JonBenét Investigation 2015 Team JBI

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"Can you comment on the emotional state of the parents when they were interviewed by your men? Was there anything unusual? Anything unexpected? Did you feel they were fully cooperative or reserved in some way?"

MarkBeckner:

"There were many things that investigators thought were unusual, including Patsy being upset at the first officer being in uniform and wearing a gun. Officers found that very strange given that her daughter was missing and allegedly kidnapped. The officers also noticed the how distant John and Patsy seemed to be toward each other."

The Ransom Note printed this statement that Patsy read.

"Speaking to anyone about your situation, such as Police, F.B.I., etc., will result in your daughter being beheaded."

Now would you want to see uniform officers at your front door after calling for help and telling them you have a ransom note and it said they are monitoring you?

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"Do you agree that this is not a DNA case?"

MarkBeckner:

"I certainly wish we could have gone to trial. However, the standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt is hard to overcome when you have some foreign DNA that cannot be explained. If we were to find the source of this trace DNA, we would have an explanation, regardless of which way it pointed. When you are talking about small traces of DNA, there can be several explanations and various ways it could have been transferred. Without identifying who it belongs to, we can only theorize the source of the DNA and how it got there. Without this trace DNA, I believe the prosecutors would have moved forward. It is interesting that apparently the grand jury jurors did not find the DNA reason enough not to find probable cause. Personally, I believe if the source is ever found, we will discover that there is an explanation other than belonging to the murderer. There are others, such as ex-DA Mary Lacy who believe the DNA has to be that of the murderer."

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"In 1999, Alex Hunter prohibited by court order the testimony of Lou Smit. Smit had the order overturned. Since they both promoted the intruder theory, why would Hunter not want Smit to testify?"

MarkBeckner:

"I'm guessing is that it is because Lou Smit had taken the case public and was misrepresenting some of the evidence."


After the Ramsey case, Smit continued to work on cold cases. As a detective, Smit boasted that he "never lost a homicide case" in a career in which he worked on more than 200 murder cases in which a suspect had been arrested and tried for their crime.

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"I heard rumors that Patsy Ramsay actually killed JonBenet because she was jealous of the little girls relationship with her dad. I was wondering if an inappropriate relationship between John and JonBenet was investigated? I also wanted to know if it's true that the handwriting on the ransom note matched Patsy Ramsays handwriting?"

MarkBeckner:

"We investigated all aspects of the family relationships. There is no evidence that I know of to support the rumor you heard. Handwriting experts noted some similarities, but not enough to say she wrote the note. There are also similarities to the style of writing to Patsy's style, such as use of exclamation marks, acronyms, and indentation. One expert noted signs of deception in the writing as well."

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"Why did you turn down the offer for Fitzgerald to put together a team of forensic linguistic experts to look at the ransom note (pro bono)?"

MarkBeckner:

"We originally used Donald Foster and because we later found out he had done some internet work on the case prior to being introduced to us, his credibility could be challenged. Fitzgerald was a friend of Foster's and if I remember correctly, had been trained by Foster. While we are sure Fitzgerald would have been objective and credible, his association with Foster would have just been one more thing for the defense attorneys to hammer away at."



In 1997, Foster became involved in the investigation of JonBenét Ramsey's murder, a case in which a ransom note played a significant role. Foster was afterwards hired by Boulder police to conduct analysis of the ransom note, and in this context he came to re-examine Patsy's involvement. He cited her habit of creating acronyms (the note was signed with the mysterious acronym SBTC) and said that she changed a number of habits in her handwriting after being shown a copy of the note. He appeared on the TV news show 20/20 to share his insight when it became public he would be a witness against Patsy Ramsey in front of the grand jury. But he never did appear as a witness in the Ramsey case.

In a book about the investigation, the lead detective, Steve Thomas, defended Foster's work.

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"Without pointing fingers or naming names should you understandably not want to, what is your view on the theory that JonBenet had been sexually abused over a period of time, as opposed to on that night alone?"

MarkBeckner:

"Evidence was found that would indicate she was sexually assaulted some time prior to the day of her death."




On the anterior aspect of the perineum, along the edges of closure of the labia majora, is a small amount of dried blood. A similar small amount of dried and semifluid blood is present on the skin of the fourchette and in the vestibule. Inside the vestibule of the vagina and along the distal vaginal wall is reddish hyperemia. This hyperemia is circumferential and perhaps more noticeable on the right side and posteriorly. The hyperemia also appears to extend just inside the vaginal orifice. A 1 cm red-purple area of abrasion is located on the right posterolateral area of the 1 x 1 cm hymeneal orifice. The hymen itself is represented by a rim of mucosal tissue extending clockwise between the 2 and 10:00 positions. The area of abrasion is present at approximately the 7:00 position and appears to involve the hymen and distal right lateral vaginal wall and possibly the area anterior to the hymen. On the right labia majora is a very faint area of violent discoloration measuring approximately one inch by three-eighths of an inch. Incision into the underlying subcutaneous tissue discloses no hemorrhage. A minimal amount of semiliquid thin watery red fluid is present in the vaginal vault. No recent or remote anal or other perineal trauma is identified.

[abs]

Reading between the lines, Mark Beckner obviously seems to believe it was an inside job. What two-bit kidnapper would take the time to draft a three page ransom note while on the property?

It is clear that he does think it is an inside job.

What baffled me was that she had been hit on the head, and she was strangled a couple of hours AFTER that. I had been led to believe earlier that she was hit on the head close to the time she died.

That fact changes the whole thing.

[JonBenet Investigation]

It is clear that he does think it is an inside job.

What baffled me was that she had been hit on the head, and she was strangled a couple of hours AFTER that. I had been led to believe earlier that she was hit on the head close to the time she died.

That fact changes the whole thing.

The lab experts support that she was strangled many times over a time frame of many hours that night, then at the time the Ramsey's found the ransom note, Jonbenet was moved to the wine cellar, at the time of the 911 call to police for help, the killer pulled the cord tight for the last time, he hit her on the head with the knob end of the metal child ball bat to stop her movement and noise as he leaves. Two white blankets were tuck tight around JonBenet and a piece of black duct tape place of her mouth as a clue, you will not say a word, He lock the cellar door with the wood catch before he leaves the basement.

His crime was over as he had plan it and he was mad. There may be no $118,000.00 in a cash payoff as he had so carefully preplanned the crime in his mind. He printed complete instructions in his three page ransom note that he knew was right to the letter.

Boulder's police "chain of events" and "time line" does not match the crime scene, the profile and the ransom note instructions, Their backward time line matches their idea that it was a inside job.

The ransom note instructions warn that they would kill JonBenet if anyone calls for help and when the call was made, the killer did what he had printed. He had more than seven minutes to exit the property and walk into history.

It is clear now after taken part in the Q & A program that the Boulder's police way of thinking has kept this a very cold case. We know this crime was a Personal cause homicide.

It has been said by many experts, "Unfortunately the police made several major mistakes and let a theory drive an investigation rather then evidence."



Team JBI

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"How helpful was the FBI involvement in the investigation? For the sake of this discussion, this includes the input of retired consultants like John Douglas, who was hired by the Ramsey family."

MarkBeckner:

"Very helpful. They did a lot of work for us, analyzed the case, conducted research into other cases, provided input and feedback on our investigation, and did some forensic work for us. While the media often said we would not accept help from others, we had assistance from multiple agencies and dozens of experts from around the country. John Douglas' involvement was before I became involved in the case. It is my understanding that he did not interview all family members or many of the witnesses in this case."


FBI Profiler

John Douglas

Thanks Roscoe...I interviewed John and Patsy and did sound tests at their home. John and Patsy's bedroom was basically a finished attic. You couldn't even hear anything from the second floor where the children slept. JonBenet as you know was found two floors below that in the basement . Going into the case I also looked at the family as suspects. That's where you always first look. The defense asked me for help but they didn't sway me or pay me to come up with an analysis that would eliminate John and Patsy. They said they didn't know if they were guilty or not but they thought they had nothing to do with the crime. In the back of my mind before I did anything I thought there was a strong possibility that they were culpable.
 I've done so many cases in my life that I knew very quickly that the Ramsey's were innocent. If you've ever been to a doctor for an injury or illness they are profiling you and hopefully will come up with what ails you or the extent of your injuries and how you should be treated. I don't know about you but from my experience doctors are like any other profession. Some are exceptional and others not so. I told the the Boulder PD what I thought but they were not happy that I was helping in their minds potential killers. I told them not to take my word for it and to contact my old unit. Apparently they did but according to Lou Smit one of the profilers said he would turn in his FBI credentials if the Ramsey's were innocent. Well he was wrong and this small town PD with 1-2 homicides a year took this agents comments very seriously. I secretly testified before the grand jury and read my notes from the analysis I did. Secretly...I was told to duck down when I was driven into the courthouse garage. They didn't want the media to see me going in. I told the grand jury from my notes that I was told there is DNA evidence. i read that if there was DNA evidence that it would not be semen but rather saliva. Why? Because this was not a sex crime. It was what I call in the Crime Classification Manual (CCM) as a personal cause homicide. It turns out that the DNA was saliva. I was told that they have "evidence" and I said if you have evidence why am I here...go with your evidence.
 If I believed the Ramsey's were responsible I would have said that in my analysis. I'm not a hired gun whether working for the prosecution or the defense. Unfortunately the police made several major mistakes and let a theory drive an investigation rather then evidence.

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question

"In your opinion, how convincing is the theory that the duct tape was placed after death? The theory suggests that the lack of a tongue mark on the tape indicates no resistance?"

MarkBeckner:

"The evidence indicates the tape was put on her mouth either after she was knocked unconscious from the blow to the head, or after she had already died."





John Ramsey found this piece of tape covering JBR's mouth when he first found JBR; he removed it before taking her upstairs.



"Inside the room, investigators found the two white blankets that John said had been  wrapped around JonBenet, and the piece of black duct tape which had covered  her mouth. .They also found bundled inside the blankets a child's pink Burble  nightgown. A red Swiss army knife was also found lying in the corner of the room  away from the blanket. On the floor outside the door to the cellar was a paint tray  and acrylic painting supplies. One of the detectives observed a wooden handle to  a paint brush, the type used by artists, which appeared to be broken and a piece  missing. The floor of the wine cellar was vacuumed to collect any trace evidence.  The black duct tape, blanket, nightgown, knife, broken paint brush and paint tray,  and vacuumed particles were all collected and logged into evidence."

JR: She was laying on the blanket, and the blanket was kind of folded around her  legs. And her arms were tied behind her head, and there was some pieces of  black tape (inaudible) on her legs, and her head was cocked to the side.

[JonBenet Investigation]

Why is this a cold case?

Q & A Question

Question:

"If there was one thing about the JonBenet investigation that you could do differently, what would it be and why?"

MarkBeckner:

"Go back and get that first day all over again. We would do it a lot differently and much better."

MarkBeckner:

"Why? Because we screwed it up the first time"

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

The program was very well done and the last post ended with this post.

"This will be my last post, but after reading some of the follow-up posts, I believe there may have been some misinterpretation of some of my comments or "reading between the lines". I want to emphasize that I do not fully know what happened that night or who killed JonBenet, as some have surmised. If anyone did, this would not be a mystery. This is why I do not speculate. I simply answered questions as truthfully as possible and only on things that have already been reported. Dismissing the intruder evidence is a mistake and as I emphasized in an earlier post, the location of the foreign DNA is significant. This could very likely be the person who killed JonBenet. However, we will not be sure until and if they find out who it belongs to. And, just because we can not prove a point of entry, doesn't mean someone didn't find a way to get in. Just as I believe we can not exonerate on one piece of evidence, neither can we ignore evidence. Finally, everyone is presumed innocent until proven otherwise. Thanks again."


Thank you Mark Beckner for the cold case updates.

Team JBI

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"Regarding the intruder theory, can you comment on the point of entry, how and intruder might have gained entry and whether it is plausible?"

MarkBeckner:

"Most investigators do not believe there was a legitimate point of entry. It is unknown how an intruder may have gotten in. Lou Smit always believed it was the basement window, but we did not agree with him, as the dust and spider web were undisturbed."

[JonBenet Investigation]

Q & A Question

Question:

"What do you make of the fact that the ransom note demanded the exact same amount as the salary bonus?"

MarkBeckner

"Whoever it was had to have intimate knowledge of the family."


What size brown paper bag?   

Four lbs. of money - 1,900 bills 
1 Gram = One Note     
1 Ounce = approximately 28.35 Grams     
Approximately 454 Notes = One lbs.
453.59237 grams in a pound
U.S. bill = 6-1/8” long X 2-5/8” wide (.0043”) thick
 
Currency Strap holds 100 bills
$20 straps color are Violet
$100 straps color are Mustard
100 count stack of bills are 7/16” thick
 
$100,000.00 in $100 bills = One thousand bills
Stack size.....6-1/8” X 2-5/8” X 4.3” tall
Weight of $100,000.00 in $100 bills = 1,000 / 453.59237 = 2.20462 lbs.
 
$18,000.00 in $20 bills = Nine hundred bills
Stack size....6-1/8” X 2-5/8” X 3.87” tall
Weight of $18,000.00 in $20 bills = 900 / 453.59237 = 1.98416 lbs.

Size of brown paper bag needed to hold $118.000.00 of Ransom Money is (Small).
Total size of money stack 6-1/8” X 2-5/8” X 8.17” tall.
Weight is 4.18872 lbs. Four pounds.
Place in a small brown paper bag in two stacks are 5-1/4” wide X 6-1/8” tall X 4.3” thick.

Why the brown paper bag? #8 Size 6-1/8” X 4-1/16” X 12-7/16” 57 lbs

(Biodgrade Naturally)
 
“Take in Take out” is a term use by mountain climbers to protect the parks from people’s damage from human waste.
Using a brown  paper bag to hold human waste has been use for many years in the parks by rock climbers and trail guilds.
Storing the human waste in  brown paper bags and then storing it in the climbers back pack in till they leave the park.
This helps keep the parks clean from human  waste and it’s damaging effects to the parks.
If the killer’s plans was to have the ransom money put into a brown paper bag and then he  places the brown paper money bag into his backpack, this may help hide the money from a surprise police search if he was stop and  question by the police on his travels, the police may not check the brown paper bags in the backpack because it is known as a human  waste bag used by climbers.
The range of fecal weights produced by individuals varies between 0.75 ounce and 0.66 pounds per day. 
This may be how the killer was thinking as he printed the ransom note. 
The brown paper bag (Tools of the trade).
The uses of brown  paper bags by rock climbers and hikers teaches this person not to leave trace evidence in his travels to where he has been. 

JBI



   

[JonBenet Investigation]

The writer of the ransom note take possession of the instructions.

It has struck many people odd that the note said....
"Any deviations of my instructions..."   (used to indicate possession)
It may not be the normal way to say this.
 
It may be more normal to say...
"Any deviations from my instructions..."  (used to indicate cause or reason)

Why?

Because the killer will stay in the house to complete this crime. Out on the trails was no place for Jonbenet.
JonBenet was never to leave the home.
He travel on Foot, Bike and bus with a backpack and some supplies.
Items in his backpack, 8 foot of white Tent cord, Stun gun fixed with Black duct tape, Old like new surplus Water base Sharpie markers, dull Red knife, Black Child ball bat, Rope, Brown paper bags for human waste. Keep cotton in his pack for starting fires, like cotton lint from a close dryer. The dryer is where the two white blankets came from and so does firer starting cotton lint from the door screen. Looking for lint, now you know why he look inside the dryer and found the two white blankets.

He wear brown surplus wool fingerless gloves, Carries his key on a Carabiner with pulley, Has good shoes for walking Hi-Tec Trail shoes. Flashlight that straps to his head. He Carries a phone company test hand set to make free calls on the trails and he knows that in the basements is the place to tap the phone wires. S.B.T.C. was printed on the hand set, or Southern Bell Telephone Company. Used in the printing of the ransom note and can be used to monitor the home.

He knows how to hunt for food and money like beaver, and tie special knots in cords. Knows the trails, so be rested.


OF

preposition 


1. (used to indicate distance or direction from, separation, deprivation, etc.):
"within a mile of the church; south of Omaha; to be robbed of one's money."


2. (used to indicate derivation, origin, or source):
"a man of good family; the plays of Shakespeare; a piece of cake."


3. (used to indicate cause, motive, occasion, or reason):
"to die of hunger."


4. (used to indicate material, component parts, substance, or contents):
"a dress of silk; an apartment of three rooms; a book of poems; a package of cheese."


5. (used to indicate apposition or identity):
"Is that idiot of a salesman calling again?"


6. (used to indicate specific identity or a particular item within a category):
"the city of Chicago; thoughts of love."


7. (used to indicate possession, connection, or association):
"the king of France; the property of the church."

FROM

preposition 


1. (used to specify a starting point in spatial movement):
"a train running west from Chicago."


2. (used to specify a starting point in an expression of limits):
"The number of stores will be increased from 25 to 30."


3. (used to express removal or separation, as in space, time, or order):
"two miles from shore; 30 minutes from now; from one page to the next."


4. (used to express discrimination or distinction):
"to be excluded from membership; to differ from one's father."


5. (used to indicate source or origin):
"to come from the Midwest; to take a pencil from one's pocket."


6. (used to indicate agent or instrumentality):
"death from starvation."


7. (used to indicate cause or reason):
"From the evidence, he must be guilty."