JonBenet Ramsey murder case sees renewed hope with DNA testing advances
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It’s been nearly 30 years since the haunting Christmastime murder of JonBenet Ramsey, and there’s renewed optimism that investigators may be closer than ever to solving the case.
Boulder police, who have made little visible progress in the case for years, said this month that the investigation “remains a top priority.”
“Techniques and technology are constantly evolving,” Chief Stephen Redfearn of the police department in Boulder, Colorado, said in a video statement. “This is especially true for technology related to DNA testing.”
JONBENET RAMSEY’S FATHER AND POLICE MEET FOR ‘IMPORTANT’ DISCUSSION ABOUT UNSOLVED CHILDREN’S SHOW STAR’S MURDER
This composite photo shows JonBenet Ramsey before her 1996 murder and her father, John Ramsey, in a 2022 interview with Fox News Digital. The case remains unsolved, and he has advocated for years for authorities to conduct new DNA testing on evidence from the December 26, 1996, murder. (Left and attached: Courtesy of the Ramsey family, Right: Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
JonBenet’s father, John Ramsey, met with Boulder police last January and said it was an “important meeting.” He told Fox News Digital earlier this year that he asked the department to accept help from a private genetics laboratory with a track record of solving other cold cases.
In a September interview with Fox News Digital, he implored President Donald Trump to intervene in the case.
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JonBenet Ramsey sits with her father, John Ramsey, in an undated family photo. (Netflix)
“I told the DA that money should not be restrictive here,” he said during an interview at CrimeCon in Denver. “I need to get Donald Trump on them. He’s going to mess things up one way or another, but we have to get them to do it somehow.”
He said he believes continued advances in forensic genetic genealogy could be the key to solving the case.
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“I firmly believe this is the gold standard today,” Ramsey said. “I was pushing so hard on what I thought needed to happen, and I don’t know that they did it. I know they listened, but I don’t know where they were mentally in terms of making it happen.”
Ramsey echoed his sentiments in an interview this month Via Daily MailHe added that leaders at advanced DNA laboratories informed him that investigative genetic genealogy results require only a small sample to be obtained; He also emphasized that he believes there is a 70% chance of identifying his daughter’s killer within months.
“IGG is a very powerful tool; just use it,” Ramsey told the outlet. “If they do that and come back empty handed, it’s the least I can thank you for, you’ve tried everything you can so far.”
“It’s that simple. But if you’re just following incoming clues, that’s primitive behavior.”
JONBENET RAMSEY’S FATHER ASKED TRUMP FOR HELP IN HIS DAUGHTER’S UNSOLVED MURDER CASE
Ramsey also noted the list of potential suspects compiled by legendary homicide detective Lou Smit in the 1990s; Smith claimed that his daughter’s killer was someone who held a grudge against Ramsey.
“Lou Smith’s list [of potential persons of interest] Ramsey told the Mail: “There are so many clues but using DNA makes this case solvable.”
Ramsey, who had previously been a vocal critic of the Boulder Police Department’s handling of the case, is now praising investigators in light of the new developments.
Ramsey “This is encouraging” he told NewsNation. “The key to really moving forward has been getting new leadership in there. It wasn’t very good for 25, 26 years. And now, knowing Chief Redfearn from the outside, I’ve met with him three or four times. I’m impressed with him. I think he’s sincere and honest.”
“The problem with the old leadership was the old guard. These people in the police department had never investigated a murder.”
JonBenet Ramsey’s parents, John and Patsy Ramsey, meet with a small group selected from local Colorado media in Boulder, Colorado, on May 1, 1997, after four months of silence. (Helen H. Richardson/Denver Post via Getty Images)
Although Boulder police have been resistant to sacrificing a few past samples for new testing, Redfearn is the department’s new leader and could change course.
There are items inside the bag that have never been tested.
“The most important thing was the garrote that was used to strangle my daughter,” Ramsey told the Mail.
“I was told there had to be DNA evidence on it because it was such a complex knot and the assumption was that this creature couldn’t tie that knot while wearing gloves, so this was an actual piece that we wanted tested or retested.”
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JonBenet was reported missing by her mother, Patsy Ramsey, on December 26, 1996, after she found a ransom note demanding $118,000. John Ramsey found her body in the basement of their Boulder home the same day.
JonBenet Ramsey, who was found murdered in her Boulder home in 1996, may see her case revived as new DNA technology offers hope for answers. (Courtesy of the Ramsey family)
An autopsy revealed that JonBenet died from asphyxiation and blunt force trauma to the head, and DNA testing revealed that her family had been ruled out as suspects early on.
Boulder police said they followed up “every lead” they received over the years, including interviewing more than 1,000 people and sorting through more than 21,000 tips.
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Anyone with information about the unsolved case, including the killer, is asked to contact the Boulder Police Department at BouldersMostWanted@bouldercolorado.gov or the department’s tip line at 303-441-1974.
“It is never too late for anyone with information about this horrific crime to come forward and I urge those responsible for this murder to contact us,” Redfearn said.
