Details About Burke's 1/8/97 Interview

[twizzler333]

You can only be "cleared" if you are a suspect. I think WE are all "cleared" because WE are not even considered suspects in this crime!

Burke was one of the three people that would have been investigated FIRST in this crime, if the LE state he is NOT a suspect then that means they DO NOT have any reason after investigating him to SUSPECT he had ANYTHING to do with the crime. IF they suspected him following their investigation and then later decided he had nothing to do with it I think they would have worded it differently. They would have stated is something like "Suspect Burke Ramsey has been cleared in the death of his sister...." BUT since he is NOT a suspect, how can they clear him?

I think we are barking up the wrong tree here anyway. I think he had absolutely nothing to do with it.

 

[BlueCrab]

You can only be "cleared" if you are a suspect. I think WE are all "cleared" because WE are not even considered suspects in this crime!

Burke was one of the three people that would have been investigated FIRST in this crime, if the LE state he is NOT a suspect then that means they DO NOT have any reason after investigating him to SUSPECT he had ANYTHING to do with the crime. IF they suspected him following their investigation and then later decided he had nothing to do with it I think they would have worded it differently. They would have stated is something like "Suspect Burke Ramsey has been cleared in the death of his sister...." BUT since he is NOT a suspect, how can they clear him?

I think we are barking up the wrong tree here anyway. I think he had absolutely nothing to do with it.

Twizzler,

Let's abandon the D.A.'s warped definition of a suspect, and let's enter the real world and call a suspect a suspect.

Melinda Ramsey, John Andrew Ramsey, and Burke Ramsey were all suspects at the beginning of the investigation. All three gave handwriting samples, hair samples, and DNA samples.

Melinda and John Andrew were cleared. Burke was not cleared. Why not?

Here's a few hints on why Burke hasn't been cleared:

o The parents, and Burke, all lied to the cops during the interviews about Burke being in bed until 7:00 A.M., and thus trying to distant him from the crime scene, when the enhanced 911 tape proved Burke was up and engaged in conversation with his parents at 5:52 A.M..

o Burke's fingerprints were on the bowl of pineapple from which JonBenet snacked -- placing Burke secretly downstairs in the middle of the night with JonBenet about one hour before she died.

o Handwriting analyses were not able to eliminate Burke as the writer of the ransom note.

I can give you a dozen or more "hints", but just those three above are reason enough not to clear Burke as being involved in the death of JonBenet.

JMO

 

[DocWatson]

Twizzler,

Burke was not cleared. Why not?

Here's a few hints on why Burke hasn't been cleared:

o The parents, and Burke, all lied to the cops during the interviews about Burke being in bed until 7:00 A.M., and thus trying to distant him from the crime scene, when the enhanced 911 tape proved Burke was up and engaged in conversation with his parents at 5:52 A.M..

o Burke's fingerprints were on the bowl of pineapple from which JonBenet snacked -- placing Burke secretly downstairs in the middle of the night with JonBenet about one hour before she died.

o Handwriting analyses were not able to eliminate Burke as the writer of the ransom note.

I can give you a dozen or more "hints", but just those three above are reason enough not to clear Burke as being involved in the death of JonBenet.

JMO

But the Larry King transcript says you are DEAD WRONG, BlueCrab:

KING: Burke was cleared, right?

HUNTER: Yes.

KING: Was he a long-time suspect?

HUNTER: No.

KING: The son?

HUNTER: No, he -- no. He was considered, as you would expect.

KING: Anybody in the house.

HUNTER: He was one of three people in the house. But both Chief Beckner and I spoke to the exclusion of Burke.


http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0003/30/lkl.00.html

Please explain the motive behind your truth-twisting, BlueCrab. When the reputation of an innocent child is at stake, shouldn't we bend over backward to avoid the possibility of error? You appear to have taken quite the opposite tack, engaging in the rankest sort of speculation regarding Burke's sexual proclivities even without a shred of hard evidence supporting this line of reasoning. You instead start with a premise: Burke Did It and from there you invent whatever props are needed to buttress your case (AEA, a friend of Burke who allegedly assisted with the crime). Imagine your reaction if someone on the boards were doing this to one of your grandchildren. Your outrage would know no bounds.

 

[jasmine]

I agree with you 100% That is why I wanted to post the article that clearly states Burke was cleared.

 

[Seeker]

One cannot be "cleared" of suspicion if one has not been suspected & fully investigated. Burke wasn't.

Burke was never "suspected" and was only "considered" because he was in the house when the killing occured.
Yes, he was "considered" for about 5 minutes and dismissed as a potential suspect by the BPD. This was about one of the only things the DA's office and BPD agreed upon due to Burke's age.

When Lin Wood tried to get Alex Hunter to put the words "Burke has been cleared" in the affidavit his office drew up, Alex Hunter crossed them out. The affidavit stating Burke was witness only was a deal between Hunter and Wood.

The Bonita papers are legit and should be considred as good as the BPD reports they were written from.

Hunter refused to put the words "Burke Ramsey has been cleared" in writing.

Blue, the reason that JAR & Melinda were cleared is because they were in another state, with witnesses to confirm their alibi's.


Please note that in the CNN transcript Hunter also says :
HUNTER: It doesn't matter what I believe. You know, I have to follow the evidence. That's my job. And one of the things that has been hard here is to stay neutral, to try get my people to stay neutral, not to operate on feelings.

I have 5,000 letters from people across this country. They say, Mr. DA, it's obvious, my feelings are A did it or B did it, or A and B did it, and that has to be put to the side. And we have to -- you know, Henry Lee puts it so well. You know, this is a search for the truth. It's turning the stones. It's following the leads. It's doing the work.

Hunter is not an investigator, it is NOT his job to follow the evidence. His job is to decide if there is enough evidence (turned over by the investigator's) to warrant trying to take the case to trial.

Fact, Hunter was known as the "plea bargain king" and let murderer's and rapists go on an almost daily basis due to his "plea bargaining" them. When Keenan ran for the office of DA, she even said the amount of plea bargains for Boulder County was of a concern to her. http://www.broomfieldenterprise.com/news/local/29aplea.html
http://www.westword.com/archives/1998/092498/feature1-1.html

 

[Seeker]

JonBenet's brother, Burke, who was 9 at the time of his sister's
death, arguably had motive to kill her, if one is willing to allow that sibling rivalry can sometimes escalate into violent rage. And a 9-year-old is certainly less able to judge the result of a blow to the head than an adult, or be able to deliver a measured blow designed to punish instead of kill. Boulder District Attorney Alex Hunter is among those who privately considered the possibility that Burke played a role in the death of his sister. "I wonder if Burke is involved in this," Hunter mused out loud one day, former Boulder police detective Steve Thomas wrote in his book.

Hunter declared publicly in 1999 that Burke wasn't a suspect in his sister's death. But later events suggested that statement wasn't as definitive as it seemed. In 2000 Hunter refused a request by Ramsey attorney Wood to sign a statement declaring under oath that "all questions related to" Burke's "possible involvement" in the death of his sister "were resolved to the satisfaction of investigators." He also refused to declare that Burke "has never been viewed by investigators as a suspect." Nor would he say that Burke "has not been and is not a suspect."
Hunter did, however, agree to language in which he declared that "no evidence has ever been developed ... to justify elevating Burke Ramsey's status from witness to suspect," and there is nothing in the transcripts of the interviews of the Ramseys to suggest any such evidence was developed.

So whatever Hunter's suspicions about Burke, he wasn't able to substantiate them.

If Burke killed his sister, child psychologists can debate endlessly the issue of whether a 9-year-old has the psychological capacity for intent for murder without reaching consensus. In Colorado, the issue is settled by law: No one under the age of 10 can be charged with any crime. They know not what they do, Coloradans have decided. If Burke is the killer, he's not — legally, anyway — a murderer, and JonBenet wasn't — legally, anyway — murdered. When Hunter said in 1999 that Burke wasn't a suspect in his sister's murder, he could also have said that from a legal standpoint Burke couldn't be. He was too young.

This article is well written and can be found here. It's very matter of fact.

 

[jasmine]

AFFIDAVIT of ALEXANDER HUNTER - October 12th, 2000



State of Colorado
County of Colorado

Personally appeared before the undersigned officer duly authorized by law to administer oaths, ALEXANDER M. HUNTER, who being first duly sworn, deposes and says as follows:

1. My name is Alexander M. Hunter. I am over 21 years of age and I am cmpetant to make and give this Affidavit, and do so from personal knowledge.

2. I am an attorney duly licensed in the State of Colorado. Since January 9th, 1973, I have been the elected District Attorney for the 20th Judicial District, County of Boulder, State of Colorado.

3. On or about December 26th, 1996, JonBenét Ramsey, a six year old minor child, was murdered in her home in Boulder, Colorado.

4. Since the date of her death, I have been continuously involved in the investigation of JonBenét's homicide.

5. As part of the investigation into the murder of JonBenét Ramsey, questions about any possible involvement by her brother, Burke Ramsey, who was 9 years of age at the time of his sister's murder and who was one of the individuals present in the house at the time of her murder, were raised and investigated as part of standard investigative practices and procedures.

6. From December 26th, 1996, to the date of this affidavit, no evidence has ever been developed in the investigation to justify elevating Burke Ramsey's status from that of witness to suspect.

7. In May of 1999, I was made aware that tabloid newspapers had indicated that Burke Ramsey was a suspect in the murder of JonBenét Ramsey or was believed to be her killer. As a result of these articles, I was contacted by media representatives and I instructed my office to release a press statement which publicly and officially stated that Burke Ramsey was not a suspect in connection with the murder of his sister and that stated in part, "...almost a year ago (Boulder) Police Chief Mark Beckner stated during a news conference that Burke (Ramsey) was not a suspect and that we are not looking at him as a possible suspect." The information in the May 1999 press release was true and correct.

8. From December 26th, 1996, to the present date, I have never engaged n plea bargain negotiations, talks or discussions with anyone in connection with the investigation into the murder of JonBenét Ramsey based in whole or in part on the premise that Burke Ramsey killed his sister. From December 26th, 1996, to the present date, no member of my office has ever engaged in plea bargain negotiations, talks or discussions with anyone in connection with the investigation into the murder of JonBenét Ramsey based in whole or in part on the premise that Burke Ramsey killed his sister.

9. I am aware that this Affidavit may be used by counsel for Burke ramsey in connection with libel litigation brought on his behalf in various jurisdictions.

FURTHER AFFIANT SAYETH NOT
This 12th day of October, 2000

signed by Alexander M. Hunter
notarized by Susan Ingraham

 

[BlueCrab]

But the Larry King transcript says you are DEAD WRONG, BlueCrab:

Please explain the motive behind your truth-twisting, BlueCrab.

Doc Watson,

I was not dead wrong, and I am not twisting the truth. I am stating the facts.

If Alex Hunter ever cleared Burke it would be in writing somewhere and signed by him. It isn't.

You cannot take the one-word extemporaneous utterance of Alex Hunter in response to a blind-sided question from Larry King as officially clearing Burke.

Hunter lied, and he had reason to lie. Hunter had to answer the yes or no question quickly and didn't have time to think of a suitable response without violating the Colorado Children's Code protecting the identity of children. If he had said no, the dam would have burst. Hunter stayed true to the law and protected the identities of the children, despite being tossed a hot potato by Larry King. He had no choice but to lie so as not to violate the law.

Please refer to the end of the Larry King interview (my emphasis).

HUNTER: "You know, I have felt it a real privilege to be able to work this case. AND THE CHALLENGE HAS BEEN TO STAY TRUE TO THE LAW."

Hunter's challenge has been to stay true to the Colorado Children's Code.

JMO

 

[sariebell]

Bluecrab,
I find these "Bonita" files very very intriguing! It really hit me when I read the part about Burke having had a bedwetting issue as well as JB. I think it might be more than coincidence that 2 children out of 2 children in the household both suffer from bedwetting issues. Is it me or is that a signal for sexual abuse of minors? I know it isn't just me... I have had to watch the mandated video tapes about it... it is a red flag!

 

[BlueCrab]

Bluecrab,
I find these "Bonita" files very very intriguing! It really hit me when I read the part about Burke having had a bedwetting issue as well as JB. I think it might be more than coincidence that 2 children out of 2 children in the household both suffer from bedwetting issues. Is it me or is that a signal for sexual abuse of minors? I know it isn't just me... I have had to watch the mandated video tapes about it... it is a red flag!

Sariebell,

Good point. Yes, it would look suspicious when both children, JonBenet and Burke, have current bedwetting problems AND Burke and Patsy have apparently lied about it.

Burke, and Patsy in the past, said Burke's bedwetting ended a long time ago, but Dr. Bernhard implied the information she was given by Social Services was current, and she wondered why Burke was not being truthful about his bedwetting problem. Dr. Bernhard said most children do not try to hide such things during interviews.

JMO

 

[Seeker]

Bluecrab,
I find these "Bonita" files very very intriguing! It really hit me when I read the part about Burke having had a bedwetting issue as well as JB. I think it might be more than coincidence that 2 children out of 2 children in the household both suffer from bedwetting issues. Is it me or is that a signal for sexual abuse of minors? I know it isn't just me... I have had to watch the mandated video tapes about it... it is a red flag!

I can also be a symptom of performance anxiety. Both children may have felt they needed to make their mom proud of them since she was so ill...
Bedwetting is also a symptom of many other anxiety disorders....my 9 year old niece still wets the bed on occasion. Sometimes it's because she's too tired to get up and go to the bathroom. Sometimes it's because she's afraid of the dark and sometimes it's to get even with the adult for her not getting her own way about something.
She also uses it to get attention...it's not just a sexual abuse issue. My niece has never been sexually abused, but has suffered emotional (being screamed at and told she's stupid and ugly) and physical (spankings) abuse by her mother. She is no longer living with her mother.

 

[sissi]

This is all very interesting, my sister wet the bed until she was nine, her children both are bedwetters. I ,on the other hand, and my other sisters never wet the bed, and our children aren't bewetters. My hubby had one brother who wet the bed, his daughter wet the bed ,as well. There is no abuse, either physical or emotional going on in any of these families, so in our cases I suggest it is a genetic issue.
I will say statistically ,it would suggest the same in the Ramsey family.

 

[jasmine]

Considering the bed was not wet that night I dont see why there is any discussion about wet beds.

 

[sissi]

I'm not sure why the discussion went to bedwetting, but I'm guessing it has something to do with those "bonita" papers. Within those papers ,I believe, and I'm not going back to re-read because they gave me a headache, it was stated as a fact that Burke wet the bed up until the attention turned to Jonbenet. Since my last posting I "looked up" primary bedwetting which differs considerably in pathology from secondary bedwetting and found that if both parents wet the bed as children 77% of their offspring will, as well. If one parent wet the bed, the stats go down to 44% of offspring.
A VERY different condition, suggesting a life change or stress in a child is secondary bed wetting, it occurs after a child has been potty trained and dry for quite some time and suddenly reverts.
Furthermore,researchers have identified an association with bedwetting and two genes named ENUR1 and ENUR2. The ENUR1 gene is located on the 13th chromosome while ENUR2 is found on chromosome 12. In studying certain families with primary nocturnal enuresis, researchers discovered that members who wet the bed were more likely to have the ENUR1 or ENUR2 gene than those who did not. More recently, the possibility of a third primary nocturnal enuresis-related gene (ENUR3) on chromosome 22 has also been uncovered. Presumably these genes affect either whether children will need to urinate at night or how easily they can wake up when their bladders are full.
Please put to rest the idea of a primary bedwetter ,wetting over molestation, it is a medically unsound assumption.

information...sourced...Alan Greene MD FAAP..above quote

That it is a red flag is nonsense!

To all of those posting that Burke was cleared, yes he was!

 

[jasmine]

Some of the people that think Patsy killed JBR say it was because she wet the bed. Nonsense. The bed wasnt wet. FACT

 

[sissi]

Some of the people that think Patsy killed JBR say it was because she wet the bed. Nonsense. The bed wasnt wet. FACT

Absolutely correct,a fact!
However where in that house is a stain that corresponds with the urine on her pj's? It wasn't on the floor, on her bed, or on any carpet, was she killed in that house?
IMO

Sorry I took my marbles and went home, but those "bonita" things were too "over the top".
IMO

 

[jasmine]

Sissi, I may be wrong but I think they did discover urine on the carpet right outside the room she was discovered in.

 

[jasmine]

Sissi, it was the hallway right outside the room she was found in I think. But I do want to say again that the bed WAS NOT WET!

 

[sissi]

Sissi, it was the hallway right outside the room she was found in I think. But I do want to say again that the bed WAS NOT WET!

I wish this were true, it would point toward her losing urine, perhaps at time of stun gunning, but I've never heard that they have found urine ....anywhere?
I hate to ask, but do you remember where ya heard this?
I do remember a piece of carpet being removed, but I thought it was in a bedroom.

 

[jasmine]

I will try to find where I found that info. It seems it was released in the 90's but I do know they did say they found the urine there and thought that is where she was probably killed. Ill start looking that info up but it will take some time.