The First Year 1/1/97 | Ramseys CNN Appearance. Ramseys appear on CNN, confirming that John and Patsy each have hired an attorney and that John also hired a private investigator, Ellis Armistead, a former Lakewood police detective and the former chief investigator for the Routt County District Attorney's Office |
1/1/97 | Duct Tape and Cord Details Leaked. A report says JB mouth and throat were wrapped with duct tape. A smooth cord like a parachute cord was found with a slipknot around JB neck sources said. The cord had a piece of wood like a gripping handle at one end that could be used to tighten the noose. |
1/2/97 | Ramseys Return to Boulder. They stayed with Mike Bynum. |
1/2/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #06. |
1/3/97 | Mayor Says Boulder is Safe: Residents shouldn't think killer is wandering streets. |
1/3/97 | Investigators announce that the ransom note appears to have been torn from a tablet of paper found in the house. |
1/3/97 | House Returned to Family. |
1/3/97 | Ramseys Moved to Elowsky House. Ramseys moved in with Pasta Jay Elowsky. |
1/3/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #08. |
1/4/97 | Reports surface that JonBenet's skull was fractured and the ransom note was written on paper from a tablet in the Ramsey home. |
1/4/97 | BPD Sergeant Larry Mason removed from investigation after accusations of leaking information to the press. |
1/4/97 | First Charlevoix Search Warrant. Police obtain search warrant for Ramsey house in Charlevoix, Michigan. |
1/5/97 | Supposedly Staged Church Appearance by Ramseys. |
1/6/97 | Website Created. Ramseys created a Website about the case. |
1/6/97 | Search Warrants Sealed. Boulder County District Court Judge Diane McDonald seals Boulder search warrants for 30 days; a Michigan judge sealed Charlevoix search warrant. |
1/6/97 | BPD Press Release Update #09: Next Media Briefing Scheduled. |
1/7/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #10. |
1/7/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #11. |
1/8/97 | Burke Interview with Psychologist. John and Patsy took Burke to the Child Advocacy Center in Niwot, Colorado, through arrangements made by the Boulder Police department, to be interviewed by Dr. Suzanne Bernard, a specialist in child psychology. |
1/8/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #12. |
1/8/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #13. |
1/10/97 | BPD Press Release: Channel 8 to Rebroadcast Community Update and Media Roundtable with Tom Koby Ramsey Update #14. |
1/10/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #15. |
1/13/97 | Globe Publishes Photos. The Globe publishes leaked photos from the autopsy. |
1/13/97 | BPD Press Release: City Responds to Unauthorized Publication of Coroner Photos Ramsey Update #16. |
1/14/97 | Ramseys Hired Handwriting Experts. The media report that the Ramseys have hired their own handwriting analysts to evaluate the ransom note, along with former-FBI agent, John Douglas, known for his work in profiling criminals. |
1/14/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #17. |
1/20/97 | Major People Magazine Article. This was People's original story on the case. |
1/21/97 | Police say they have narrowed their list of suspects |
1/21/97 | Ransom Amount Leaked. Reports reveal the amount of the ransom demand equaled a work bonus Ramsey received. |
1/22/97 | Ramseys Refuse Lie Detector Test. Ramsey family reportedly refuses to submit to polygraph tests. |
1/23/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #18. |
1/24/97 | Fact Sheet on Investigation Statistics Ramsey Update #19. |
1/24/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #20. |
1/30/97 | Police obtain search warrant for Ramsey house in Boulder. This document summarizes the investigation (including 3 prior warrants) as of this time. An inventory of property taken between 1-30-97 and 2-5-97 pursuant to that warrant is included in the warrant itself, but a transcribed version is at acandyrose.com. |
2/4/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #21. |
2/5/97 | BPD Press Release: City Calculates Costs for Ramsey Investigation (Ramsey Update #22). |
2/5/97 | BPD Press Release: Police Seek Information on Author of Letter (Ramsey Update #23). |
2/13/97 | Alex Hunter Holds a press conference to say soon there will be no one left on the list of suspects but one. |
3/1/97 | Lawyer Hired for Burke. University of Colorado law professor Patrick Furman hired to join Patrick Burke in representing Patsy Ramsey. |
3/3/97 | Patsy Ramsey gives third handwriting sample. |
3/6/97 | Melinda and John Andrew Ramsey Cleared. Authorities officially clear JB adult half-brother and half-sister John Andrew and Melinda Ramsey as suspects. |
3/6/97 | Second Charlevoix Search Warrant. Police obtain search warrant for Ramsey house in Charlevoix, Michigan to obtain further handwriting samples of Patsy Ramsey's. |
3/6/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #32. |
3/7/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #33. |
3/10/97 | BPD Press Release: City confirms Dr. Lee's visit to Boulder (Ramsey Update #34). |
3/12/97 | Boulder DA hired retired Colorado Springs investigator Lou Smit to work on investigation. Smit's employment contract is dated March 17, 1997. |
3/15/97 | Lou Smit banned from BPDs War Room. |
3/20/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #35. |
3/28/97 | Ramseys fired Washington D.C. consultant Patrick Korten as spokesman. |
4/2/97 | JonBenet Ramsey Foundation Created. John Ramsey is listed as Vice President and Treasurer and Patsy Ramsey is listed as President and Secretary. |
4/3/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #36. |
4/3/97 | 2nd Round of DNA Tests Begin. DNA testing begins at Cellmark Diagnostics in Maryland. This is a second round of testing of DNA in the case. The initial round was conducted at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation labs. |
4/8/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #37. |
4/10/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #38. |
4/11/97 | Patsy Ramsey agrees to provide 4th handwriting sample. |
4/15/97 | The Daily Camera reports that the Ramseys plan to sell their Boulder home and may move to Atlanta. |
4/15/97 | BPD Press Release: Fifth Handwriting Sample Requested of Patsy Ramsey. Ramsey Update #39. |
4/16/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #40. |
4/18/97 | Boulder DA Alex Hunter for the first time publicly reveals Ramseys are under an umbrella of suspicion. |
4/23/97 | Ramsey lawyers send scathing letter to BPD accusing police of a lack of objectivity. |
4/23/97 | BPD Press Release: Boulder Police Department Response To Ramsey Attorneys Letter. Ramsey Update #41. |
4/27/97 | $100,000 Reward Offered. The Ramseys run a newspaper ad offering a $100,000 reward for information about JonBenet's killer. |
4/30/97 | Ramsey First Formal Police Interviews. John and Patsy Ramsey have first formal interviews with police at Boulder County Justice Center. Patsy Ramsey is interrogated for over 6 hours. Her husband later is interrogated for approximately two hours. |
4/30/97 | Statement from Boulder Police Chief Tom Koby and Boulder County District Attorney Alex Hunter Ramsey Update #42. |
5/1/97 | John and Patsy Ramsey in a rare interview with reporters declare their innocence. I did not kill my daughter, John Ramsey states. His wife states Let me assure you that I did not kill JonBenet. |
5/12/97 | District Attorney reacts to Ramsey Ad. Redaction of autopsy report extended Ramsey Update #43. |
5/13/97 | BPD Detective Linda Arndt the first to arrive at the murder scene and Detective Melissa Kampf formerly Melissa Hickman are dropped from the case. |
5/14/97 | The much-anticipated results of additional DNA tests are delivered to Boulder authorities. Sources tell The Denver Post there are no surprises in the report. |
5/15/97 | BPD Press Release. Ramsey Update #44. |
5/20/97 | Patsy Ramsey provides fifth handwriting sample. |
5/20/97 | BPD Press Release: Fifth handwriting sample obtained. Ramsey Update #45. |
5/22/97 | Arrest made in theft of log pages. Ramsey Update #46. |
6/6/97 | Ramseys Buy Atlanta Home. Ramseys sign contract to purchase Atlanta home on 2 acres 10 miles from where JBR is buried. |
6/7/97 | War Room Theft. According to BPD, someone gained access to a computer containing Ramsey case information at approximately 1 a.m. on Saturday, June 7. Details at acandyrose.com. |
6/12/97 | BPD Press Release: Boulder Police to ask for investigation of possible theft of computer documents (Ramsey Update #47). |
6/17/97 | BPD Press Release: Police Re-enter Ramsey's Boulder Home (Ramsey Update #48). |
6/18/07 | Foster Letter to Patsy Ramsey. Vassar professor Donald Foster writes a letter to Patsy Ramsey in which he states I know you are innocent. |
6/26/97 | BPD Press Release: CBI Concludes Investigation of Computers (Ramsey Update #49). CBI's computer crime division determined an intermittent short circuit occurred in the battery backup to a computer chip making it appear that someone had gained access to the computer on June 7. |
6/27/97 | Ramsey Handwriting Results Revealed. Colorado Bureau of Investigation completes an analysis of the fifth handwriting sample from Mrs. Ramsey. Investigators say Ramsey did not write the note, but the results are inconclusive on his wife. |
6/30/97 | BPD Press Release: Boulder Police and DA Investigators Re-Enter Ramsey Home (Ramsey Update #50). |
7/3/97 | BPD Press Release: Police Conclude Work at Ramsey Home (Ramsey Update #51). |
7/9/97 | Ramseys New Home. Ramseys buy new home in Atlanta. |
7/14/97 | Autopsy details released per Court Order. |
7/23/97 | Ramsey steps up his investigation and criticism of police. |
7/24/97 | 3 Denver Attorneys to Provide BPD Pro Bono Advice. Dan Hoffman, a past University of Denver Law School dean; Robert N. Miller, a former U.S. Attorney; and Richard N. Baer, of Sherman & Howard, L.L.C. in Denver, have agreed to provide pro bono legal advice to police. |
7/29/97 | Seraph Report on Ransom Note. At the request of the Boulder Police Department, in 1997, Seraph Security Consulting and Training Company in Berwyn delivers a report that analyzes the ransom note and crime scene evidence; the profile of ransom note writer and killer closely matches Patsy Ramsey. |
8/1/97 | BPD Press Release: Police to Work with Legal Experts to Prepare Ramsey Case (Ramsey Update #52). |
8/13/97 | Full autopsy released. |
8/19/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Investigation Expenses (Ramsey Update #53). |
9/2/97 | Patsy Ramsey Calls Larry King Show. Patsy Ramsey called CNN's Larry King Live Tuesday night to complain about how her family has been treated by the tabloid press. |
9/3/97 | Full Text of RN Published. The full text of the two-and-one-half-page note was published in The Rocky Mountain News. Prior to its appearance in the Denver Post, Rocky Mountain News and the upcoming Vanity Fair issue, the only known copies of the ransom note were in the hands of the Boulder District Attorney's office, the Ramseys' legal team and the Boulder Police Department. |
9/4/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Update #54. |
9/8/97 | DA Alex Hunter releases photocopy of ransom note. |
9/15/97 | First Book About Case Published. Carlton Smith. Death of a Little Princess: The Tragic Story of the Murder of JonBenet Ramsey. |
9/16/97 | Anne Louise Bardach. Who Killed JonBenet? Vanity Fair, September 16, 1997. |
9/26/97 | BPD Press Release: No Ethical Problem or Conflict of Interest Issues Involving Outside Attorneys |
9/26/97 | Police Chief Koby Clears Up Misstatements in News Coverage (Ramsey Update #55). |
10/8/97 | BPD Press Release: News Conference Scheduled for Friday, Oct. 10 (Ramsey Update #57). |
10/10/97 | BPD Press Release: Boulder Police Chief Tom Kobys Remarks to Media on Oct. 10, 1997 (Ramsey Update #58). Koby admits mistakes were made early in the case. |
10/10/97 | BPD Press Release: Boulder Police Commander Mark Beckner to manage Ramsey investigation (Ramsey Update #59). Replaces John Eller. |
11/14/97 | New York attorney Darnay Hoffman filed a Complaint in the District Court for Boulder County, Colorado, on his own behalf as a plaintiff, asking that Mr. Hunter be forced to explain why he had not filed murder charges against Mrs. Ramsey. |
12/3/97 | BPD Press Release: Ramsey Briefing Scheduled for Friday, Dec. 5 (Ramsey Update #60). |
12/5/97 | BPD Press Release: Commander Mark Beckner's Statement to Media on December 5, 1997 (Ramsey Update #61). Beckner says in press conference parents remain under an umbrella of suspicion and will be questioned again. |
12/5/97 | BPD Press Release: Report of Expenses Related to Ramsey Investigation (Ramsey Update #62). |
12/8/97 | BPD Press Release: City of Boulder and Larry Mason Settle Notice of Claim. |