Career
Seven years earlier, Parnell had snatched seven-year-old Steven Stayner as he walked home from school. As Steven grew towards adulthood, Parnell was motivated to take another small boy to fulfill his paedophilic urges and, on February 14, 1980, he abducted five-year-old Timmy from his home in Ukiah, California. While Parnell was working as a security guard on March 1, 1980, the boys escaped, and Steven took Timmy back to Ukiah and handed him over to the police.
This event precipitated both of the children being reunited with their families.
Parnell was tried and convicted of the abduction of Timmy and Steven in two separate trials. He was sentenced to seven years for the abduction of Timmy but was paroled after serving five years.
Parnell was not charged with the numerous sexual assaults on Steven Stayner and other boys because most of them occurred outside the jurisdiction of the Merced county prosecutor or were by then outside the statute of limitations. Timmy forged a bond with Steven during the 16 days he was held in Parnell"s custody and spoke favorably of how the older boy took care of him.
Timothy James "Timmy" White later became a Los Angeles County Sheriff"s Department Deputy.
He died on April 1, 2010, at age 35 from pulmonary embolism, 21 years after Stayner"s death and 2 years after Parnell"s death. On August 28, 2010, a statue of Steven and Timmy was dedicated in Applegate Park in Merced, California. Residents of Ukiah, the hometown of White, carved a statue showing a teenage Steven with young Timmy in hand while escaping their captivity.