JonBenet

Any story revolving around a murder or some sort of kidnapping petrifies me! When those stories include the senseless, brutal death and taking of a child's life, it tugs at my heartstrings in a completely different way. The type of way that makes your blood boil and causes chills to run down your spine! And if that isn't enough and the perpetrator is never apprehended or brought to justice, well, let's just say there aren't enough words in a dictionary to describe the type of emotion that I feel behind that inhumane brutality.

The case of JonBenet Ramsey cuts just as deep as it did the day the world learned of her death. The horrific, yet choppy pieces of evidence left at the crime scene, the seemingly unscathed attacker, and the demise of a little girl who could clearly identify her killer are enough open-ends to make even the best forensic scientist or detective angry. And yet every pained emotion brought about by this case is exactly what the story of JonBenet Ramsey does to me.

Now before I share my take on the details surrounding her story, I would like to preface this chilling article with the fact that I was not going to write about her at all. Why? Well, mainly out of fear that many of my peers or cocreators would choose her as their subject matter, and I didn't want to sound redundant. However, something in me would not allow her name to not be written down once more...her story to be told yet again, because then maybe all things would synchronize and her killer would be located! Somehow...someway!

JonBenet, such a beautiful name for a remarkable little girl. It has sort of a French sound to it. Her name kind of rolls off of your tongue when pronouncing that it would make even you sound as if you have an accent for a moment. And as beautiful as the name was, the bearer of the name wore it with such regality. I mean this little girl was very poised, confident, and outgoing for a six-year-old, and after being primed by her mother, a former beauty queen herself, she instilled in JonBenet the skillset necessary to compete in pageants too. With each show, she took down competitors left and right! Retrospectively, CNN reported that JonBenet took home first place in various competitions like Little Miss Colorado, Little Miss Charlevoix, America's Royale Miss, Colorado All-Star State Kids Cover Girl to name a few. Could it be have been that JonBenet's popularity made her an easy target for a serial pedophile and killer, or could the perpetrator have been someone from the very same neighborhood as JonBenet Ramsey?

Her parents John and Patsy Ramsey derived from well-to-do, prominent families, and together, made a wonderful living for themselves. Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey birthed Burke Ramsey (1987) and Jon Benet Ramsey (1990). In 1991, the Ramsey's purchased a nice home in Boulder, Colorado at 755 15th Street. The home, which was built in 1927, boasted of 15 rooms and approximated in 11,000 square feet...a mansion, to say the least, and while the description pales in comparison to the overall death of JonBenet, the actual size of the home is extremely relevant in configuring the amount of time and effort behind the search for JonBenet on the night that she went missing.

December 25th, 1996 was a huge deal in the Ramsey home. Several interviews with the Ramsey's suggests that Christmas was always a grand celebration in their home. Patsy Ramsey had not long received the great news that she had beaten ovarian cancer and she wanted nothing more than to celebrate with her husband and children. So on Christmas morning, she and the children made pancakes and they all opened gifts. Later that day they were expected and did attend a Christmas dinner party which was hosted by friends; however, as they drove home, it was said that JonBenet fell asleep in the car. Her father, John, carried her to her bedroom, and Patsy and JonBenet's brother, Burke, remained downstairs putting together a toy that he received earlier that day. Late into the night and early morning of December 26, 1996, a neighbor reported to authorities that she heard the most horrific scream from a child that you could ever hear. Oddly enough, no one inside the Ramsey reported hearing anyone scream, as they were all asleep. It was not until Patsy woke up to prepare for the next day that she noticed something was amiss.

As Patsy awakened the morning of December 26th, 1996, and made her way downstairs, there lay an unusually long ransom note demanding $118,000 for the safe, unharmed return of JonBenet. The note instructed John Ramsey to not notify the police for if they did, JonBenet would be killed.

Despite this fact, Patsy Ramsy contacted the authorities almost immediately upon finding the letter and they were dispatched to the home within minutes. Once the police arrived, neighbors, the family minister, and victim advocates began to flood the home offering assistance to search for the little girl. Around 1:00 p.m. it has been stated that Detective Arndt asked Mr. John Ramsey to search his home to see if anything was amiss or out of order. And upon searching the basement of the home, he discovered his daughter's lifeless body behind a latched door that was previously overlooked by Officer Rick French. An autopsy revealed that JonBenet had been strangled, sexually assaulted, and tortured. She wrestled with her killer to break free, but was overpowered by the perpetrator and succumbed to her injuries.

Many people have theorized that there was an intruder who broke into the family home and waited until everyone was asleep to commit this volatile, heinous crime. I strongly believe that whoever was responsible for her death, knew the inner workings of the house and layout. I am not suggesting a family member committed the crime as evidence has come forth that has cleared her parents from this horrific act of violence, nor am I suggesting any of the family friends committed the act. I am inclined to wonder who all had been in the home by way of a visit, tour, worker/employee...had anyone been hired to clean the home. Another theory is that the perpetrator could have been an acquaintance of the family. The reasoning behind this thought is that the amount of money requested in the ransom note of $118,000.00 is almost identical to the amount Mr. Ramsey received in his bonus. Who would know such personal information?

The questions are endless. The leads are few, but I have hope and a prayer that one day justice for JonBenet will prevail!