walk the cat back

Shortly after JonBenet Ramsey was murdered, male DNA belonging to someone other than the Ramsey family was found at the crime scene. Some dozen years later, through incredible advances in forensic science, this same unknown male DNA was located in locations on JonBenet's clothing.




In a huge set back in the investigation of the 1998 murder of Suzanne Jovin, allegations of the similarly mismanaged investigation have been further compromised by lab worker's contamination of evidence. The next step in this investigation may be employing DNA techniques recently applied to JonBenet's case to help find the DNA of Suzanne's killer --

State Lab Must Fix Errors, Seek New Jovin Clues
Published in The Hartford Courant
by David Cameron

"...One such test involves a new technique to discover "touch DNA" on Jovin's clothing. Traces of DNA left when someone touches an object, even slightly, can be detected. The technique led to a major breakthrough last year in the JonBenet Ramsey case. By scraping places on JonBenet's long johns where investigators guessed she may have been touched or held by the killer, the Bode Technology Group found male DNA in two places that matched DNA found earlier on her underwear. The finding led the Boulder County district attorney to conclude she was murdered by the source of that DNA, as yet unidentified, rather than by a member of her family.

The same technique could be applied to Jovin's clothing — in particular, to her coat. A reconstruction of the crime, indicating the sequence and location of the 17 stab wounds, might reveal places where the killer grabbed her or held her. No doubt many friends, first responders, medical personnel, investigators and forensic scientists touched her clothing and left their DNA on it. But the technique may reveal DNA that matches that of someone else — the killer.

Obviously, it's long shot. But after the recent revelation, it may be the best way — indeed, the only way — to obtain the DNA of Suzanne Jovin's killer."