14 Most Shocking Reveals From Netflix’s JonBenét Ramsey Documentary Series

Warning: this article contains spoilers for Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey

Warning: this article discusses murder and sexual assault

Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey re-examines the decades-old case for possible clues as to who the killer could be. Netflix’s documentary series includes interviews with key figures involved in the investigation, including her father, John Ramsey, and one of her older brothers, who give new insight into their experiences. The documentary also makes use of crime scene footage, voice recordings, and reconstructions of the house to give more detail about the case and JonBenét’s killer.

One of several true-crime documentaries on Netflix, Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey is a thorough overview of the developments in the case as they happened, from December 26, 1996, to today. As one of the most famous cold cases of all time, many people have their own theories about the JonBenét Ramsey case, but this new series raises several more questions. While some of what is discussed throughout the documentary series is well-known to those familiar with the case, the series also includes surprising new information that complicates what experts thought they knew.

14 Experts Considered The Ransom Note Fake

Police And FBI Agents Noticed Discrepancies

One of the primary pieces of evidence dating back to the beginning of the case was the ransom note left on a set of stairs in the Ramsey household. This note, along with Patsy Ramsey checking her daughter’s bedroom, was what prompted the initial 911 call. However, when experts from the Boulder Police Department looked at the note, several things stuck out as being very odd.

Boulder Police Department’s handwriting expert, Detective Kithcart noticed that notebooks from the Ramsey house matched the paper. The Ramseys were asked for handwriting samples, which definitively cleared John Ramsey and was inconclusive about Patsy Ramsey, but there were also several strange aspects about the contents of the note. The letter was too long, and the amount of money, $118,000, was very strange. The ransom was almost exactly the amount of money that John had received for his Christmas bonus, but the person who supposedly wrote the letter never attempted to claim the money.

13 There Was A Suitcase Below The Basement Window

The Window Was Open

Before finding JonBenét’s body, her father and his friend discovered a suitcase left below an open window as if for an escape route. The window had been left open, and the grate that was outside the basement window could have easily been lifted to access the basement. There was also a small piece of broken glass and some dirt found on the suitcase.

Smit attempted this himself to see if it would have been difficult, but he found that lifting the grate to get in, as well as using the suitcase as a step to get out, would have been easy for the killer.

The police did not pay much attention to this evidence, but Lou Smit later proved that this window could have easily been used to enter and exit the house, using the suitcase as a step on the way out. Smit attempted this himself to see if it would have been difficult, but he found that lifting the grate to get in, as well as using the suitcase as a step to get out, would have been easy for the killer.

12 The Autopsy Revealed She Had Been Hit On The Head

Police Initially Thought She Was Strangled

JonBenét Ramsey’s cause of death is listed both as strangulation and a head wound. The doctor who conducted the autopsy could not figure out which happened first or which was the true cause of death. They speculated that it could have been a bat or a flashlight that were found in the house that caused the head wound, though this has never been proven.The autopsy also revealed injury to her vaginal area. DNA from an unknown male was found on her underwear, but this DNA was not from semen. DNA on her clothes matched DNA that was found beneath her fingernails, but it was not matched with any known individual.

11 The Boulder Police Did Not Check The Room Where Her Body Was Found In Their Initial Search

The Department Faced Criticism From The Media

The crime scene was not sealed off and the Ramseys had friends over to their house before JonBenét’s body was found. The only room closed off was JonBenét’s bedroom because it was treated as the scene of a kidnapping, not murder. As a result, many people were in and out of the house, and it was not checked properly.

The police did not check the whole house and did not open the door in the basement. John Ramsey later found her, and then moved her body. He took the duct tape off her mouth and threw it down. This means that evidence could have been lost, and the crime scene was effectively destroyed. The police department at the time said that they thought it would not impact their investigation, though serious doubt has been cast on this assertion.

10 DNA Analysis Proved The Ramseys Were Not The Killers

The DNA Did Not Match Any Known DNA Profile

The Ramseys were initially the primary suspects in the case, but, when the DNA analysis was completed, it showed that the Ramseys were not the killers. The DNA evidence found on JonBenét’s underwear was from an unknown male who was not in any of the national DNA databases. This meant that, without any other solid evidence, the police could not solve the case. Likewise, though CBS later claimed that Burke, Ramsey’s nine-year-old brother, was the murderer, his DNA was not at the scene. This claim also prompted the district attorney’s office to reaffirm that Burke had never been considered a suspect and was formally cleared.

They Hoped To Force The Ramseys To Cooperate

Steve Thomas, who later wrote a book about how he believed Patsy Ramsey to be the killer, admitted that the police attempted to force the Ramsey’s to speak to them by feeding information to the media. Thomas said he believed Patsy had gotten angry at Jon Benét because she wet the bed and injured her in a fit of rage. She then set the crime scene up to make it look like a kidnapping gone wrong.

Despite Detective Thomas’s repeated assertions that Patsy was the killer, and the newspapers printing information to point in that direction, the evidence has never been able to prove that the Ramseys were involved.

In Netflix’s docuseries, John Ramsey stated that his wife had just survived ovarian cancer and was happy to be alive, so she would not have been angered by something like wetting the bed. Despite Detective Thomas’s repeated assertions that Patsy was the killer, and the newspapers printing information to point in that direction, the evidence has never been able to prove that the Ramseys were involved.

8 The District Attorney Thought There Was An Intruder

The DA’s Office And The Police Department Were At Odds

As the documentary reveals, the police department and the district attorney’s office were fighting among themselves. DA Alex Hunter hired private detective, Lou Smit, to work on the case. Lou Smit was a well-known detective and had success in his previous investigations, so he was a good choice to bring into the case.

Throughout his life, Smit was convinced of the Ramseys’ innocence, and he made this known to the Boulder District Attorney’s Office.

While the district attorney already had suspicions that the police department was not exploring all avenues fully, after Smit’s investigations the rift grew even further. Throughout his life, Smit was convinced of the Ramseys’ innocence, and he made this known to the Boulder District Attorney’s Office.

7 There Were Marks On JonBenét’s Face And Back Thought To Be Left By A Stun Gun

Lou Smit Put Two And Two Together

There were several sets of equidistant marks on JonBenét’s body that Lou Smit thought were from a stun gun. There was no stun gun found at the scene, but Smit did tests on pig skin and felt that they were similar. However, the Boulder police felt that the marks could have been made by her laying on some sharp object, and did not give much credence to the stun gun theory. While the documentary series brings this up and presents opposing views on the existence of a stun gun, there is no conclusive evidence one way or another on whether this really existed.

6 There Was A Similar Assault Case In A Nearby Neighborhood Several Months Later

This Proved That Someone Dangerous Was In Boulder

An intruder was attempting to assault a sleeping child in her home, but was caught by the mother who chased him out. The suspect was never caught, but officials thought that he had broken into the house while they were out and waited for them to go to sleep. The police department denied that the two cases were similar.

However, this essentially matches John Ramsey’s theory about what happened to his daughter, and it proves that it was possible that something like that could have happened in Boulder, which the police department and mayor previously denied.

However, this essentially matches John Ramsey’s theory about what happened to his daughter, and it proves that it was possible that something like that could have happened in Boulder, which the police department and mayor previously denied. The two girls also attended the same dance studio, and there was concern, but no proof, that the crimes were linked.

5 In 2013 It Was Revealed That The Jury Voted To Indict Both Parents, But The DA’s Office Did Not Pursue It

The Grand Jury Thought The Ramseys Were Guilty

The indictment was not for murder but for child abuse. The jury felt that the behavior of the parents allowed JonBenét to be in a dangerous situation that ultimately led to her death. Based on the evidence given to the jury, they decided that something had happened, but it was not clear enough to state definitely that either of the Ramseys had committed the murder. DA Alex Hunter ultimately decided not to pursue the case because he felt he did not have enough evidence to convict them.

4 The Police Investigated Several Other Male Suspects But All Had Alibis

The Case Attracted Attention From Strange Men

Her pageant photographer, Randy Simons, had sold pictures of her to the tabloids and was later arrested in Oregon for downloading child pornography. They investigated other men who had a history of assault or other crimes related to children, but all had alibis or their DNA did not match. Because of the nature of the case, and the existence of these photographs, which many people considered to be inappropriate, predatory adult men were attracted to the case. While several suspects surfaced who had vague connections to the Ramseys or who expressed their interest in JonBenét, none of them could be placed at the scene.

3 An Unknown Man Named Daxis Confessed To The Crime

Daxis Had Been Emailing Michael Tracey For Years

Michael Tracey, who was involved in the investigation, began receiving emails from someone who identified themselves as Daxis who claimed to have known JonBenét Ramsey and been in love with her. After several years, this person called Tracey and detailed how they killed her.

The man ended up being John Mark Karr, who was an elementary school teacher living in Thailand. He had a history of acting strangely toward children, though he was never formally convicted. While his phone calls with Tracey outlined how the murder had occurred, Karr ultimately went free because his DNA did not match any DNA found at the scene.

2 Experts Have Questioned The DNA At The Scene

Some Still Believe Karr Is The Killer Despite Being Exonerated By DNA

When DNA analysis showed that Karr was not the killer, some people began to speculate that the DNA was faulty. The DNA results could have been inaccurate because of contamination of the crime scene from the beginning of the case. Questioning the validity of the DNA in the Ramsey case means that, essentially, investigators will have to start over again from nothing. This also means that if the DNA was contaminated, then everyone who had been ruled out by their DNA profiles is a suspect again, including family and previous adult male suspects, not just John Mark Karr.

1 In 2022, The Ramsey Family Petitioned To Have The Case Re-examined

The Ramseys Have Been Fighting For Nearly 28 Years

In Netflix’s documentary, John Ramsey states that certain pieces of evidence collected at the scene were never sent for DNA testing. Furthermore, he argues that pieces that were sent should be retested using new DNA testing methods which could be more effective than those of 25 years ago.

The Boulder Police Department has not shared whether they are doing those tests or what is happening with the investigation at all, and they declined to be interviewed for the series. Though there is no conclusion about whom the killer really is, Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey provides the most complete overview of the case up to this point.