The Girl in the Box

The Girl in the Box tells the story of Colleen Stan, who was abducted in 1977 while hitchhiking across California. She was picked up by Cameron Hooker, who was travelling with his wife and daughter. Cameron later dropped his family off, then forced Colleen into a homemade box that covered only her head and was designed to prevent anyone from hearing her scream.

Hooker then took Colleen home, assaulted and raped her, and confined her in a coffin-sized box where she remained for months at a time, surviving on table scraps that Hooker gave her. He used these tactics to break Colleen’s spirit and turn her into his slave. Janice, Hooker’s wife, knew what he was doing but allowed it to happen so that Colleen suffered at the hands of her husband rather than herself. Colleen eventually escaped after seven years in captivity and contacted the police.

The Girl in the Box ends with a shocking twist, as a series of love letters written by Colleen to Cameron allowed his lawyer to argue that, despite the abduction, the sexual acts were consensual.