The tragic murder of JonBenèt Ramsey on December 25, 1996, remains one of the top unsolved murder mysteries ever. And ever since this case took center stage in the media, for months and years, I followed it pretty closely – at least for awhile. It seemed to me, that the media was trying the case in the public spotlight – and only focusing on the parents and the “pageants”. It seemed to me that no one was even considering that it could have been an intruder that killed JonBenèt – as some evidence of an intruder was found. The media (and law enforcement) focused their investigations solely on the parents and that was what was being reported.
The majority of the “facts” being reported by the media were wrong. The media constantly reported inaccuracies, made false claims, and reported rumors about “evidence” that was being fed to them without checking the “sources”. Sources that were also inaccurate, outright false allegations, rumors, and concocted “evidence” on the favor of the “parents” did it.
It is now 2012, and it has been 16 years since the brutal murder of JonBenèt Ramsey that fateful night. And the mystery of who her killer(s) are remains a mystery. This case just gets weirder with each passing year.
So I decided to read up on all the actual “facts” about this case. And oh my, there are theories abound. All kinds of theories.
Here are just a few of the theories. Of course we have the theory that John and/or Patsy Ramsey killed their daughter and covered it up. Then Burke Ramsey theories. Intruder theories. Acquaintance theories. Friendly acquaintance theories. Even a pedophile sex ring operating in Boulder theories and dozens more.
Theories of just about every kind have been proposed. Now as far as suspects, those are plentiful as well. Not only are JonBenèt’s family suspects, including John (father), Patsy (mother), Burke (brother), Melinda (half-sister) but so many others as well.
Other suspects include the “Amy Attacker”, the “Candy Can Man”, John Mark Karr, Fleet White (who found the body with John), Bill McReynolds (Santa), some unknown intruder, Randy Simons (photographer), the Ramsey neighbors the Barnhills, Jeff Merrick (former Access Graphics employee), Chris Wolf, Doug Stine, Linda Hoffman-Pugh (housekeeper), and on and on. The list doesn’t end there.
What I can finally say, is that after reading hundreds of pages of all the different websites devoted to this case and the memory of JonBenèt Ramsey, I have my own conclusions.
I’ll make this real clear. This is only my opinion of the facts that I have researched including: the available autopsy photos, autopsy findings, and videos, movies, and documentaries I’ve seen, forums, other websites, and books written about this murder case.
I do not claim to have any expertise in any field of authority or have any training of any kind that constitutes anything other than this is just my opinion on this murder case, which remains unsolved.
I have always, almost with certainty, believed that the parents of JonBenèt Ramsey had NOTHING to do with this murder. Until I started my research the last two months. Certain aspects of this case bothered me. Evidence and circumstances that just didn’t fit.
These things just gnawed at me. Over and over. They just didn’t fit. And yes, I had sleepless nights as well. I kept coming back to them. I went back and forth. No it wasn’t the Ramsey’s. Then it was. Then it was someone else. Then there was other new evidence, like DNA, that has since come to light with new technology, that seems to clear the Ramsey’s once and for all.
But–
Here are the things that bothered me:
First, the famous (3 pages) Ransom Note. Have you ever read the ransom note? Here’s a copy for you to read above. It is definitely a hoax. It is staged and there is no two ways about it. The analysis of the note that has been done by plenty of people – and their conclusions — are the same as mine. It was staged, as an after thought. The “author” of the note can’t make up it’s mind if it should be “we” and “us”, or “I”, “me”, or “my”. It isn’t like any other ransom note. It is 3 pages long, one of the longest, if not THE longest ransom note in history. It starts out describing some “small foreign faction”. Yeah right. It doesn’t get to the point. “They” have to describe who they are. Really? Most ransom notes state something like “we have your daughter, and if you ever want to see her again, do this and we’ll be contacting you”.
Another thing interesting in the note, is the fact that “they” tell John Ramsey to get the money from “his” account. Really? They have to tell him to get money from HIS account? Where else would he get the money from? Unless the writer was Patsy and they had individual and joint accounts and she inadvertently slipped when she wrote “his” account. Which is possible, right?
Another interesting thing about the note is the ending. It is definitely pointing a finger at John. Very personal towards him over and over. It just sounds like a woman wrote this note. The tone of what is said is definitely a woman’s. Many experts that have analyzed the ransom note have come to the same conclusion.
Everyone knows that the ransom note was written on and with what was found in the Ramsey home. The pad and the pen were both from their house. But did you know that there was a practice note or a draft left at the house on the same pad? It started as “Mr. and Mrs. I” and the I wasn’t finished. It was on the page just before the real ransom note. Analysis of the pad (basic legal pad) was the pages 1-12 were missing. Pages 13-16 had notes and lists. Pages 17-25 were also missing. Page 26 was the practice note with bleed through from page 25 which was missing. The actual ransom note was on pages 27,28, and 29. Since the note was so long, it took some time for someone to sit down, in the dark, and write out that note. Someone who knew they had ample time to write a rambling ransom note.
And the amount of the ransom of $118,000 is so odd you almost have to laugh. The theory here, as everyone knows, is almost the exact amount of the bonus that John Ramsey had just received. Whoever thought of that amount, was stupid. They needed to grow some balls and ask for 5 million or more. These were wealthy individuals and could afford more than a measly $118,000 for their daughter.
Okay, enough about the note.
Second thing that bothers me is the FACT that Patsy Ramsey greeted the police at the door wearing the same outfit she had worn the night before at the Christmas party. Really? Patsy was known to never wear the same outfit twice. Much less put on an outfit that she wore for parties and then wear again for a plane trip early the next morning? I don’t buy that. Something about this bothers me and others. It seems more plausible that Patsy had been up all night – covering up maybe?
The third thing that bothers me is the FACT that JonBenèt was found with underwear/panties on her that were size 12/14! That size is 3 times the size she normally wore which was size 4/6. This bothers me too. It screams that someone either redressed JonBenèt or she put them on herself for some unknown reason, like perhaps playing doctor with Burke down in the basement. And JonBenèt’s bed upstairs in her room was dry and not wet. (she was a bed wetter and theories say that is the reason Patsy snapped and killed her child.) Urine stains were found in the next room from where her body was found. Supposedly Patsy says the oversized underwear was a gift for a niece, and that it was gift wrapped and stored in the basement. Only someone from the family would have known what was in the package (a pair of underwear) and put them on JonBenèt after she urinated in her other panties in the room next door in the basement, and made her put on the oversized underwear.
The fourth things that bothers me is the circumstances of the house. This was Christmas day/night. Gifts had been opened and they lived in an upscale neighborhood. We all know that Christmas time is prime time for burglaries. And it bothers me that the alarm was not even on. That a window in the basement had supposedly been broken for over a month per John’s testimony. They were remodeling the basement and had workers in and out all the time. You would think that they could spring for fixing a broken window that someone could easily climb through. It was found that approximately 6 or 7 windows in the house were not secured and at least one door. I have a problem with that. Why have an alarm system?
The fifth thing that bothers me is the bat. A bat, not belonging to the Ramsey’s apparently, was found outside on the north side of the house. Just laying on a stone ledge, like it had been placed there and not thrown. Although a neighbor reported hearing a “clanging” sound like metal on concrete, it doesn’t appear to have been thrown but placed there on the ledge. This evidence is out of place. It doesn’t belong there. It wasn’t the murder weapon, per the experts, so why would someone have a need to place the bat outside of the house? It just doesn’t fit. But since the weapon that made the blow to JonBenèt’s head hasn’t been found, the bat could likely be the murder weapon and not the large flashlight found in the kitchen that most believe is the murder weapon. A fiber or fibers were found on the bat that matched to the carpet in the basement. So it is connected to the murder? Also, bike tracks were also found in the grass leading away from the house. Hmmmm.
A couple of other things that don’t make sense also are out of place. The bag of rope found in the guest bedroom and the Danish book, “The Grand Design” by David Pilgrim, found on the 3rd floor which is the Ramsey’s bedroom. Here is another hmmmm.
Okay the suitcase under the window in the train room also bothers me. The suitcase, which was found beneath a window, also had a small piece of broken glass on it. The contents of the suitcase; a duvet, a pillow sham, and a Dr. Seuss book was inside. The Ramsey’s recognized the suitcase but stated that it wasn’t kept in that location and the contents were kept somewhere else and not inside the suitcase. It seemed to have just been moved since no dust or debris (other than the broken glass) was found on it. Okay, so the contents to me seem like stuff that one would need for kidnapping a child. A book for her to read, a blanket, and a pillow sham to use on any pillow. Right? Or was the suitcase staged? Why would a kidnapper leave the things he gathered for the child he wants to kidnap under a window?
The last thing that really bothers me is the supposed “heart” drawn in JonBenèt’s hand. Here is a closeup of the so called “heart” above. To me, it doesn’t look like a heart. It looks more like a “V”. And I’m not the only one who thinks that it looks like a “V”. Now remember, the ransom note was signed “Victory, S.B.T.C.”. And there is speculation as to what the initials mean. Most believe it stands for “Saved by the cross”. I think the initials stand for “Saved by the child”. So all together, the note was signed “Victory, saved by the child” and that matches the “V” drawn in JonBenèt’s hand. She was sacrificed somehow in the mind of the killer.
Then just the other day, I was reading the transcript from an interview with Patsy Ramsey on 6/23/98 with the Broomfield police found at www.forumsforjustice.org (link below). At line 41, where they were asking Patsy to describe what she did when she found the note and if she screamed or yelled or ran upstairs for John or what she did – and I found this stated by Patsy:
PATSY RAMSEY: I remember my voice
4 was just cracking. I mean it was like “John”,
5 like that. I mean like, I can’t even, you know,
6 I hear my scream and I hear his scream when he
7 came up from the basement, I mean it was just a
8 horrible thing. You know, it was just –
Do you see it? She states that she could hear John’s scream as he was coming up FROM THE BASEMENT! Patsy has always said that she awoke that morning of December 25, after John, and that she could hear the shower going and assumed he was in the shower. But this totally contradicts previous statements. She is clearly stating that John was not upstairs in the shower – but coming up from the basement. For me, this is a bombshell. It shows that John was in the basement and no one knows for how long he was down there. Not even Patsy.
There are other circumstances of this case that don’t fit either. But the above are the ones that gnawed at me over and over. There just seems to be too many things that show that staging took place. Things like the Danish book, the rope in a bag, the suitcase under the window, the chair blocking the door, the ransom note, the heart in her hands, and the house not being secured, Patsy’s outfit, the oversized panties found on JonBenèt, and so on.
The Ramsey’s had all night to stage the house for a cover-up. They wrote the note, took off JonBenèt’s nightgown and tossed it aside, covered her up with a blanket, put tape over her mouth and tied her hands, drew the heart or V in her hand, broke a paint brush and made a garrote and put around her throat, stuffed some stuff in a suitcase and put under a window that could be used to enter/exit, put a chair to block a doorway, put some rope in a bag and left it in the guest bedroom, put the Danish book in their room on the dresser, and placed the bat on the stone ledge outside of the house. They left the pineapple in a bowl in the kitchen which had Patsy’s and Burke’s fingerprints, took the flashlight upstaris and then called the police. And the rest is history. Doing these things just made the evidence just baffling enough that nothing makes sense.
Either it was a bad staging of the crime or the perp was not at all sophisticated in crime. In this case, there truly is evidence that an intruder was responsible. And there is evidence that things were staged and there was a cover-up. It can’t be both. But yet there is evidence of both.
My conclusion? Well, of all the lawsuits that the Ramsey’s have filed, the only one’s they have gone after very aggressively (and won) were regarding Burke. And of all the questions that they have answered over the years, the only questions they seem to not have answered pertained to Burke. And they always denied that the unknown voice on the 911 call was Burke. Burke supposedly acknowledged that he was “pretending’ to be asleep that night. Burke was never a suspect due to his age (aged 9 at the time). And in their own book, “The death of innocence”, they strongly urged law enforcement to look at their “inner circle”. So I suspect that Patsy and John Ramsey FIGURED OUT who actually killed JonBenèt which may have included Burke or Burke told them.
Here is scenario: That Burke and an unknown friend (probably on a bike which left the tracks in the grass) were downstairs playing with JonBenèt. The friend was probably older than Burke, who was nine at the time, and more sexually curious. It was Christmas and they had plenty of toys to play with. Burke and JonBenèt must have woke up during the night and went to the kitchen to have pineapple and then to the basement to play with new toys or play “doctor”. The friend showed up and came inside. There were allegations that this wasn’t the first time that Burke had been caught playing “doctor” with JonBenèt. The older unknown friend could have been sexually assaulting JonBenèt and Burke told her they were just playing “doctor”. JonBenèt probably wet her pants while they were in the hallway, leaving the stain. Burke and his friend started making fun of JonBenèt for wetting her pants. So she gets the present for her cousin, the oversized underwear, and puts them on. Then something went wrong. Probably a blow to the head with a bat or the flashlight was stronger than anticipated and this actually knocked JonBenèt unconscious. It was just a game they were playing. It wasn’t intentional I don’t think. It was an accident. So they moved her body to the “wine cellar”. Later on, JonBenèt wakes up. So start playing again. The friend continues to do sexual things with JonBenèt. The friend makes the garrote and jokingly chokes JonBenèt as a game. But something goes wrong and she dies. Burke and his friend panicked. The friend left the house on his bike, and laid the bat on the ledge outside the house after wiping it clean. Burke ran and woke his father and he then proceeded to cover up. Why is not real clear. But since evidence supports the fact that JonBenèt had prior sexual abuse, that may be the reason that an intruder had to be arranged for the crime. Since John would surely have been accused of the sexual abuse (incest) of his daughter when the prior sexual abuse was later discovered. He had to make it look like an intruder strangled and sexually abused his daughter. Patsy may not have even been in on the cover-up. It could have all been John and Burke’s doing. But Patsy could have written the note and not knowing why. John could have woken her up and told her that something happened to JonBenèt and he needed her to write a ransom note. Patsy did so, but at the end of the note, she started getting angry that John was making her write the note and either not knowing the full truth or not knowing whether they would get caught. Or something like that.
Although almost all of the handwriting experts ruled out Patsy as the author of the ransom note, she was ambidextrous. She could have easily disguised her writing. I can even do that. I am left-handed and I can write like a left hander, a right hander, or with my right hand. I practice writing with my right hand every so often. I read where it helps you to remember things. So I practice. And looking at my writing with my right hand – no one could tell that it was my writing. So the note could have been written by Patsy in my mind despite what the experts say. And it has even
I just can’t believe that if this murder was truly an intruder that did it– then why did all the staging go on? There would be no need for staging if they were truly innocent. The only plausible explanation is that they were covering up for the only other person in the house. And that’s just my thoughts.
I can’t help but wonder what way this case would have gone if the ransom note was never written. The ransom note is the problem. Police knew it was bogus the moment they read it. That may be the reason why law enforcement never looked at anyone else but the immediate family. The ransom note was the problem from the start. If it had never been there – this case would probably have a whole different outcome.
But since DNA has come along way since 1996, new evidence has been found. Unknown male DNA has been found on 3 separate items of evidence and all 3 match the same person. So some unknown person was in the room that night. Was it the killer’s? A Hi-Tec shoe imprint has also been found that doesn’t belong to the Ramseys. Other evidence found: partial handprint, a palm print, pubic hair on the blanket, scuff marks under the basement window, hair, fingernail scrapings with unknown male DNA,and several fibers from various places. Law enforcement, the D.A.’s office, and prosecutors have all completely cleared the Ramsey’s of this crime due to the DNA evidence. But the DNA has yet to be identified to a person. Is it yet a still unknown friend of Burke’s or the family? An intruder – one who brought a bag of rope, a book written in Danish, a bat, but not the note? Instead spent plenty of time in the house writing more than one ransom note, and didn’t leave an obvious point of entry or exit but snuck around the whole house leaving the book, the rope bag, the bat outside, and strangled JonBenèt in the basement with a flashlight from the kitchen, without being heard?
Look, we all have different faces. Ones that the public sees and ones that no one sees that are behind closed doors. We never know what goes on behind doors. Many murderers have shocked people who knew them and never would have thought them capable. But it happens. It isn’t pretty. It’s quite sick actually. But nonetheless, it happens in this world.
I have always, as I followed this case, believed the Ramsey’s were getting prosecuted by the media circus that ensued when the case went public, a trial by media they say. I was certain that the family had nothing to do with it. But after spending the last two months reading everything that I could find, I had to change my thinking. The family didn’t kill their daughter. But they DO KNOW WHO DID and helped cover it up. The Boulder police screwed up from the start and everyone knows it – even they admit that. The house wasn’t secured, they didn’t do proper searches of the house, people were coming and going, and they didn’t take the note seriously at first. It was just a bad investigation by the police all around. They weren’t the ones that even found the body! It was Fleet White and John Ramsey that found the body. And then the police let John move the body from the basement to upstairs. Then officer Arndt moved the body again! Critical evidence was compromised from the start. It’s just too bad. JonBenèt was a beautiful child, and had her entire life ahead of her. She deserves to have her killer brought to justice.
I don’t believe, from any of the evidence, that the parent’s of JonBenèt, John or Patsy, killed her. They didn’t have anything to do with her death. And the evidence went to a grand jury twice, and both times they said there wasn’t any evidence of either parent being involved, despite what law enforcement believed. But my top suspects would probably be Burke or more likely, a friend of Burke’s. I have a suspicion that whoever the “Secret Santa” was, was probably the one that was involved. It was someone close to the family. And John and/or Patsy knew who it was, but for some reason only they know, they had to cover it up. Maybe we will never know the truth – but I am sure that given the evidence, the circumstances, and the people involved, that this murder mystery can be solved.
There have obviously been several books written on this murder mystery as well as movies, documentaries, and websites, all devoted to the memory and murder of JonBenèt. First, the Ramsey’s themselves wrote a book titled “Death of Innocence”. A mini-series “Perfect Murder, Perfect Town” was aired on CBS, from the book by Lawrence Schiller, that spurred interest into the cold case. Former detective on the case, Steve Thomas, wrote “JonBenèt-Inside the Ramsey Murder Investigation”. Other books include: “The Case That Haunts Us” by John Douglas. “Presumed Guilty: An Investigation into the JonBenèt Ramsey Case, Media, and the Culture of Porn” by Stephen Singular. “Foreign Faction: Who Really Kidnapped JonBenèt?” by James Kolar. “Who Killed JonBenèt Ramsey” by Cyril H. Wecht and Charles Bosworth Jr. And “In My Opinion, JonBenèt Ramsey: The Travesty of Innocence- Now Hear the Truth” by John Walker. “A Little Girl’s Dream? A JonBenèt Ramsey Story” by Eleanor Von Duyke. “Death of a Little Princess: The Tragic Story of the Murder of JonBenèt Ramsey” by Carlton Smith. “The Other Side of Suffering: The Father of JonBenèt Ramsey Tells the Story of his Journey from Grief to Grace” by John Ramsey. “An Evening with JonBenèt Ramsey” by Walter A. Davis. Even Linda Hoffman, a possible suspect, wrote a book “The Death of Innocent”, but I can’t find where it was ever published. And there are probably more.
I have read more websites, books, forums, comments from others, and seen every documentary possible than I could possibly list. The best place to learn all the details, and I mean almost every detail from the beginning is at JonBenèt Ramsey Case Encyclopedia –link below http://jonbenetramsey.pbworks.com/w/page/11682477/FrontPage
Just some of the sources:
http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/ramsey/index_1.html
http://jonbenetramsey.pbworks.com/w/page/11682477/FrontPage
http://www.forumsforjustice.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9945
http://www.topix.com/news/jonbenet-ramsey
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JonBen%C3%A9t_Ramsey
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142791
http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/ramsey/it_5b.html
http://www.acandyrose.com/crimescene-thebody.htm
http://crimeshots.com/CrimeScene1.html
