The jonbenet Ramsey letter

[Meara]

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I don't even think the credentials or history of Martin are important. I'm just using my own eyes. Even considering the different pens, paper, and scenario, plus the inevitable disguising, the link is definitely there.

Another thing, old Gary seems to have an odd habit on the words receive and deceive. All the c's and e's in the middle get confused and they just look the same

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Nice work on the graphic. If only it were that simple! General appearance is not a safe guideline for handwriting comparison. Different handwriting samples can appear very similar but, on closer inspection, prove to be quite different. Let me show you what I mean.

- The blue "A" is written all in one stroke, with the writer coming up from the downstroke on the right to make the crossbar in the middle without lifting the pen. The black "A" is written in two strokes, with the writer forming the up and down strokes in one movement, then lifting the pen to make the crossbar. In other words, the two letters may look similar, but the mechanics of their formation are completely different. The mechanics are the ingrained physical habits of the writer, so it's the mechanics/habits we need to look at to see the writer.

- The "r" in the blue "letter" has an initial downstroke, and the top curve splits off from it at a wide angle. In the black sample, there is no downstroke. The letter begins at the baseline and continues in one stroke up to a smoothly rounded curve at the top.

- The main thing that distinguishes one "w" from another is the way the base is formed. The blue "w" is formed with curved lines (loops) at the bottom. The black "w" is formed with points at the bottom.

- The main thing that distinguishes one "t" from another is the crossbar. Many variations are possible, involving position, length, curvature, number of strokes, and so on. The crossbar in the blue writing is consistently made in the center of the downstroke. The crossbar in the black writing is made above the midpoint of the downstroke. In the word "this," there is tapering. The crossbar begins firm, then becomes thinner and weaker from left to right. In the larger sample provided earlier, I didn't see any tapering.

This is by no means a thorough comparison, just an explanation, using your examples, of some significant differences in the two handwriting samples.

 

[Rain on my Parade]

Wondering why both PR and JR both were handed true bills if they weren’t participants in the crime.

 

[Meara]

Yes, they are wrong. The comparison with Patsy's writing is laughable, you can point out some similarities but they pale into insignificance compared to Oliva's notes.

Crime scene DNA was horribly compromised. Amateur police allowed 18 (According to Arndt) friends and family members to roam the house. That is ridiculous. A fresh test with 2024 touch DNA technology is what we need.
There's often a tendancy to think of unsolved killings as a 'masterplan'. But it doesnt require any real capacity from the killer when you have incompetance on the level of Boulder PD. Oliva is a knucklehead, the Police's farcical approach to the crime scene basically handed him a reprieve.

Not to go too far off thread topic - the letter - but -- IMO John Ramsey bears a good deal of responsibility for the screwed up crime scene. Because of the nature of their products and services, Lockheed Martin had in place a protocol to follow in the event of a kidnapping of an employee/employee's family member. As a senior executive, JR would have been instructed in this protocol. Let's imagine he followed it. As soon as he sees the ransom note, he calls Lockheed Martin Security. They give him initial instructions, and call the FBI, which has jurisdiction in all kidnapping cases. The FBI contact JR directly, let him know that they're in charge of the case, that they will liaise with local authorities, and that they will coordinate communications among LM Security, the Ramseys, the police, and themselves (and the kidnapper, if he makes contact). The FBI gives JR further instructions and sends agents to take charge of the crime scene. No friends are allowed to come over. Agents bring the Atlanta FBI office on board, seal off the property, begin asking questions/taking statements, search the house and grounds. They quickly find JBR's body in the basement but stay in charge of the case for the time being because JBR was kidnapped (taken from her bedroom involuntarily); and risk assessment for the other family members must be reevaluated. It's easy to blame the Boulder PD, but the fact is, if JR had done what he was supposed to do, and had probably signed a written contract to do, the evidence would have been properly preserved, and the entire case would be different. Why didn't JR follow protocol? That's the $64,000 question - and a subject for a different thread.

 

[Cedars]

I am not following this case, but seeing there are people currently interested in the letter, I wanted to mention a podcast that recently aired with an analysis of the letter by several retired FBI profilers - it takes a different perspective, that I hadn't heard before. The podcast is called The Consult.

 

[CloudedTruth]

Not to go too far off thread topic - the letter - but -- IMO John Ramsey bears a good deal of responsibility for the screwed up crime scene. Because of the nature of their products and services, Lockheed Martin had in place a protocol to follow in the event of a kidnapping of an employee/employee's family member. As a senior executive, JR would have been instructed in this protocol. Let's imagine he followed it. As soon as he sees the ransom note, he calls Lockheed Martin Security. They give him initial instructions, and call the FBI, which has jurisdiction in all kidnapping cases. The FBI contact JR directly, let him know that they're in charge of the case, that they will liaise with local authorities, and that they will coordinate communications among LM Security, the Ramseys, the police, and themselves (and the kidnapper, if he makes contact). The FBI gives JR further instructions and sends agents to take charge of the crime scene. No friends are allowed to come over. Agents bring the Atlanta FBI office on board, seal off the property, begin asking questions/taking statements, search the house and grounds. They quickly find JBR's body in the basement but stay in charge of the case for the time being because JBR was kidnapped (taken from her bedroom involuntarily); and risk assessment for the other family members must be reevaluated. It's easy to blame the Boulder PD, but the fact is, if JR had done what he was supposed to do, and had probably signed a written contract to do, the evidence would have been properly preserved, and the entire case would be different. Why didn't JR follow protocol? That's the $64,000 question - and a subject for a different thread.

Exactly. Why didn’t JR follow the protocol? That is definitely the $64k question.

 

[Meara]

I am not following this case, but seeing there are people currently interested in the letter, I wanted to mention a podcast that recently aired with an analysis of the letter by several retired FBI profilers - it takes a different perspective, that I hadn't heard before. The podcast is called The Consult.

Thanks for this. I'll give it a listen. For anyone else interested, the podcast is available on Spotify, audible.com, truecrimeconsult.com, and several other streaming services.

 

[TizerisT]

IMO John Ramsey bears a good deal of responsibility for the screwed up crime scene. Because of the nature of their products and services, Lockheed Martin had in place a protocol to follow in the event of a kidnapping of an employee/employee's family member.

100% true, he messed up and made strange decisions. Because he was panicking and not thinking straight. The McCanns also did this...

 

[CloudedTruth]

100% true, he messed up and made strange decisions. Because he was panicking and not thinking straight. The McCanns also did this...

Very interesting to me that those who came in contact with JR that morning (police, Linda Arndt) described him as calm & collected. They commented on it because his demeanor was noticeably unusual under the circumstances. He also had the company attorney Mike Bynum in his ear giving him advice which resulted in attorneys being in place before the end of that day. The person exhibiting panicked (and hysterical) behavior was PR. PR in her own account of that morning was freaking out after having read only the first paragraph of the RN. JR read the entire note. He sensibly checked all the doors and windows. When Det. Arndt met with JR to explain the phone trap and instructed him how to start the tape recorder, what to say, etc. he was focused, attentive, articulate and carried on conversation normally. He took notes. He sometimes even smiled and joked.

JR was such a calm and cool character it was noted by many people who knew and worked with him over the years, from his days in the Navy to his own businesses. Some even described him as "cold", he was always in control.

 

[TizerisT]

Yeah because he was the head of the family. If he doesn't display that he's in control of the situation, the others will just break. He was trying to stay strong for them, but inside he was gripped with fear. There's not much worse as a proud grown man than your peers seeing you cry. Must remain stoic.
That's my default approach to stressful situations myself, people have asked me in the past "you did good to keep yourself together" but inside I was in peices. But I could not show that outwardly, as others were looking to me for guidance.

 

[TizerisT]

Nice work on the graphic. If only it were that simple!

I see signs of attempting to disguise his writing in some of the examples you said, and he only really half-managed that.
Please bear in mind that the ransom letter may be have been written by flashlight with the excitement of creeping around the house of someone he was obsessed with. Completely different to being calm and bored, perhaps from a prison cell, writing with a different pen, and all the time in the world.

 

[TizerisT]

I think you should check your sources for accuracy. There were no footprints outside the window or on the suitcase. A partial footprint in the wine cellar indicating the hi-tec boot, which BR admitted to owning. One p sized piece of glass on the suitcase, no debris.

Then what is this outside the entrance window in this pic? And the window next to it for comparison. Ok, granted, the Hi-Tec one was in the wine cellar but there was others by that window. And I can assure you that a suitcase, standing flush next to a open window, would have certainly had a footprint on it, at the very least as a practise to see how tricky it is.

Spider web with dust and leaves intact and undisturbed in window.

This one's easy. Firstly, take another look at the disturbed area complete with shoe marks, vs the next, undisturbed window.
And then the explanation of the entrance method: John broke the window in the summer and turned the lock to get in while locked out. It was never repaired. The intruder did the same thing, but the glass was already broken. Look at where the intruders hand came in and turned the lock. That is extremely easy for a skilled creeper. And just because part of a spiderweb is intact, doesn't mean anything. The spiderweb was located all the way at the top of the hole that he put his arm in.

 

[TizerisT]

And finally, as to what Burke said about owning the Hi-Tec:
Dr. Phil: There was a footprint in the mold on the ground of the basement (holds up photo of Hi tec print in wine cellar) and the investigators thought that it was from a hiking boot.
Burke: Yeah.
Dr. Phil: Did you own any hiking boots that you might have worn in the basement at some time?
Burke: Yeah, I did. I don't remember the brand but I remember that it had a little compass on the shoelace.

So other than 'I did own hiking boots' theres nothing to connect them to Burke. Bit strange that very similar shoeprints also appeared by the window.

 

[CloudedTruth]

Then what is this outside the entrance window in this pic? And the window next to it for comparison. Ok, granted, the Hi-Tec one was in the wine cellar but there was others by that window. And I can assure you that a suitcase, standing flush next to a open window, would have certainly had a footprint on it, at the very least as a failed attempt to go out the window.

This one's easy. Firstly, take another look at your 'undisturbed' leaves, vs some actual undisturbed leaves.
And then the explanation of the entrance: John broke the window in the summer to get in while locked out. It was never repaired. The intruder did the same thing, but the glass was already broken. Look at where the intruders hand came in and turned the lock. That is extremely easy. And just because part of a spiderweb is still there, doesn't mean anything. He didnt need to even touch it much, if at all.

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Of course you do realize that these pictures were taken later that day? After police had been walking around looking for signs of a break-in? There was snow on the ground when police arrived which melted / dissipated as the day went on. They observed no footprints around the outside of the house in the snow. None. Anywhere.

It should be noted that it was dark when you claim your non-existent intruder entered the house. Amazing that he was able to avoid disturbing anything while removing the grate and squirming into a small space and then a small window in the dark.

Also, the Hi-Tec brand of boot is very often worn by police personnel, who were all around the outside of the house that day. Also interesting that both parents denied that BR even owned those boots, while he very clearly remembers PR buying them for him in Atlanta.

The broken glass was cleaned up but they never fixed the window? Come on, that just does not make any sense at all. And neither does JR's story of having to strip down to his underwear to enter. Neither does him telling police that he checked the windows and the doors that morning after having locked everything up tight the night before, and finding everything still locked. But then later he suddenly remembers that the basement window was slightly opened, and he closed it. That would have been a major deal if the window was truly open that morning. He only comes up with the broken window story after Fleet White questions the window scenario. And then later that day, Fleet is called to Mike Bynum's office and told that attorneys have been hired and he needs to not get involved.

 

[TizerisT]

Of course you do realize that these pictures were taken later that day? After police had been walking around looking for signs of a break-in?

That would involve the police moving the grate, jumping down, and taking pics of their own boot prints. Boulder PD were comical, but they're not that comical.

There was snow on the ground when police arrived which melted / dissipated as the day went on.

The snow was patchy. A little hop here, a little jump there and stick to the dry parts. Theres no pic I've seen of the snow that shows it as being unavoidable. Not even close to it. Plus, it's entirely plausible that the murder happened hours before. Like 1am, 2am. How would you spot a clue in the snow hours later at 6am?

 

[Rain on my Parade]

Yeah because he was the head of the family. If he doesn't display that he's in control of the situation, the others will just break. He was trying to stay strong for them, but inside he was gripped with fear. There's not much worse as a proud grown man than your peers seeing you cry. Must remain stoic.
That's my default approach to stressful situations myself, people have asked me in the past "you did good to keep yourself together" but inside I was in peices. But I could not show that outwardly, as others were looking to me for guidance.

He did finally cry when he left the Fernie's house to go for a walk that evening.

Great point made about your honesty in the matter.

 

[CloudedTruth]

That would involve the police moving the grate, jumping down, and taking pics of their own boot prints. Boulder PD were comical, but they're not that comical.

The snow was patchy. A little hop here, a little jump there and stick to the dry parts. Theres no pic I've seen of the snow that shows it as being unavoidable. Not even close to it. Plus, it's entirely plausible that the murder happened hours before. Like 1am, 2am. How would you spot a clue in the snow hours later at 6am?

You haven’t seen pictures of what the snow looked like when police arrived because there are none. It was dark. The pictures were taken later, after some snow had melted. It had snowed more than once over a period of several days. It accumulated on grass and other areas not exposed to the sun. There was a light dusting everywhere that morning, but not to the extent that it would have buried clues.

Pictures of the window well were also taken later. After police were informed of the broken and open window, they investigated that area. They inadvertently left footprints that they accounted for. The purpose of the pictures was to document the well from the outside. It has already been stated that they found no other footprints surrounding the outside. We have already discussed that JR did not disclose to anyone about that window until Fleet questioned it.

 

[TizerisT]

Police wouldnt just stamp around in the room where the body was. The footprints are a major red flag, particularly at the escape point and a fresh one in the little cellar room with JB. You can't just ignore the image that this is creating.

 

[Gunther Toody]

Do we know if Oliva knew the Ramsey family before that night?

 

[Justice101]

Of course you do realize that these pictures were taken later that day? After police had been walking around looking for signs of a break-in? There was snow on the ground when police arrived which melted / dissipated as the day went on. They observed no footprints around the outside of the house in the snow. None. Anywhere.

It should be noted that it was dark when you claim your non-existent intruder entered the house. Amazing that he was able to avoid disturbing anything while removing the grate and squirming into a small space and then a small window in the dark.

Also, the Hi-Tec brand of boot is very often worn by police personnel, who were all around the outside of the house that day. Also interesting that both parents denied that BR even owned those boots, while he very clearly remembers PR buying them for him in Atlanta.

The broken glass was cleaned up but they never fixed the window? Come on, that just does not make any sense at all. And neither does JR's story of having to strip down to his underwear to enter. Neither does him telling police that he checked the windows and the doors that morning after having locked everything up tight the night before, and finding everything still locked. But then later he suddenly remembers that the basement window was slightly opened, and he closed it. That would have been a major deal if the window was truly open that morning. He only comes up with the broken window story after Fleet White questions the window scenario. And then later that day, Fleet is called to Mike Bynum's office and told that attorneys have been hired and he needs to not get involved.

Good points.

I still believe it was an insider who killed JBR

 

[Meara]

100% true, he messed up and made strange decisions. Because he was panicking and not thinking straight. The McCanns also did this...

Here's a story to consider.

My father worked overseas for the government. One Sunday afternoon it was was just the two of us there when I heard glass shatter on the other side of the house. I hollered, "Daddy, are you okay?" He hollered back, "I'm fine, sweetheart." Then, "Listen, don't come in here. There's glass all over." I went anyway and stood by the door. He was in the little room where he fixed clocks, on his hands and knees, feeling around in the glass. I asked what happened. He said, "I think a bird must have dropped a rock through the window." He asked me to call his right hand man, P___, a native of the country, and tell him to come over. When I came back, he was inspecting the window. As an afterthought he asked me to stay off the phone till P____ arrived, in case he called back, which, oddly enough, he did. We had a large garden. P____came over, and they walked around the garden for a while, talking.

So, a bird or something had broken the window. It wasn't the kind of place where kids might have done it. My father didn't want me to get glass cuts. He was looking for a clock part he'd dropped. I thought he wanted P____ to help him clean up the glass but wasn't really surprised when they went out in the garden instead. It was a country where men friends took walks together and talked. Maybe he was asking P____ about replacing the window since he handled all sorts of U.S./local interface matters, and our house was leased by the government from a local owner.

It took me a while to work it out. Someone had taken a shot at my father and he hit the floor. He wanted me away from the room for my safety and to buy time to look for the bullet. When he'd asked me to phone P____, he'd said, "Ask him to come over. And tell him ______." I've forgotten the exact words but remember it was something specific but ordinary. It was a code. P____'s callback was a signal for my father. They talked outside to make sure the conversation was secure, out of my earshot, and possibly so Daddy could slip him the bullet. He didn't say so directly but somehow communicated that I was to stay put in the house.

I was 19, old enough to know better. That window was small and reinforced with chicken wire. No way had a bird dropped a rock that sprayed glass 12 feet away. No way had a rock left a small round hole in the pane. No reason to bother P____ on a Sunday. No reason for P____ to call back when he only lived three blocks away. No reason for a garden ramble instead of coffee on the patio as usual. Someone damn near assassinated my father. But my father was so calm and offhand, so completely himself, so quick on his feet, so adroit in making one thing seem like another and making all the necessary steps unfold smoothly, that at first I believed him.

I've imagined an intruder, and myself in JR's shoes, many times. He was a much bigger fish than my father, the CEO of a billion dollar company, part of a huge defense contractor with offices around the world. Sometimes I can believe he could have been so panicked that he momentarily forgot about calling Lockheed. I can't believe he stayed panicked for the next seven hours.