GIST: There’s new hope that one of the greatest murder mysteries in American history might soon be solved.
Six-year-old JonBenét Ramsey was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her family’s Boulder, Colorado home nearly three decades ago. But with new Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn now in charge of the investigation, her father, John Ramsey, said he now feels like there might be a light at the end of the tunnel.
“They were just open to sincerely discuss the case,” Ramsey said to NBC, after meeting the new police chief on Monday, Jan. 27, 2025. “I’m just very impressed with the caliber of the leadership now and that gave me great hope.”
The cold case received renewed attention from the public after the recent release of a documentary featuring John Ramsey and others with knowledge of the case.
Keep reading to see what evidence John Ramsey hopes is re-tested all these years later.
John Ramsey, now 81, and his now-deceased wife, Patricia, along with their son, Burke, were often suspected of killing their daughter. But it wasn’t until 2008 that prosecutors cleared the family of JonBenét’s murder. Part of the reasoning was new DNA testing, not available in 1996, found a genetic profile of a male that does not belong to anyone in the Ramsey family — pointing to an outsider as the murderer, NBC reported.
“They kept that result secret from the D.A. — certainly from us,” John Ramsey told NBC. “The problem that police had is it’d conflict with their conclusion the family were the killers.”
He added, “Our family reputation has been damaged quite severely by the police. The only way it will be mostly restored is if there is a killer caught.”
What DNA evidence does John Ramsey want to see tested in JonBenét's murder?
Ramsey told Denver’s ABC station he spoke to the new police chief, as well as the district attorney and others from the department, for close to two hours. He said most of the conversation focused on using genetic genealogy to test evidence for DNA. Though he didn't disclose the evidence discussed, John Ramsey has previously shared that he wants the Boulder P.D. to re-examine the ransom letter, the garrote used to strangle JonBenét, and other items.
“If we do that, I believe there’s a pretty good chance we can identify the killer. I really do,” he told Denver7.
Ramsey said he himself brought a DNA expert to the meeting.
“I wanted to make sure the police understood the latest technologies that are available today for good DNA testing and research,” he told People magazine. “I guess the takeaway for me was that the police finally have competent leadership in place, and they haven’t had that, in my judgement, for 10, 8, or 28 years. A big improvement in leadership. And that’s encouraging, and that’s really step one, because nothing was gonna happen until that changed. I think they’re committed.”
John Ramsey explained that he didn’t have confirmation if or when the DNA might be tested.
Boulder police also gave an update to Denver7, and confirmed that the new chief met with John Ramsey, but added, “Beyond that, we cannot answer specific questions because this is an active and ongoing homicide investigation.”
The entire story can be read at:
https://www.oxygen.com/crime-news/jonbenet-ramsey-case-update-dna-evidence-test-what-to-know
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
