“Stalking Samantha”: Survivor of TC Crime Shares Story in New Hulu Doc

A decade-long stalking case took an even more horrific turn in 2022 when Samantha Stites was abducted from her home, taken to a soundproof bunker inside a Blair Township storage unit, and held hostage and sexually assaulted over a 13-hour period. She eventually convinced her attacker, Christopher Thomas, to let her go – leading to his arrest and eventual imprisonment on a 40-60-year sentence. Though still healing from her trauma, Stites is now sharing her story in a three-part national series premiering this week on Hulu in the hopes of empowering other victims and advocating for system reform.

Stalking Samantha: 13 Years of Terror tells the story of how Stites – an Elk Rapids native – came to meet Thomas while at Grand Valley State University in 2011. A socially awkward man several years her senior, Thomas latched on to Stites and soon became convinced they would be married. He showed up at her workplace with flowers, followed her to Elk Rapids, applied for the same out-of-state internship, and refused to listen when she repeatedly asked him to leave her alone.

Those actions prompted Stites to file for a personal protection order (PPO) in Antrim County in 2014, which was granted. Then-Judge Norman Hayes said he’d never “seen a stalking case as severe as this,” worrying that Stites was at significant risk of harm and issuing the longest PPO he’d ever granted: six years. That bought Stites an extended period of relative peace – until the PPO expired in 2020. Soon after, Thomas began appearing at Stites’ Traverse City gym, the grocery store, her weekly soccer games, and more. Detectives would later confirm Thomas hid a tracker on her car, though Stites was baffled at the time by how Thomas always seemed to know where she was.

Worried about his escalating actions, Stites sought another PPO in 2022 in Grand Traverse County. Judge Kevin Elsenheimer rejected the request, with court documents citing a perceived “complicated” relationship between Stites and Thomas. The court later said in a statement that Stites “had not alleged sufficient specific facts to show that immediate and irreparable injury would occur prior to a hearing, and that her ex parte PPO lacked a copy of the first (Antrim County PPO),” according to the documentary. Stites was offered a hearing, “but did not pursue it as she feared that Christopher would become angry when notified to attend,” filmmakers noted. Receipts show that shortly after learning of the PPO denial, Thomas began constructing his soundproof bunker.

On October 7, 2022, Thomas entered Stites’ home in the early morning hours, bound and gagged her, and drove her and her dog to the storage unit. He told her he planned to hold her for two weeks and leave her paddleboard on Lake Michigan to fake her death. He was inspired by the Netflix show You, he said – a popular series about an obsessive serial killer who stalks and traps women in a cage. Drawing on her training in social work, Stites tried to remain calm and reason with Thomas. Eventually, she agreed under duress to sleep with him on the condition that he release her that same night, promising they would remain friends and she wouldn’t call the police. Thomas eventually let her go, after which she called a neighbor to drive her to Munson and endured 11 hours in the hospital for a forensic exam and detective interviews. Thomas was arrested soon after, describing the attack simply as consensual “role playing” that went too far. He pleaded not guilty to home invasion, kidnapping, torture, aggravated stalking, and four counts of first degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC).

After eventually accepting a plea deal – the CSC and home invasion charges were dropped – Thomas was sentenced in February 2024, also in front of Elsenheimer. Stites described the anguish of the attack to the courtroom. “I wondered if I would ever see daylight again…I spent 13 hours in this makeshift prison, weighing my options, on alert, and in constant fear of bodily harm and death,” she said. Stites spoke of having to take time off work to recover, struggling to sleep or feel safe, receiving PTSD medications and therapy, and eventually selling her house and moving. “I know not all victims survive crimes like these,” she told Elsenheimer. “I never want to worry about him hurting me or another woman ever again.”

Citing his risk to others and seeming inability to be rehabilitated – Thomas had been convicted in a prior stalking case before meeting Stites – Elsenheimer went beyond the sentencing guidelines and sentenced Thomas, then 39 years old, to an effective life sentence of 40-60 years in prison. Eighteen months later, Stites – who remains in northern Michigan employed in social work – tells The Ticker she’s still on a healing journey. However, she now feels in a strong enough place to share her story with a wider audience. While a few producers approached Stites about a potential project, studio Bigger Bang – which eventually landed a deal with ABC News Studio/Hulu – shared Stites’ goals for her story, she says.

“I didn’t want something to be sensationalized…I didn’t want to be a zoo animal,” she says. “I wanted it to be beneficial to the public, to help with social change. I wanted victims to have less shame, and to honor those who haven’t survived.” Stites has been featured on Good Morning America, People, and ABC News this week to discuss her story and the Tuesday premiere of Stalking Samantha.

Stites hopes the Hulu series – which features numerous Elk Rapids and Traverse City locations, individuals, and reenactment scenes – will “get a conversation going” about victim advocacy and system reform, including for PPOs. Stalking Samantha notes that following Stites’ PPO denial in 2022, the Circuit Court “changed its policy to require referees (to) obtain and examine any prior PPOs before making a recommendation to the court.”

Stites has launched an initiative dedicated to protecting victims of stalking, domestic violence, and abduction called Beekeepers Advocacy (the bedsheets in the bunker had bees on them, and Stites’ middle name is Beatrice – both influences on the name). “I want to get more into advocacy work, speaking engagements, providing resources, and educating other professionals,” she says. Among other issues, better mental health support – both for victims and perpetrators – is a pressing need in many communities. That topic has reared its head not only with the premiere of Stalking Samantha but the recent mass stabbing attack at Walmart. Even as a trained therapist herself, Stites says it wasn’t easy finding the right support services following her assault – which she knows means it’s even harder for people outside the system to navigate it.

“I think there’s definitely a bigger conversation in terms of mental health services,” she says. “People knew there was some kind of issue with (Thomas). But you can’t force people into getting help, and the resources aren’t always there. I deal with that on a day-to-day basis with my job – people who want help but can’t consistently get it. There are not a lot of checks and balances in place in our area. I’m pleased with the increasing number of options in Traverse City, but I think there’s a lot that could be done still.”