Ransom note analysis

[heresjohnny]

I was aware of the similarities between patsy's handwriting and the ransom note. What I wasn't aware of, until last night, was that both Patsy and John were shown two samples of Patsy's writing, the polaroid of Jonbenet and Friends that Patsy had inscribed at the bottom, and a postcard Patsy had written. I was shocked to see, neither John nor patsy could recognize Patsy's handwriting. How does someone not know their own handwriting? How does a husband not recognize his wife's handwriting?

My question is, why didnt investigators, "Robert Durst" the Ramsey's, as in why didnt they show them parts of the ransom note, and parts of the postcard, and the polaroid and ask them to point out, "Patsy, which is your handwriting?" And "John, which of these is your wife's handwriting?"

 

[andreww]

I was aware of the similarities between patsy's handwriting and the ransom note. What I wasn't aware of, until last night, was that both Patsy and John were shown two samples of Patsy's writing, the polaroid of Jonbenet and Friends that Patsy had inscribed at the bottom, and a postcard Patsy had written. I was shocked to see, neither John nor patsy could recognize Patsy's handwriting. How does someone not know their own handwriting? How does a husband not recognize his wife's handwriting?

My question is, why didnt investigators, "Robert Durst" the Ramsey's, as in why didnt they show them parts of the ransom note, and parts of the postcard, and the polaroid and ask them to point out, "Patsy, which is your handwriting?" And "John, which of these is your wife's handwriting?"

I doubt whether the Rs lawyers would have allowed that kind of questioning. At one point they did do a letter by letter comparison with Patsy and she said she could see no similarities whatsoever, going as far as saying the samples looked nothing like each other.

I don't know why they were wasting their time, by the time the Rs started talking to police they were never going to agree with them or admit to anything.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Anti-K]

From "Forensic Linguistics: Advances in Forensic Stylistics" by Gerald R. McMenamim.





...

AK

 

[BBB167893]

I doubt whether the Rs lawyers would have allowed that kind of questioning. At one point they did do a letter by letter comparison with Patsy and she said she could see no similarities whatsoever, going as far as saying the samples looked nothing like each other.

I don't know why they were wasting their time, by the time the Rs started talking to police they were never going to agree with them or admit to anything.

Isn't that the truth. The time to do it was right after the body had been discovered. Even Lou Smit agreed with that.

Look, we spend a lot of time on this board going back and forth on forensic evidence, but the facts are:

1) They lived there, so any forensic evidence has built-in doubt;

2) If the police got an expert to say one thing, they had the money to get two to say otherwise (thus the problem with the handwriting)

Nope, Darnay Hoffman and the FBI had it right: in cases of domestic homicide, the cases are solved by hammering the suspects separately until one of them confesses, just like I've said a million times.

To paraphrase Lenny Brisco from Law & Order, "if we're gonna break this case, we'll do it in there (referring to the interview room).

 

[BBB167893]

From "Forensic Linguistics: Advances in Forensic Stylistics" by Gerald R. McMenamim.
View attachment 80862
View attachment 80863
View attachment 80864
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...

AK

Not really sure what you're trying to say with this, Anti-K. But I'll try to make you sure what I'M saying.

[video=youtube;yl5Ll3sLFs8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yl5Ll3sLFs8&list=FLpfeKxaoUPtIiMu4Rmw2D1g&index=8[/video]

And as if that didn't say it all, let's take a look at another element. It goes beyond just similarities in letter formation, WAY beyond. I have permission to quote the following author; he's a dear friend of mine D):

Roger L. DePue is a former head of the FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit. In 2006, he told reporter Ronald Kessler that Patsy Ramsey fit the profile of the person who wrote the ransom note. Apparently, he was making public what he and psychiatrist Dr. Bertram Brown had told Alex Hunter in the early days of the case. Depue, who wrote “Between Good and Evil: A Master Profiler’s Hunt for Society’s Most Violent Predators” with Susan Schindehette, said that on its face, the kidnap note makes no sense. “It demands a ransom for the return of JonBenet, but she was already dead,” Depue said. “Since her body was in the house, a kidnapper would have had to realize that she would be found before any ransom was paid. The note appears to be an effort to obfuscate why she died.” The fact that the note was two and a half pages long “suggests that the killer was not hurrying out of fear of being caught, as one might expect,” Depue said. “To kill a child and then write a note of that length suggests that either the killer was so bold that he was mentally deranged or that he was a member of the family and had no reason to be concerned. The killer even had the time to start a previous draft and discard it.” The note’s demand that the Ramseys withdraw $118,000.00 from their account is significant, Depue said. That amount was John Ramsey’s bonus that year. “The use of the figure shows that the writer knew Ramsey and his finances,” Depue said. “Moreover, the sum is ridiculously low. Given John Ramsey’s wealth, a legitimate kidnapper would have demanded at least $1 million for the return of his daughter. Even more interesting, the demand that John withdraw the money from his account suggests that the writer knew that he had that much money in a single account. Perhaps the bonus had just been deposited and not yet disbursed to investment accounts.” “The delivery will be exhausting so I advise you to be rested,” the note says. Depue called that an unusual instruction. “The statement sounds caring, motherly,” he said. “That fits in with the relatively small amount of money demanded. The writer only wants John Ramsey’s bonus, something he can part with easily. Interestingly, at this point the writer switches to the pronoun ‘I.’ The pretext of a group demanding money has been dropped.” The note warns that if the instructions are not carried out precisely, “You will also be denied her remains for proper burial.” Depue said. “In my opinion, proper burial is of more concern to a female than to a male,” Depue said. “The two gentlemen watching over your daughter do not particularly like you so I advise you not to provoke them,” the note says. The idea of “gentlemen watching over” has a feminine tone, Depue said. “Watching over” is also a caring concept, he said. “Follow our instructions and you stand a 100 percent chance of getting her back,” the note said. “You and your family are under constant scrtiny [sic] as well as the authorities. Don’t try to grow a brain John.” The phrase “don’t try to grow a brain John” is familiar usage that “makes it clear that the writer knows John Ramsey intimately enough to chide him,” Depue said. “Don’t underestimate us, John,” the note says. “Use that good Southern common sense of yours.” That phrase is complimentary and suggests the writer is from the south, Depue said. Patsy Ramsey was born in West Virginia. So, Depue said, “The writer knows he is from the south and again refers to him as ‘John.’ This person knows John pretty damn well.” In Depue’s opinion, “The writer is a well-educated, middle-aged female. The writer used the term ‘fat cat,’ suggesting that the person is middle aged. ‘Fat cat’ is a term used in the 1960s and 1970s. The writer,” Depue said, “is a close relative, friend, or business associate, in that order.” Depue said that conclusion and the circumstances surrounding the note fit the profile of Patricia Ramsey.
During the brief media frenzy in the summer of 2006, former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt was interviewed several times over a period of days. During an interview with cable news outlet MSNBC, Van Zandt said that he and several other profilers had studied the note and concluded that the writer was either a woman or a “very genteel male.” He listed ten points of interest. Here are a few of them:
1—Claiming to be part of a terrorist organization is a common ruse in ransom notes. Van Zandt says he sees ‘no linguistic evidence’ to imply a foreign connection.

5—Despite threats of violence throughout the note, Van Zandt says, it has a ‘softness’ suggesting its author was a woman or perhaps a ‘genteel man.’

6—The letter is full of commanding phrases like this one about ‘immediate execution.’ To Van Zandt, they point to an author used to exerting authority over others.

7—The line ‘If we catch you talking to a stray dog, she dies’ echoes the movie ‘Dirty Harry,’ as do other phrases. Van Zandt says: ‘This is a novice trying to sound like an experienced criminal.’

8—The note’s salutation is formal, but here the overall tone becomes more familiar and casual. Van Zandt thinks the writer may be suggesting a personal acquaintance with John Ramsey.

10—With its connotations of revolution, the closing ‘Victory!’-harks back to the connection to foreign powers. ‘S.B.T.C’ may be another attempt to sound foreign, says Van Zandt.
In December of 2006, to mark a full decade since JonBenet had been killed, several forensic and behavioral experts were asked by the supermarket tabloid “Globe” to weigh in. One of them was Robert K. Ressler, founder of the FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit. He echoed many of DePue’s sentiments, saying that “it’s absolutely phony. Usually, a ransom note just gives the basics. But this one was full of colorful language and mixed messages. Then there’s the matter of why any kidnapper would demand money when the victim’s dead body was left behind. There’s an almost maternal quality to comments like, ‘the delivery will be exhausting so I advise you to be rested. A hardened criminal would never use those terms. He also noted that the acronym at the bottom of the note was done with periods between each letter, as was “FBI.” Putting periods between letters in acronyms is a grammatical touch that has not been standard since the late 1960s. Patsy was born on December 29, 1956 and would have been a kid learning her English lessons in school before then. In those turbulent times, many organizations came along with “alphabet soup” names, and none of them used periods. There was SDS—Students for Democratic Society; PLO—Palestinian Liberation Organization; NOI-—Nation of Islam; SLA-—Symbionese Liberation Army (the people who kidnapped Patty Hearst and made the term “Stockholm Syndrome” famous); and the list goes on and on. Patsy was known to sign her letters to friends with acronyms with periods in them. One that stood out was “To B.V.F.M.F.A. from P.P.R.B.S.J.” That meant “To Barbara V. Fernie, Master of Fine Arts from Patricia Paugh Ramsey, Bachelor of Science in Journalism.” Patsy Ramsey had graduated college as a journalism major. She knew how to write a good story, and the note, as written, contained an opening that was properly set off from the body of the ransom letter, the way we were all taught to compose a letter. “Mr. Ramsey” is set off in a way that “Dear John” would be. Also, the closing line “Victory! S.B.T.C.” was set off the way “Yours truly” would be rather than contained in the block of writing. Patsy Ramsey’s writings from before and after the killing contain a large number of exclamation points, as does the ransom note. Not only that, but the reference to John Ramsey being a “fat cat,” is also interesting. Not only was it a popular way for lefties to refer to rich people they see as evil or corrupt in the Sixties (some of them still do it), but from what I can gather, it was a nickname for John Ramsey, a rich corporate executive, that was used by Patsy’s mother and father. Ressler also notes that the letter tells John to use his “good Southern common sense.” John Ramsey is not from the American South. He originally comes from Michigan, near the Canadian border. Patsy Ramsey was born in West Virginia, right on the Mason-Dixon line, and lived for a long time in Atlanta, Georgia. Patsy’s mother Nedra was often heard to say that John had “good Southern common sense” as a joke because he was a great businessman and for marrying her daughter, Patsy. Isn’t that a coincidence?
Ressler also pointed out the use of the word “attaché.” It’s a word with French origins. It is usually spelled with the accent over the “e” to denote the sound of an “a.” Patsy had studied French and lived in Atlanta, which has a strong undercurrent of French heritage. JonBenet’s own name is a pseudo-French version of her father’s first and middle names, John Bennett. It is always spelled with the accent over the second “e.” Who else would bother with something like that?

You're welcome.

 

[Anti-K]

BBM

Not really sure what you're trying to say with this, Anti-K. But I'll try to make you sure what I'M saying.

[video=youtube;yl5Ll3sLFs8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yl5Ll3sLFs8&list=FLpfeKxaoUPtIiMu4Rmw2D1g&index=8[/video]

And as if that didn't say it all, let's take a look at another element. It goes beyond just similarities in letter formation, WAY beyond. I have permission to quote the following author; he's a dear friend of mine D):

Roger L. DePue is a former head of the FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit. In 2006, he told reporter Ronald Kessler that Patsy Ramsey fit the profile of the person who wrote the ransom note. Apparently, he was making public what he and psychiatrist Dr. Bertram Brown had told Alex Hunter in the early days of the case. Depue, who wrote “Between Good and Evil: A Master Profiler’s Hunt for Society’s Most Violent Predators” with Susan Schindehette, said that on its face, the kidnap note makes no sense. “It demands a ransom for the return of JonBenet, but she was already dead,” Depue said. “Since her body was in the house, a kidnapper would have had to realize that she would be found before any ransom was paid. The note appears to be an effort to obfuscate why she died.” The fact that the note was two and a half pages long “suggests that the killer was not hurrying out of fear of being caught, as one might expect,” Depue said. “To kill a child and then write a note of that length suggests that either the killer was so bold that he was mentally deranged or that he was a member of the family and had no reason to be concerned. The killer even had the time to start a previous draft and discard it.” The note’s demand that the Ramseys withdraw $118,000.00 from their account is significant, Depue said. That amount was John Ramsey’s bonus that year. “The use of the figure shows that the writer knew Ramsey and his finances,” Depue said. “Moreover, the sum is ridiculously low. Given John Ramsey’s wealth, a legitimate kidnapper would have demanded at least $1 million for the return of his daughter. Even more interesting, the demand that John withdraw the money from his account suggests that the writer knew that he had that much money in a single account. Perhaps the bonus had just been deposited and not yet disbursed to investment accounts.” “The delivery will be exhausting so I advise you to be rested,” the note says. Depue called that an unusual instruction. “The statement sounds caring, motherly,” he said. “That fits in with the relatively small amount of money demanded. The writer only wants John Ramsey’s bonus, something he can part with easily. Interestingly, at this point the writer switches to the pronoun ‘I.’ The pretext of a group demanding money has been dropped.” The note warns that if the instructions are not carried out precisely, “You will also be denied her remains for proper burial.” Depue said. “In my opinion, proper burial is of more concern to a female than to a male,” Depue said. “The two gentlemen watching over your daughter do not particularly like you so I advise you not to provoke them,” the note says. The idea of “gentlemen watching over” has a feminine tone, Depue said. “Watching over” is also a caring concept, he said. “Follow our instructions and you stand a 100 percent chance of getting her back,” the note said. “You and your family are under constant scrtiny [sic] as well as the authorities. Don’t try to grow a brain John.” The phrase “don’t try to grow a brain John” is familiar usage that “makes it clear that the writer knows John Ramsey intimately enough to chide him,” Depue said. “Don’t underestimate us, John,” the note says. “Use that good Southern common sense of yours.” That phrase is complimentary and suggests the writer is from the south, Depue said. Patsy Ramsey was born in West Virginia. So, Depue said, “The writer knows he is from the south and again refers to him as ‘John.’ This person knows John pretty damn well.” In Depue’s opinion, “The writer is a well-educated, middle-aged female. The writer used the term ‘fat cat,’ suggesting that the person is middle aged. ‘Fat cat’ is a term used in the 1960s and 1970s. The writer,” Depue said, “is a close relative, friend, or business associate, in that order.” Depue said that conclusion and the circumstances surrounding the note fit the profile of Patricia Ramsey.
During the brief media frenzy in the summer of 2006, former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt was interviewed several times over a period of days. During an interview with cable news outlet MSNBC, Van Zandt said that he and several other profilers had studied the note and concluded that the writer was either a woman or a “very genteel male.” He listed ten points of interest. Here are a few of them:
1—Claiming to be part of a terrorist organization is a common ruse in ransom notes. Van Zandt says he sees ‘no linguistic evidence’ to imply a foreign connection.

5—Despite threats of violence throughout the note, Van Zandt says, it has a ‘softness’ suggesting its author was a woman or perhaps a ‘genteel man.’

6—The letter is full of commanding phrases like this one about ‘immediate execution.’ To Van Zandt, they point to an author used to exerting authority over others.

7—The line ‘If we catch you talking to a stray dog, she dies’ echoes the movie ‘Dirty Harry,’ as do other phrases. Van Zandt says: ‘This is a novice trying to sound like an experienced criminal.’

8—The note’s salutation is formal, but here the overall tone becomes more familiar and casual. Van Zandt thinks the writer may be suggesting a personal acquaintance with John Ramsey.

10—With its connotations of revolution, the closing ‘Victory!’-harks back to the connection to foreign powers. ‘S.B.T.C’ may be another attempt to sound foreign, says Van Zandt.
In December of 2006, to mark a full decade since JonBenet had been killed, several forensic and behavioral experts were asked by the supermarket tabloid “Globe” to weigh in. One of them was Robert K. Ressler, founder of the FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit. He echoed many of DePue’s sentiments, saying that “it’s absolutely phony. Usually, a ransom note just gives the basics. But this one was full of colorful language and mixed messages. Then there’s the matter of why any kidnapper would demand money when the victim’s dead body was left behind. There’s an almost maternal quality to comments like, ‘the delivery will be exhausting so I advise you to be rested. A hardened criminal would never use those terms. He also noted that the acronym at the bottom of the note was done with periods between each letter, as was “FBI.” Putting periods between letters in acronyms is a grammatical touch that has not been standard since the late 1960s. Patsy was born on December 29, 1956 and would have been a kid learning her English lessons in school before then. In those turbulent times, many organizations came along with “alphabet soup” names, and none of them used periods. There was SDS—Students for Democratic Society; PLO—Palestinian Liberation Organization; NOI-—Nation of Islam; SLA-—Symbionese Liberation Army (the people who kidnapped Patty Hearst and made the term “Stockholm Syndrome” famous); and the list goes on and on. Patsy was known to sign her letters to friends with acronyms with periods in them. One that stood out was “To B.V.F.M.F.A. from P.P.R.B.S.J.” That meant “To Barbara V. Fernie, Master of Fine Arts from Patricia Paugh Ramsey, Bachelor of Science in Journalism.” Patsy Ramsey had graduated college as a journalism major. She knew how to write a good story, and the note, as written, contained an opening that was properly set off from the body of the ransom letter, the way we were all taught to compose a letter. “Mr. Ramsey” is set off in a way that “Dear John” would be. Also, the closing line “Victory! S.B.T.C.” was set off the way “Yours truly” would be rather than contained in the block of writing. Patsy Ramsey’s writings from before and after the killing contain a large number of exclamation points, as does the ransom note. Not only that, but the reference to John Ramsey being a “fat cat,” is also interesting. Not only was it a popular way for lefties to refer to rich people they see as evil or corrupt in the Sixties (some of them still do it), but from what I can gather, it was a nickname for John Ramsey, a rich corporate executive, that was used by Patsy’s mother and father. Ressler also notes that the letter tells John to use his “good Southern common sense.” John Ramsey is not from the American South. He originally comes from Michigan, near the Canadian border. Patsy Ramsey was born in West Virginia, right on the Mason-Dixon line, and lived for a long time in Atlanta, Georgia. Patsy’s mother Nedra was often heard to say that John had “good Southern common sense” as a joke because he was a great businessman and for marrying her daughter, Patsy. Isn’t that a coincidence?
Ressler also pointed out the use of the word “attaché.” It’s a word with French origins. It is usually spelled with the accent over the “e” to denote the sound of an “a.” Patsy had studied French and lived in Atlanta, which has a strong undercurrent of French heritage. JonBenet’s own name is a pseudo-French version of her father’s first and middle names, John Bennett. It is always spelled with the accent over the second “e.” Who else would bother with something like that?

You're welcome.

I wasn’t trying to say anything.
...

AK

 

[BBB167893]

BBM


I wasn’t trying to say anything.
...

AK

Don't mind me.

 

[Tadpole12]

From "Forensic Linguistics: Advances in Forensic Stylistics" by Gerald R. McMenamim.

...

AK

heyya AK
ty for the IMG jpgs

Interesting, that if you vary, (ie increase), the scale of the rn sample word, and superimpose it upon PR's exemplars, so many shared points of intersection exist?

Consistency regardless of scale?

 

[OliviaG1996]

From "Forensic Linguistics: Advances in Forensic Stylistics" by Gerald R. McMenamim.
View attachment 80862
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AK

Thank you for these, AK.

I'm wondering why the samples from 1/4/97 and 2/28/97 look so different, particularly the samples "possession", "business", "$118,000", and "$100,000". A sign of intentionally misleading investigators, perhaps?

 

[THE BUNK]

One thing to keep in mind when analyzing this letter is to consider who this letter is writing for. Is it writing for the Ramsey's, the police or the media?

 

[Anti-K]

Samples were taken from writing produced for investigators. One was written from dictation – the ransom note was dictated and both Ramseys wrote what they heard, not what they saw. Two more versions were written by each Ramsey, copying their first version – NOT the actual ransom note. Mrs Ramsey wrote a further two versions, both from dictation.

I think it goes like this:
1/4/97 – 1, written from dictation
1/4/97 – 2, copied from 1/4/97 - 1
1/4/97 – 3, copied from 1/4/97 – 1
2/28/97 – written from dictation
2/28/97 - written from dictation
...

AK

 

[andreww]

Thank you for these, AK.

I'm wondering why the samples from 1/4/97 and 2/28/97 look so different, particularly the samples "possession", "business", "$118,000", and "$100,000". A sign of intentionally misleading investigators, perhaps?

Perhaps?? I think it's pretty damned obvious that Patsy was just trying to write in any style but her own at that point. The letter formations of her own samples are all over the map.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[icedtea4me]

From "Forensic Linguistics: Advances in Forensic Stylistics" by Gerald R. McMenamim.

...

AK

Patsy placed a decimal point after the dollar amount, like the note writer, in addition to making two lines through the dollar sign instead of one.

 

[TeaTime]

PR wrote the note.

SBTC is Southern Business Technology Corp. or Co. - an Atlanta business in late 79-early 80's which was embroiled in litigation because of its signage where only the first letters were used on the outside of the building facing the expressway - SBTC. Sun Bank and Trust Corp. objected

Research who ran SBTC. It might interest you.

 

[Blunomore]

PR wrote the note.

SBTC is Southern Business Technology Corp. or Co. - an Atlanta business in late 79-early 80's which was embroiled in litigation because of its signage where only the first letters were used on the outside of the building facing the expressway - SBTC. Sun Bank and Trust Corp. objected

Research who ran SBTC. It might interest you.

A quick google shows nothing. Can you give us a link please?

 

[andreww]

Found a bit about it here. Nothing is substantiated though.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?85466-New-IDI-book-published-on-JBR-and-others/page3


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BOESP]

Found a bit about it here. Nothing is substantiated though.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?85466-New-IDI-book-published-on-JBR-and-others/page3


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Had to laugh when I read the link. Part of what it said was "in '79, '80 and so on. Atlanta was not such a huge place then." :giggle:

Not sure where the writer got their information but the regional population was in excess of two-million people in 1980 and the city proper was almost 500,000.

 

[TeaTime]

I can not give you a link but I lived there and had met all the players. When I say it was not such a big place, it wasn't. 500 thousand people is not a lot, especially if you carve out those under 25 and over 35 - the transplanted professionals. The expansion of Hartsfield was not completed, anything outside of the 285 loop was considered the country and no one ventured south of I-20. SBTC has always made me think of the sign on the building facing 285 and the litigation in which it was involved with the bank. "Business technology" was at its infancy and is the business in which JR was involved. I hoped someone here would find out who owned SBTC. It may answer the mystery.

 

[UKGuy]

I can not give you a link but I lived there and had met all the players. When I say it was not such a big place, it wasn't. 500 thousand people is not a lot, especially if you carve out those under 25 and over 35 - the transplanted professionals. The expansion of Hartsfield was not completed, anything outside of the 285 loop was considered the country and no one ventured south of I-20. SBTC has always made me think of the sign on the building facing 285 and the litigation in which it was involved with the bank. "Business technology" was at its infancy and is the business in which JR was involved. I hoped someone here would find out who owned SBTC. It may answer the mystery.

TeaTime,
Why would a Foreign Faction cite an american corporation in a ransom note?

.

 

[TeaTime]

"Small foreign faction" was probably an inside joke, poking at the southern Paugh family or in particular the 2 children and PR as in John had been taken over by a small foreign faction. There are several hints in the RN that point straight to the R family's inside conversations. This phrase was used a lot in a sarcastic or playful way.