JonBenet

*Warning – The information you are about to read may include discussions of true crimes, graphic details, and crime scenes, this may be too graphic for some people, please use discretion when reading*

Today’s case, is currently unsolved. In 1996, the United States learned of the death of a six year old child, and were saddened that her murderer was never brought to justice. Many theories surround the death of JonBenet Ramsey, and many people believe the murderer was someone she knew and lived with; her parents John and Patsy Ramsey.

JonBenet was born August 6, 1990 and was a beautiful child. Her mother, Patsy, a former beauty queen herself, entered JonBenet into many child beauty pageants, where JonBenet won several trophies and titles.

On December 25, 1996, JonBenet was reported missing at 5:52am MST. Her mother, Patsy, called 911 and police arrived on the scene within 3 minutes. The police officers conducted a cursory search of the house but did not find any sign of forced entry. A ransom note had been left in the home containing specific instructions for a ransom and contacting the police.

John Ramsey, made arrangements to pay the ransom. Believing that the child had been kidnapped, her bedroom was the only one cordoned off to prevent contamination of evidence, no other precautions were made to prevent this in the rest of the house. Friend of the family, the family minister, victim advocates, all were in the house, picking up and cleaning surfaces in the kitchen, possibly destroying evidence along the way. Boulder Colorado detectives arrived at 8:00am MST, awaiting the kidnapper’s instructions, however there was no attempt by anyone to claim the money.

At 1:00pm MST, Detectives asked John Ramsey and a family friend to search the house to see “if anything seemed amiss”. They began in the basement, and started with a latched door that police previously overlooked. In one of the rooms, John Ramsey found the body of his daughter. JonBenet was covered with duct tape, a nylon cord around her wrists and neck and her body covered by a white blanket.

John picked up the body of his daughter, taking her upstairs, contaminating the crime scene and critical forensic evidence was further disturbed or destroyed. The autopsy determined that JonBenet was killed by strangulation, and a skull fracture. Her death was ruled as a homicide.

The entire Ramsey family had submitted handwriting, blood, and hair samples to the police. Originally the Boulder police focused solely on John and Patsy, however in October of 1997, they had over 1,600 persons of interest for the case.

Because of many errors at the crime scene including, loss or contamination of evidence, lack of experienced or technical staff, evidence shared with the Ramsey’s and delayed formal interviews with the parents, complicated the investigation.

In 1999, a grand jury returned a recommendation to charge the Ramsey’s with placing the child at risk in a way that lead to her death and also obstructing an investigation of murder. However, the District Attorney’s office did not prosecute them.

There are currently two theories about JonBenet Ramsey’s murder; Family member theory, and Intruder theory. Police focused on Patsy Ramsey. Stating Patsy in a fit of rage, after a bedwetting episode, struck and JonBenet and strangled her to cover up what happened. The Ramsey’s son Burke was not considered a suspect in the murder.

The other theory states, there was an intruder due to an unidentified boot mark in the room where JonBenet’s body was found. This theory was strongly supported by the District Attorney’s office, and anyone working on the case was told to not voice opposition to the theory.

To this day, no formal charges have been made to anyone regarding the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. The case of JonBenet Ramsey is still considered active at the Boulder Police Department however no new leads have come up.

So my true crime sleuths, what are your opinions on the JonBenet Ramsey case? Do you feel she was murdered by a family member or an intruder? Is there a major coverup in the Boulder Police Department and the District Attorney’s office? We may never know. Please feel free to share your thoughts about this case with me in the comments or even recommend a case you would like to hear more about.

Remain ever alert, make good choices, stay safe