Steven Stayner - Kidnapping

Kidnapping

On the afternoon of December 4, 1972, Stayner was approached on his way home from school by a man named Ervin Edward Murphy, an acquaintance of Kenneth Parnell. Murphy, described by those who knew him as a trusting, naïve and simple-minded man, had been enlisted by convicted child rapist Parnell (who had passed himself off as an aspiring minister to Murphy) into helping him abduct a young boy so that Parnell could "raise him in a religious-type deal," as Murphy later stated.

Acting on instructions from Parnell, Murphy passed out gospel tracts to boys walking home from school that day and, after spotting Stayner, claimed to be a church representative seeking donations. Stayner later claimed that Murphy asked him if his mother would be willing to donate any items to the church; when the boy replied that she would, Murphy then asked Steven where he lived and if he would be willing to take Murphy to his home. After Stayner agreed, a white Buick driven by Parnell pulled up and Stayner willingly climbed into the car with Murphy. Parnell then drove a confused Stayner to his cabin in nearby Catheys Valley instead. (Unbeknownst to Stayner, Parnell's cabin was located only several hundred feet from his maternal grandfather's residence.) Parnell molested Stayner for the first time early the following morning.

After telling Parnell that he wanted to go home many times during his first week with the man, Parnell told Stayner that he had been granted legal custody of the boy because his parents could not afford so many children and that they did not want him anymore.

Parnell began calling the boy Dennis Gregory Parnell, retaining Stayner's real middle name and his real birth date when enrolling him in various schools over the next several years. Parnell passed himself off as Stayner's father and the two moved frequently around California. He allowed Stayner to begin drinking at a young age and to come and go virtually as he pleased. One of the few positive aspects of Stayner's life with Parnell was the dog he had received as a gift from Parnell, a Manchester Terrier whom he named Queenie. This dog had been given to Parnell by his mother, who was not aware of Stayner's existence during the period when he was living with Parnell.

For a period of over a year, a woman named Barbara Mathias, along with one or more of her children, lived with Parnell and Stayner. She later claimed to have been completely unaware that "Dennis" had, in fact, been kidnapped. During the seven years that he lived with Parnell, Stayner claimed that he was sexually assaulted more than 700 times; however, Parnell claimed the number was much higher. Stayner also said that, at the behest of Parnell, he had sex with Mathias several times around the age of nine.