Would anyone mind answering some questions I have about the case? Ive been reading and searching this site for a month or so now, and I thought it might be quicker to just ask, especially since Im having trouble corroborating certain facts. I am behind on the case and not quite as seasoned as posters here appear to be, so please bear with me. Please don't hesitate to respond if you only know 1 or 2 answers.
I will do my best.
1. One of the Ramseys neighbors said they heard a scream the night of the murder, but then I read that they took it back and that they had never heard any scream. Does anyone know what the truth is? Or why the said this?
When investigators were conducting their initial canvas of the neighborhood the neighbor across the street, Melody Stanton, said she didn't want to become involved and that she had heard nothing unusual that night. On a follow-up canvas of the neighborhood she told investigators that she had gone to bed about 10:00 pm on Christmas night, that her bedroom window faced the Ramsey house, and that she thought she heard a child scream sometime between midnight and 2:00 am. She later recanted this statement. The only person that knows the truth about what she heard that night is Melody Stanton.
2. Was anyone ever apprehended for the large amount of break-ins in the neighborhood before Dec.26th?
In an affluent neighborhood just before Christmas, when there are sure to be wrapped presents laying about, thieves will take advantage of the situation. The burglaries stopped after the murder, but with the increased level of police in the neighborhood, including video-taping vehicles in the area, this isn't a surprise.
3. John Ramsey showered right before Patsy found the ransom note. Was the bathroom and shower ever checked for any kind of evidence?
All the bathrooms were searched for trace evidence, but this would not likely have produced any remarkable evidence since there was no blood from the blunt force trauma to Jon Benet's head, and fiber and hair evidence would have been on his clothes. His testimony was that he went to take a shower after waking up, prior to the 05:30 alarm, while Patsy continued to sleep.
4. Did the Ramseys own or ever see the movies Dirty Harry, Ruthless People?
Unknown, nor can this information ever be known to a certainty. A copy of the film "Speed" was found in the house, but John Ramsey asserts he never saw the film. The use of the phrase "Don't try to grow a brain" is from that movie, and that phrase was found in the "ransom note", although that could merely be a coincidence.
5. Does anyone know if John had any knowledge about police procedures regarding crime scenes?
There is nothing in his education or background to suggest John Ramsey had any such explicit knowledge, but anyone with a library card can read up on police procedures.
6. Looking at the floor plans and pictures of the Ramsey house in Boulder, wouldn't it be possible for an intruder to have broken in and waited for the family to come home and go to bed without being detected? Would anyone on the 3rd or 4th floor really hear someone sneaking around in the basement?
There was no evidence that any of the locks were tampered with on any of the doors or windows. John Ramsey asserts that he personally checked all the doors and that they were all locked when he went to bed. The house is very old, and movements in the house can be heard as in any older structure. Investigators stated that every step they took caused creaks and noises in the joists. Also, the house was complicated to move around in at night without lights, unless you were extremely familiar with the layout. Investigators felt that just descending the circular stairwell without lights was difficult, and dangerous carrying a 40-lb child. Could someone have hidden in the house..? Maybe, but why would they do that..? If they have a means of surreptitiously entering the house (by a door or window) why hide at all, and not just break in when everyone is asleep and you don't take the chance of being found..? The alarm was not set, and had not been used in some time. Thieves and others who break into homes want to spend as little time in the home as possible, and they certainly don't sit down to write a 3-page letter after committing murder.
7. Were The Ramseys or their friends checked before they left the home in Boulder on Boxing Day?
Checked for what..? You mean could they have taken evidentiary items out of the house..? Yes, because for the first several hours of the investigation the house was not treated as a murder scene, and that gave the family or anyone else ample time to remove anything and dispose of it in their cars, or elsewhere. The Ramsey family was not searched before they left the premises. In fact, the clothes that they were wearing on Christmas day, and shown in several photos of them that day, were not provided to police for nearly a year. John Ramsey returned and retrieved his golf clubs, but he was planning on flying to Florida, so that's not unusual, except for the timing. What father thinks about playing a round of golf right after his child is found murdered..?
8. Is it really true that the Ramseys phone records were never looked at? How is that possible?
No phone call from the "kidnappers" ever came to the house. Phone records if obtained, would have had little probative value.
9. I heard blood droplets that were unmatched to anyone were found in Jonbenets underwear. Is this true? Wouldnt this prove there was an intruder?
The blood was matched to Jon Benet.
10. I may be wrong, but I thought DNA belonging to an unknown male was found near the very beginning. Some say this DNA does not matter. Why wouldnt it matter?
Touch DNA can be found almost everywhere, including unopened underwear still in plastic. Unless the DNA can be determeined tobelong to a specific person, and the location and amount is more than found in a transfer, this kind of DNA is worthless as evidence.
11. It was reported Jonbenet had signs of prior vaginal trauma. Then I heard or read that this was untrue. Which is it? How do we know what to believe?
Depends on which Doctor you believe. Jon Benet's pediatrician, Dr. Francesco Beuf, claimed that in the 33 times he had seen her for treatment over the previous three years he had never seen any evidence of prior sexual contact. Of course, if he had seen it and failed to report it he would be guilty of a crime. Dr. Meyer, the Medical Examiner, thought there were signs of sexual contact, and he enlisted the aid of Dr. Sirontak, of the Denver Children's Hospital, who agreed with his findings, but they couldn't agree on the period of time during which the abuse took place. The investigators sought experts in the field from St Louis, Miami, and Philadelphia and the consensus was that Jon Benet had been subjected to sexual abuse.
12. In the mid 2000s, John and Patsy were on Larry King to which they responded to a female caller who I believe asked them 2 questions. After John responded to the first question (though he dodged the core of it) he lied and said he couldnt hear the perfectly audible second one. Patsy then chimed in defensively, to what ended up being another lie. Here we have both John & Patsy unquestionably lying. Their speech and demeanor doesn't change and also appears to be consistent with other television interviews. If examined, can anything be gained or learned from this? Remember when this aired, how easily they lied?
Nothing they said on Larry King, or in any other on air TV interview, is of any evidentiary value as they were not under oath. Considering anything they said in any of these interviews, unless the interviews were introduced as evidence in court, would be disallowed by the judge.
13. I've never read any of the books based on this case. Is there one that is accurate and fair? If you had to recommend only one book, which would it be? And would you please state whether the book recommended shows pictures of Jonbenets crime scene or autopsy...I DO NOT WANT TO SEE THEM. Thank you.
The best book on this case is A. James Kolar's book "Foreign Faction". It contains some crime scene photos and photos from the autopsy.
