Well, if an 'intruder' exited the basement window then he must have been a magician.
In order to lighten the mood, here's a little scenario for you
.
If you've ever watched that old detective series Columbo on TV (and who hasn't?) you will know that there are scenes where the suave male culprit always incriminates himself by offering clues to conundrums. Instead of just saying "I don't know, yes, that is strange" which is what most people would say when faced with something odd about the crime scene.
Columbo: "Sir! Just one more thing before I go
.There's something that's bothering me. It won't take a moment".
Culprit: (exasperated tone of voice) "Oh really? And what would that be?
Columbo: "Let me get this straight. You had to move the chair away from in front of the door before you could get into the room?"
Culprit: "Correct
..I had to move the chair".
Columbo: "The thing I'm trying to figure out in my mind then is, if an intruder went through the door, he'd have to pull the chair behind him
.because that would have been his exit
so that's not very logical as far as
."
Culprit (interrupting): "I think it is. I mean if this person is that bizarrely clever to have not left any good evidence, but left all these little funny clues around, they
are clever enough to pull the chair back when they left.
There, I've solved it for you. Can I go now? I have a business luncheon at the golf club."
Colombo: "Oh and by the way, my wife thinks you're terrific"
The above is an actual interview between Lou Smith and JR. Taken from the book 'JonBenet -The Police Files' (just the last bit has been added)
So you see, John is admitting that when he went into the basement there was a chair in front of the basement room (train room with window). Which means.....JR must have gone down before anyone else. Officer French looked down there at 6.09am and so did Fleet White and they mention NO chair.
GREAT Columbo analogy!
There was a time when JR was noting all kinds of things out of place for some unknown reason.
But in this exchange, he doesn't mention anything about a chair:
Robert Christian Wolf v John Bennett Ramsey and Patricia Paugh Ramsey.
http://www.acandyrose.com/12122001Depo-JohnRamsey.htm
2 Q. Can you tell me where you looked?
3 A. I went back into the train room,
4 showed Fleet the broken window, explained to him
5 that I might have broken it myself months ago.
6 I showed him the suitcase that I saw under the
7 window, which I felt was very out of place.
8 We looked for any large pieces of
9 broken glass. And then I got up and went to
10 the cellar room, opened the door, and found
11 JonBenet.
12 Q. Do you remember why you decided to go
13 to the cellar door at that particular time?
14 A. It was the next door outside of the
15 train room. Other than that, no, it was a
16 methodical search, in my mind.
17 Q. Was there a reason that you hadn't
18 looked at that door the first time you went down
19 to the basement?
20 A. There is no external exit from that
21 room, so I was -- the first time I went to the
22 basement, I was trying to figure out how someone
23 could possibly have gotten into our home.
24 Q. Do you remember whether or not Fleet
25 White said anything to you while you were down in
0020
1 the basement showing him the broken window and
2 the suitcase?
3 A. I don't remember that he said
4 anything.
5 Q. Okay. Were you the first one to go
6 to the cellar door?
7 A. I don't know.
8 Q. When you opened the cellar door, can
9 you describe, to the best of your recollection
10 today, what it was that you saw?
11 A. I saw a white blanket, and I knew
12 immediately I found JonBenet.
And from ST's book, there's this:
Smit slowly leafed through notebooks filled with evidence pictures, asking Ramsey if he noticed anything different, unusual, or out of place. The common theme was that plenty of things were strange. A box of tissues did not belong there, a pillow missing here, dust and dirt disturbed elsewhere. To Ramsey it looked as though the Tupperware container in JonBenét's bedroom had something in it (the same thing Lou Smit believed). Ramsey's testimony seemed very well rehearsed. Ramsey almost seemed to know the answers before the questions were asked. A cigar box was out of place, as was his golf bag. He pointed out marks on a keyhole and noted that an Easter basket had been moved.
When Smit showed Ramsey a photo of the unidentified boot print in the cellar, Ramsey's private investigator was allowed to lean over and draw the pattern. When the detectives reviewed the videotape, Gosage threw a can of Skoal tobacco at the television screen and stormed from the room, cursing that a year's worth of work had just been handed to a prime suspect and his lawyer. Importantly, Ramsey said the "dirty" flashlight found at the scene did not belong to the family. We knew that he owned one just like it.
Smit also seemed to lose control of the interview at times and let John Ramsey question him. Ramsey asked about the stun gun, and Smit went on the videotaped record by saying that yes, he thought a stun gun had been used. It was a terrible mistake because a defense attorney would be able to show the jury that a district attorney's own investigator believed an alternate theory of the crime.
I take what he said about that chair with a grain of salt.
