Were JonBenét Ramsey’s Parents Railroaded?

As a seasoned investigator with decades of experience under my belt, I must say that the JonBenet Ramsey case has always been one of the most intriguing and confounding mysteries in criminal history. Having delved into countless cases myself, I can attest to the fact that the line between innocence and guilt is often blurred, and this case certainly does not deviate from that norm.

Three decades have passed since the death of JonBenét Ramsey, yet her murder remains an officially unsolved case. This tragic event has become a timeless enigma in the world of crime mysteries. Detectives and enthusiasts alike are still debating the circumstances: on bustling online forums like Reddit, through podcasts and network documentaries. The theories can be categorized into two main groups: Was the murder an internal affair involving someone from the family, perhaps John and Patsy or even their older son Burke? Or was it an outside crime, with an intruder somehow breaching the security of their luxurious home in Boulder?

The case was perplexing from the moment Patsy found a ransom note the morning of December 26, 1996. “Listen carefully,” began the three-page letter. It went on to blame a “foreign faction” for her daughter’s disappearance and requested $118,000 from her husband, Access Graphics CEO John, for her safe return. The onetime Miss West Virginia called 911 in a panic. The note, the FBI later said, felt like it was staged rather than written by a stranger actually seeking ransom after a kidnapping.

The level of suspicion grew significantly when John discovered JonBenét’s body later that day, located in a concealed room within the basement, bound and strangled using a garrote. However, it wasn’t just this discovery that sparked widespread interest; footage of JonBenét’s beauty pageants, which had previously been largely obscured from public view, suddenly flooded into homes through channels like Toddlers & Tiaras. Before these shows made pageant mothers cultural icons, the world was largely unaware of this subculture. The chilling images of the little girl adorned with teased hair and heavy makeup were repeatedly broadcast on cable television around the clock, while news broadcasters debated the case endlessly. The parents’ constant association with lawyers and spokespeople only fueled public suspicion.

Over time, numerous theories were developed. In 1998, a grand jury was summoned to examine accusations against the Ramseys, but it appears that no action was taken following this. With no court proceedings to distinguish truth from falsehood, there was an explosion of information: books, dramatized TV shows, documentaries, and the growing realm of true-crime online discussions on platforms like message boards and forums. This trend persists. Message boards have been replaced by Reddit, and Usenet forums by it. The focus of theories has narrowed to specific family members. Additionally, a new scripted series is set to debut on Paramount+, with Melissa McCarthy portraying Patsy and Clive Owen playing John.

Netflix’s “Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey,” directed by Joe Berlinger, doesn’t present a fresh perspective on the case. The three-part documentary series argues for an intruder as the culprit, but it does so by highlighting errors made by the police and prosecutors, which is a common theme in modern true-crime content. Berlinger, known for his 1996 work “Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills,” focused on three teenagers (the West Memphis Three) who were convicted of murdering four boys. This documentary delved into the moral panic sparked by the violent deaths of children, and it was widely praised for contributing to the eventual release of the teens.

As I sat in the dark theater, Cold Case unfolded before me, echoing many of the same profound queries about motives and control that Paradise Lost once posed. This time, however, the storytellers have access to John, a man who remarried post-Patsy’s ovarian cancer demise in 2006 and now resides in Utah. Paula Woodward, an author who collaborated with him on two books about the case, also lends her voice to the narrative.

The narrative of “Cold Case” kicks off with the perplexity at the Ramsey residence the day following the murder. The law enforcement officials engaged in the investigation chose not to engage with Berlinger. However, in the documentary series, John asserts that authorities and journalists disseminated false information. John highlights an incident where Linda Arndt, a detective on the scene, became convinced of his guilt after the discovery of JonBenét’s body. Later, in an infamous interview, she stated that a silent interaction with John led to her conclusion. However, John, who was the CEO of a billion-dollar company that year, was treated respectfully by the police from the outset. The officers perceived him and Patsy as victims of a kidnapping rather than potential suspects. Unlike a typical crime scene, the home was not cordoned off. Instead, they invited victim advocates, and the Ramseys welcomed friends from their neighborhood to their residence for emotional support.

Essentially, the events of that day may have led to the situation becoming irrevocably tainted, effectively preventing any definitive solutions from arising. This wasn’t due to suspicions towards the Ramseys, but rather, quite the opposite: they were not under suspicion. However, the series suggests that law enforcement portrayed the Ramseys negatively. The police argued there were no footprints in the snow suggesting an intruder, yet John claimed it hadn’t snowed at all. He asserts that the police spread false information about him taking JonBenét’s casket on his plane to their second home in Atlanta, which he did not do.

Initially, the FBI deemed it unlikely that an intruder was involved and advised investigating the Ramsey family first. The police explored possibilities suggesting JonBenét may have been subjected to sexual abuse. The series challenges the idea that worsening bed-wetting around the time of the murder could be indicative of sexual abuse. In this series, John appears unconcerned as he dismisses the police consultation with former Miss America Marilyn Van Derbur, an expert on incest, who warned the police that a seemingly normal and image-conscious family wasn’t proof against abuse.

As a movie buff, I’d rephrase it like this: Initially, the investigation focused on John, but it wasn’t long before the cops shifted their attention to Patsy. Detective Steve Thomas, however, was convinced that Patsy had committed a heinous act – the murder of her own daughter. He hypothesized that the impending milestone of her 40th birthday pushed her over the edge, perhaps due to something as seemingly trivial as bed-wetting. Interestingly, it was Thomas’s theory that gained traction. Given his influential position within the department, he carried more weight than Arndt, who was convinced of Patsy’s innocence.

True-crime series often blend human drama with forensics, as seen in the portrayal of the Ramseys as unsympathetic figures throughout many shows. However, the series Cold Case doesn’t fully explore how some close friends of the Ramseys found their initial unwillingness to cooperate with police as unethical, despite providing DNA samples in 1996 and declining official interrogations. Instead, they chose to give interviews on television, such as Patsy’s interview on CNN in early January 1997, where she expressed concern about a “killer on the loose.” It wasn’t until April that they visited police headquarters for questioning. Their high social status might have caused misunderstandings and tension between them and both friends and law enforcement, yet this question remains unaddressed by the documentary due to its portrayal of the Ramseys as wronged parties.

The show, however, zeroes in on the most sensational instances of media’s accusations during that period. On the program Geraldo, a staged trial occurred, with a supposed expert asserting a video of JonBenét wielding a trumpet as proof of sexual abuse; one panelist labeled her a “miniature dwarf hooker dressed provocatively.” The series Cold Case, by oversimplifying the conflict’s nuances, lacks depth in its analysis. As detailed in Lawrence Schiller’s comprehensive 2000 book Perfect Murder, Perfect Town, the Boulder District Attorney operated under a liberal culture, favoring community policing and plea bargains over court trials.

Detective Thomas found himself at odds with the liberal community of Boulder, and District Attorney Alex Hunter doubted Thomas’s theories regarding Patsy Ramsey. In 1998, Hunter enlisted detective Lou Smit due to his success in solving a previous murder and kidnapping case. Later, Smit proposed that the Ramseys, being people of faith, could not have murdered their daughter. He advanced an unverified “stun gun” hypothesis, suggesting that two marks on JonBenét’s body were similar in size to a stun gun used to silence her, indicating an intruder. The documentary revisits these assertions, portraying Smit as a “Sherlock Holmes” figure without questioning his credibility. However, the series fails to critically evaluate Smit’s, as well as Arndt’s and Thomas’s, work, revealing that their investigative methods were significantly influenced by personal biases. Arndt’s experience with female survivors shaped her perspective on Patsy as a victim, while John as a suspect. Thomas’s prejudice against Patsy seemed to border on misogynistic assumptions about women’s behavior at 40. Smit’s religious connection with the Ramseys was equally unprofessional.

In 1998, Hunter transferred the case to a grand jury, and both Thomas and Smit provided testimony. The grand jury chose to indict the Ramseys for neglect of a child. However, during his announcement following the grand jury’s completion of work in 1999, District Attorney Hunter stated that there was not enough evidence for prosecution. It appears that by not disclosing the grand jury’s decision, he may have shielded the Ramseys from potential political backlash – a move possibly intended to safeguard himself. Subsequently, Thomas and Smit stepped down in dissent.

It wasn’t certain whether or not the Ramseys were aware that the grand jury had decided to indict them. This significant event remained unknown to the public until a judge compelled the disclosure of the charging documents in 2013. Despite being under no suspicion, the Ramseys remained quite active. They authored a popular book titled “The Death of Innocence,” detailing their alleged mistreatment by law enforcement. Michael Tracey, a communication professor, collaborated with them on a documentary about the supposed media campaign against them. He resurfaces in “Cold Case” as a commentator.

As a devoted cinephile, I found the final episode particularly intriguing as it delved into long-dormant leads concerning potential suspects within the pageant circuit. However, what truly caught my attention was the sense of mystery that shrouded the series regarding the police or FBI theories. Initially, the series emphasized that DNA evidence discovered on JonBenét – on her garments and beneath her nails – didn’t implicate the family, and that this information had been concealed by the authorities. Yet, by the end, the documentary confessed that it remained uncertain whether this genetic material, which might simply be degraded touch DNA, could clear or incriminate anyone at all.

The Cold Case appears to be an unusual case with exceptions, as several aspects of it challenge typical understanding. For instance, the length of the ransom note, the improbability of a stranger kidnapping for ransom, and the discovery of the alleged kidnap victim in her own home make it hard to apply general principles. In 2008, Mary Lacy, the new district attorney of Boulder, took an uncommon and unprecedented action by apologizing to the Ramseys and seemingly clearing their names. “I’d receive letters for years saying, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry,'” John says in the documentary. Given the media and police portrayal, it is understandable why people would express sympathy towards them.

In a more recent phase of his life, John – now a married grandfather – appears very different from the litigious person who initially hired lawyer L. Lin Wood to sue media outlets for libel. This attorney has since been disbarred. Later, John ran as a Republican for a congressional seat and wrote two additional books asserting his innocence. However, it’s important to note that John’s prominence in the narrative, both in the docuseries and his books, has served to obscure the fact that the “Patsy did it” theory played a significant role in bringing the case before a grand jury. This raises questions about potential gender bias in cases where victims are often wrongly suspected. For instance, less resourceful parents, especially mothers, might have easily been railroaded in similar circumstances. Regrettably, this documentary does not delve into broader context or patterns regarding law enforcement limitations or their interactions with district attorneys.

Instead, while attempting to portray John’s viewpoint as indisputable fact, the show “Cold Case” inadvertently underscores the complexities and potential biases inherent in all the legal and scientific details surrounding this case.

The show excels in counterbalancing certain sensationalized conspiracy theories that have been amplified on platforms, such as the 2017 CBS special falsely accusing Burke of killing his sister, an allegation he refutes. In contrast, a film from the same year, Casting JonBenet, explored a different approach. It interviewed local actors in Boulder for a purported casting call for a fictional series about the Ramseys, thereby eliciting their speculations and personal ties to the case. Essentially, it offered an intricate examination of how the Boulder community processed the murder mystery over time.

Fundamentally, the argument stays persuasive as a captivating gothic-mystery hook for sleuths. For individuals who suspect the Ramseys were involved, the case implies that wickedness may reside within, suggesting that wealth and power can conceal domestic wrongdoings. On the other hand, for those who advocate an intruder, the narrative reinforces the belief that danger might originate from outside sources. In its clearest expression, Cold Case conveys this latter perspective. However, it may not be sufficient to quell the ongoing speculation.

2024-11-23 02:55

Were JonBenét Ramsey’s Parents Railroaded?

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