do not become criminals

The family environment they are immersed in further shapes this, and it alone can determine how the adult psyche forms . For example if you take a child without said frontal lobe disorder, and immerse them in a world of violence primarily sexual , or any other criminal activity they will often adapt traits of what they observe over a period of years, this isn't 100%, but it happens enough for us to know that behavior is often learned.

Now take the same individual with the roots of psychopathy and do the same... You have a ticking time bomb.

Some say Psychopaths cant love, they have no empathy , but that's untrue, they often have relationships that have evolved, around the noticeable less desirable traits they often are loving parents to their children, they are sometimes warm and caring to those in their circle.

When a murder is committed for personal (often sexual) reasons that is due to some unfilled need the offender feels they need to address.

Stayner wasn't so psychotic that he didn't know right from wrong, he did , he wasn't powerless against his desire , and wasn't so "remorseful" that he turned himself in or was seen walking around covered in blood etc...

He did it because he liked it , and if he had not been caught, he would've continued despite what his diagnosis was.

There is no physical evidence linking him to the Sund-Pelosso murders - no DNA, nothing. That alone should have raised reasonable doubt. There were also major discrepancies in his confession, especially regarding the murder of Juli Sund. You said he has no remorse when in fact he expressed remorse for killing Joie Armstrong. When asked by the FBI if he felt good about killing Joie, he said that he did not. He's also impotent, so he did not rape the victims. All of the psychiatrists who examined him concluded that he is not a psychopath, and he expressed empathy for the victims.

There is far more to this case than has been presented. As for Park Dietz, everything else he said was in favor of the prosecution (whom of course, he always works for). Did all those psychiatrists conspire together to say that Stayner does not lack empathy and is not a psychopath?

Stayner's parents knew he was mentally disturbed from a young age, and did nothing. When it comes right down to it, there is no proof that he committed the Sund-Pelosso murders and he should not have been convicted. A confession alone is not enough. Those are facts.

 

[rleigh123]

[..........]
Excerpt from The San Francisco Chronicle, October 4, 2002
[........]His abductor kept and sexually abused Steven for seven years. He finally ran away and turned himself over to a nearby police department. When he returned home, he was a promiscuous teenager with an alcohol problem and later died in a motorcycle crash. His story was turned into a television miniseries.

"We got Steve back, not Stevie," said Kay Stayner, who spent a lot of time telling the jury about the toll her youngest son's disappearance took on the family and how it affected Cary.
[........]

(Clipped by me)

IMO MOO

These articles made me feel sick. Not just for the obvious reasons.

The writer looks at and writes about Cary through very rose-colored glasses, and treats Steven as an annoying boomerang whose return hurt poor Cary. Their mother gives the same impression.

I understand the purpose of the articles, but this is a bit much.

Between VERY brief mentions of his crimes, the author paints a lovely, sad picture of Cary. ("quiet loner, though a talented cartoonist.")

And from his mother: "Cary was the ideal son.....Very seldom did he get into trouble. He was a good student, a good artist, and he was very loving."

And for Steven (who was kidnapped and tortured for years until he saved himself AND another victim, and went on to have a wife and child) the author says:

"He finally ran away and turned himself over to a nearby police department. When he returned home, he was a promiscuous teenager with an alcohol problem and later died in a motorcycle crash."

Failing to mention, despite the deep family dive, that Steven's father treated him badly after he returned. The author just gives this quote from his mother:

"We got Steve back, not Stevie," said Kay Stayner, who spent a lot of time telling the jury about the toll her youngest son's disappearance took on the family and how it affected Cary."



MOO/IMO

 

[dsjkjw3]

I just wondered whether Cary would've tried to kill Kenneth Parnell.

Or, would he have grown up to help Parnell abduct other children? It's an interesting question and sadly, there wan no good outcome either way. Soooo, unsettling.

 

[MrsWatson]

He's also impotent

Link, please?

 

[rleigh123]

[......]The men who were initially arrested were the actual killers; Stayner was a low-level member of their group. They used him because he had access to all the rooms at the Cedar Lodge. Private investigators, who had regular contact with Carole and Juli's family, discovered that the Sund-Pelosso murders were a botched robbery. Stayner was involved in the theft, as were other lodge employees, and that was how he knew certain details.[.......]

(Clipped by me)

Do you know where I can find this info?

 

[rleigh123]

<modsnip - quoted post was removed (no link and insinuations against a person not named POI by LE)

ETA And where can I find info about his damage "in utero" that you mentioned?

 

[Noirdame79]

(Clipped by me)

IMO MOO

These articles made me feel sick. Not just for the obvious reasons.

The writer looks at and writes about Cary through very rose-colored glasses, and treats Steven as an annoying boomerang whose return hurt poor Cary. Their mother gives the same impression.

I understand the purpose of the articles, but this is a bit much.

Between VERY brief mentions of his crimes, the author paints a lovely, sad picture of Cary. ("quiet loner, though a talented cartoonist.")

And from his mother: "Cary was the ideal son.....Very seldom did he get into trouble. He was a good student, a good artist, and he was very loving."

And for Steven (who was kidnapped and tortured for years until he saved himself AND another victim, and went on to have a wife and child) the author says:

"He finally ran away and turned himself over to a nearby police department. When he returned home, he was a promiscuous teenager with an alcohol problem and later died in a motorcycle crash."

Failing to mention, despite the deep family dive, that Steven's father treated him badly after he returned. The author just gives this quote from his mother:

"We got Steve back, not Stevie," said Kay Stayner, who spent a lot of time telling the jury about the toll her youngest son's disappearance took on the family and how it affected Cary."



MOO/IMO

It was the psychiatrist who talked about Cary being a talented cartoonist. The writer in the second article was focusing on the testimony of family members in the penalty phase, and this testimony was about Cary. He was a sad and lonely child; his brother's disappearance affected him greatly, in part because as the oldest child, he felt responsible. It didn't help that his father, by his own admission, mistreated Cary when Steven was missing, even shouting at Cary, "I want my real son back!" Both parents also admitted to neglecting Cary from infancy, which is no doubt one of the reasons why he was diagnosed with Trichotillomania at age 3. His mental health issues were ignored.

None of the Stayner children received professional help because their well-being was not their parents' primary concern. All of the Stayner children suffered sexual abuse. I agree that the parents' treatment of Steven when he came home was horrendous, and is proof of how awful they were. They failed their children. In actuality, they were no different than Kenneth Parnell.

JMO