My mind is not entirely made up, but I am leaning towards BDI. I'm trying not to form an opinion until I see part 3 (or have caught up to all the theories of the case) but the ransom note is nagging the back of my mind.
Burke has never read the ransom note. Other people have expressed concern about this and I agree with them. There is no reason to NOT read the ransom note, especially when your entire family has been accused of writing it.
Burke's reaction to the question about whether it's Patsy's handwriting is strange. The first thing he says is that his mother reminded him to be neater with his handwriting. Maybe because it's his handwriting?
Patsy's handwriting was never entirely ruled out. Is it because handwriting of parents and children can be similar?
http://www.ijcer.org/index.php/ojs/article/viewFile/685/299
I also found a post here on websleuths that Burke has only ever used a typewriter after his sister's death:
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...handwriting-(and-Burke-s)&p=546143#post546143
If this is true - and I'm assuming that it would be since this forum has high standards of posting - all of this taken into context is very damning indeed.
I have read the ransom note quite a few times. I always found the "don't try and grow a brain" sentence to be a rather juvenile thing to say. Also how it seems to resemble a child mimicking in movies what they have seen/heard before (the Danny Devito clip). The ransom amount of 118000$ is chump change compared to the news story run about the Ramsey's making over 10 billion in sales. I don't consider it outside the realm of possibility that Burke (or even some other child) might have overheard P&JR talking about the Christmas bonus and put it in the letter.
I don't know, I'm still open minded to the possibility of an intruder because of the news stories and Patsy admitting she had hundreds of people tromping through her house in the days before Christmas. It's safe to say that the police botched the job and have only ever been fixated on Patsy to the exclusion of all other possibilities. However I really am leaning towards BDI because he admits to going downstairs and pineapple is found in JBR's stomach. I can't ignore these things.
Just my own opinion, as always.