Case 154: Steven Stayner
Added 2020-08-23 09:00:07 +0000 UTCFrom 1967 to 1971, the Stayner family lived on a 20 acre farm ranch just outside of Merced County. Parents Kay and Del had married weeks after they first met and had gone on to have five children - Cary, Cindy, Steven, Jody, and Cory.
Team:
Anonymous Host - narration
Elsha McGill - writing
Jessica Forsayeth - research
Mike Migas - production, scoring
Andrew D.B. Joslyn - scoring
Milly Raso - creative direction
Comments
I consume a lot of true crime content, and this one wrecks me. Just totally wrecks me. 🤢
Willow Hall
2022-08-23 17:59:52 +0000 UTCThis all happened well before my time, but I did so much reading on it after listening. Thank you for the great work on this one! And despite what others on social media have said - I am very grateful the other Stayner case did not get mentioned in this story! You all always do an amazing job of focusing your eps. on the victims!
B-randy D
2020-08-31 18:34:50 +0000 UTCI’m so deeply touched by this episode, had tears in my eyes whenI heard about the statues. It’s just tragic, yet so beautiful. Thank you team!
Nguyen Tracey
2020-08-31 11:10:57 +0000 UTCI remember watching the miniseries mentioned in this episode, but was gobsmacked by the end of the tale when I listened to this
RubySpook
2020-08-30 07:03:04 +0000 UTCMy expectation is that they're doing a separate follow-up episode on Cary.
AR
2020-08-30 03:12:57 +0000 UTCAwful that Cary being a serial killer wasn't mentioned.
Nora Charles
2020-08-30 03:08:09 +0000 UTCI took my time listening then rewinding, all while exploring the area on Google maps. I dunno if that’s something others do here as well!
J. Chips
2020-08-28 18:00:11 +0000 UTCI knew this story long before hearing this and yet, unfailingly, casefile once again blew me away. For the first time in ages, I found myself tearing up at several parts.. outstanding work.
Cameron DelaCerna
2020-08-27 04:43:53 +0000 UTCSure hope Casefile covers the second chapter of this story.
Mark Caraway
2020-08-26 18:45:17 +0000 UTCWow this did a number on me, great episode, one hell of a ride for the family's involved, love it when I can't stop thinking about an episode for days, great job guys
Sophie Vance
2020-08-26 12:37:03 +0000 UTCJesus that was one hell of a story. Tragic. Well done Casefile
Rosie Overell
2020-08-26 08:55:48 +0000 UTCWhat a phenomenal episode. I found myself welling up frequently. You guys did an amazing job here, telling the story of Steven and Timmy. True definitions of a survivor! Great work Casefile!
Robyn Stephens
2020-08-25 16:30:11 +0000 UTCWell that is the greatest fine line that true crime has to walk every day, isn’t it?? Haha I kind of hope Casefile does cover it now, to see the contrast in the stories of the brothers. Because it is, if nothing else, one the ‘great’ examples of duality in life and families
Maya George
2020-08-25 08:16:10 +0000 UTCI wasn’t sure if I would be that interested in this episode because I’ve heard several other podcasts cover it. However, I shouldn’t have doubted the Casefile team - this was an extremely well done episode. Great work as always. What a sad case.
Sarah Gallagher
2020-08-25 03:47:49 +0000 UTCIf you want more detail into Cary, I highly recommend "In The Name of the Children..." but, I also don't. It's pretty soul-staining and I really kind of wish I didn't read it. He's a horrible piece of shit. I almost hope CF doesn't cover him, because he is worthless and should be forgotten. However, the victims shouldn't, and that's where it becomes contradiction, in my mind. True crime, huh? haha!
Jason Colombo
2020-08-25 02:39:45 +0000 UTCI hadn’t heard about any of this, and was curious, so I Googled Cary. That is honestly not the direction I thought that was going to go. I’m not going to google anymore, lest I spoil myself for a future episode or you know, life lol
Maya George
2020-08-25 02:25:17 +0000 UTCThe injustice throughout was appalling! Such a sad story and these 2 young men, tragically, had their lives cut short while the perpetrator lived until he was 76. Thank you team.
Jean Petrie
2020-08-25 00:21:03 +0000 UTCWhat an excellent job covering this episode! I remember when all of this was going on but there were a lot of details given that I was not aware of such as the perps release😡. This was a heartbreaking event back then and all these years later it's still one of the saddest stories ever😢
Leah Budd
2020-08-25 00:08:54 +0000 UTCI know! I was assuming that was going to be included as well. I kept waiting for a part 2 teaser. Guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Mandy G
2020-08-24 20:44:52 +0000 UTCThis was, while among the most heartbreaking stories, it was an episode that has been on my mind all day because I think it covers the best and the worst in us humans. As a parent, I tend to want to pass on stories about kids that go missing like this. But I hung in there and was impressed with how well the story was told. Since I knew nothing about this story, the twists and turns were really mind blowing. Will be looking forward to the Q&A on this one... thanks guys!
John Stoeckel
2020-08-24 20:21:09 +0000 UTCWow, I continue to be amazed at the details provided in all of your episodes. I’ve heard this story on other podcasts and tv several times, but I was still interested to listen because I knew you guys would do an excellent job! This case is definitely one of the most heartbreaking and bizarre of them all. Thanks again for your amazing work!
Mandy G
2020-08-24 19:00:10 +0000 UTCSad story. Good episode. Good work team.
Elin Thorvinger
2020-08-24 15:53:43 +0000 UTCI had never heard of this case before. I was so shocked, that the cops went very quickly to assuming the parents were involved. Gosh, it’s so desperately sad ☹️
Maya George
2020-08-24 07:43:17 +0000 UTCThank you team. Really interesting. We learn not to talk to strangers. But we see here that it is pretty easy to convince a young person to get in a car. And then they are lost.
MM
2020-08-24 05:03:51 +0000 UTCOh I reckon Casey will have that one next week .. or maybe even slightly earlier? He's tricky like that 🤭
Candice Williams
2020-08-24 02:20:40 +0000 UTCWhat an absolutely heartbreaking story.
Nicci Foster
2020-08-24 00:59:04 +0000 UTCI really enjoyed listening to this one. It’s great when you think the episode must nearly be over and then realising you’re only half way. What a horrific experience for all involved!
Erica Colliss
2020-08-24 00:28:51 +0000 UTCCentral Valley local. Always particularly terrifying when you can know of all the locations where these things are happening. It’s also interesting for one sibling to be the victim of a serious crime and one to be the perpetrator of a different serious crime. Especially considering the nature of both Cary and Steven’s “situations” are not terribly common...
Olive
2020-08-23 16:51:08 +0000 UTCI wonder if there will be an episode on Cary, as well. Awful stories, both of them. 😔
Jason Colombo
2020-08-23 14:22:39 +0000 UTCI’m kind of surprised this is only one episode! Probably one of the earliest true crime cases I remember being interested in.
Brenda Wells
2020-08-23 13:15:11 +0000 UTCThis is going to be a real sad one!
Storme
2020-08-23 09:01:40 +0000 UTC
