crawford hill house

For being a young city Denver has some very captivating architecture like the Crawford Hill House a French Renaissance mansion built in early 1900's, shortly after the Italian Renaissance designed Brown Palace set the bar for local socialites growing expectations.

Crawford Hill House is absolutely lovely, meticulously restored and maintained, home to Haddon Morgan and Freeman, PC one of the law firms selected by the parents of JonBenet Ramsey to help deal with the totally unfounded persecution for their daughter's murder. Partner Bryan Morgan, now retired from practice, was a friend of the family prior to the 1996 tragedy. Partner Hal Haddon is busy as ever, seen paying attention to the DV hearing for Charlie Sheen in Aspen - -

Sheen's next Aspen court appearance set for June 18

Published in the Aspen Times
By Rick Carroll

"ASPEN — Actor Charlie Sheen is scheduled to make his next Aspen court appearance June 18 for a motions hearing regarding his domestic violence case.

Sheen's Aspen attorney, Richard Cummins, appeared Monday in Pitkin County District Court during a discussion of further proceedings in the case....Also attending the hearing was Denver defense attorney Harold Haddon...

Haddon, who owns a house in Aspen, declined to discuss his involvement, if any, in the case.

“It's an interesting case,” Haddon said.

Haddon is a partner with the Denver law firm Haddon Morgan Freeman PC, which specializes in criminal defense and civil law. His firm represented NBA star Kobe Bryant in his sexual assault case in Eagle County, as well as John Ramsey, the father of JonBenét Ramsey, the 6-year-old who was found slain in her Boulder home..."[read more]

a plea to the public

Seems like a good time to re-up this release from the Foundation - -

The Fair Justice Foundation Seeks Information and Tips in the
1996 Murder of JonBenét Ramsey

Child’s Murder Remains Unsolved after 13 Years

ATLANTA, GA Dec. 23 -- The Fair Justice Foundation (www.fairjusticefoundation.org) today released a list of behaviors and potential scenarios which may have been noticed about the person who killed JonBenét Ramsey, around the time of the murder. Six year old JonBenét Ramsey was found murdered in the basement of her home on December 26, 1996. After thirteen years the case remains unsolved.

In issuing the public plea, John Ramsey, JonBenét ’s father said, “We are hoping to jog memories and in doing so, asking everyone to examine their consciences.” He continued, “We’d like them to share any doubts or information they have about someone they know who may have behaved strangely or acted out of character around the time of my daughter’s murder.”

This public plea for information regarding the murder of JonBenét Ramsey is part of the foundation’s Discovery Project. The program was initiated in 2008 to serve families of victims of unsolved violent crime. The Discovery Project is uniquely positioned to support law enforcement efforts by new generating information such as in the Ramsey case, where initiatives may help to identify the unknown male that left his DNA in multiple locations at the Ramsey crime scene.

“We have very good reason to believe that the individual that committed this crime may have done so in the past and is absolutely capable of hurting someone else”, said detective Lou Smit who has worked on JonBenét’s case on behalf of law enforcement and independently since 1997. “The criminal community may have its own set of values and principals” added Smit, “but even so, can still come forward with information as there is a code of decency that cannot condone what happened to JonBenét.”

Personality traits that may be recognized by someone that knows an individual who was in Boulder, CO on Christmas day 1996:

Judgmental: strong or persistently expressed opinions about organized religion, capitalism and US participation in global affairs.

Cold: one perceived as capable of acting without compassion that very well may be violent toward others, set fires or killed animals in the past.

Kidnap interest: may have described a fantasy or the risks of what it would be like to abduct someone.

Fascination and fantasy regarding little girls and boys.

Secretive: maintains spaces or possessions he is extremely protective of that is strictly off limits to others.

Bondage: discussed, demonstrated or practiced the construction of garrotes and/or other strangulation devices and body restraints on himself or others.

Stun Gun: having a stun gun and paid excessive attention to it by frequent maintenance, display and practice using it

Someone that knows the person that took JonBenét’s life may have noticed one or more of the following scenarios following JonBenét’s murder at Christmas 1996:

Superficial wounds: Bruises scrapes or scratches on the face, neck or hands that were unexplained or for which the explanations changed.

Absent: nonattendance at work, church, school or other routine habits or hobbies.

Isolation: a spontaneous trip or sudden need to spend time alone.

Change of physical appearance: sudden new hair style or alteration of facial hair.

Intense interest: following case updates and news releases with heightened attention and focus.

New or used vehicle: abrupt and perhaps seemingly impulsive change in the car or truck he usually drove.

Relocation: a hasty change in geography relating to his living, working or regular friends and hangouts.

Collector of memorabilia: saving images or videos of JonBenét from newspaper, television or the internet

Vengeance: stating or hinting that the Ramsey’s – or JonBenét – are getting what they deserved.

Complimentary toward killer: impressed with perpetrator as a criminal mastermind while attributing great intelligence, skill or even luck.

Possessions: has items that came from the Ramsey home.

The Discovery Project has set up an email (tips@fairjusticefoundation.org) and crime tip hot line (206-312-7399) to intake information from the public, which has received messages from all across the United States. Investigators are hoping for a fresh impetus to their quest for justice in this appeal to the public for any information they might have, regardless of how small or insignificant it may seem.

“It's only going to take one email or phone call to solve this case, and it's going to be from somebody out in the public that knows something and wants to do the right thing," said retired Sheriff’s Captain and Municipal Court Judge OM Gray. Gray, an investigator involved with the Ramsey case since 1996, went on to say “I would appeal to everyone to think back to Christmas 1996 - did they see or hear about something suspicious? Do they know anyone acting peculiar or out of the ordinary that was either unaccounted for on the holiday or known to be in vicinity of Boulder, CO on 12/25/1996?"

About the Fair Justice Foundation

Founded by John Ramsey in 2008, the Fair Justice Foundation is a not for profit organization dedicated to providing information and awareness to state legislators considering passage of a DNA Fingerprint Law. The DNA Fingerprint law would require that any person arrested for a felony is DNA Fingerprinted and that data is submitted to the National CODIS database. The Discovery Project was initiated in late 2008 to serve families of victims of violent crimes where the case remains unsolved by reassuring them that people continue to care and will not let the case be forgotten. For more information you may visit FJF on the web at www.fairjusticefoundation.org

Contact:

Fair Justice Foundation
Crime tip email: tips@fairjusticefoundation.org
General email inquiries: info@fairjusticefoundation.org
Crime tip hotline: (206) 312-7399

no questions

Most people that knew the late Patsy Ramsey, before and after JonBenet's murder, remember her with the warmest of memories and kindest of words. It's nice to see folks like Dresden speaking from the heart - -

Remembering Patsy
Posted by Dresden

"The family of JonBenet Ramsey is on my mind today. I had the pleasure of meeting and working with both John Ramsey and the late Patsy Ramsey. I have to say that I have never met a more beautiful soul than that of Patsy Ramsey. She was so down to earth and warm...No family should have to endure this kind of pain, but I trust God's plan and I know we are not supposed to question anything. [...read more]

new old news

As I have come to learn where there is new information about JonBenet there is certain to be an edgy opinion coming from Alan Prendergast over at the Westword. There is no point to debating the faults in Prendergast's same ol'spin, but his last sentence did catch my attention. He claims there are clues and leads the Ramsey 'family let slip away'. And here I have always thought that was law enforcement's responsibility in a homicide investigation, following up and managing all those leads or clues - -

John Ramsey's hunt for suspicious characters
Published in the Denver Westword
By Alan Prendergast

"It wouldn't be the holiday season without the annual appeal from John Ramsey for help solving the 1996 murder of his six-year-old daughter, JonBenét. Check out the latest announcement on his Fair Justice Foundation website and this video.

...As Alex Hunter once said, the list of suspects narrows--but 13 years after the endless dance among cops, prosecutors, lawyers and the victim's family that let so many leads and clues slip away, it may be entirely too little too late.[...read more]

Smit

13 Years After JonBenet Ramsey Murder, Col. Springs Investigator Still Working on Case
Published in ABC News channel 13 KRDO
By Lindsay Watts

"COLORADO SPRINGS- JonBenet Ramsey would've been 19 years old this Christmas. The 6-year-old Boulder beauty queen was brutally murdered in her home on Christmas night 1996, and a killer has never been caught. While some may see this as a cold case, retired investigator Lou Smit refuses to give up.

"I just feel that some day by some effort, the case will be solved," Smit told us tonight at his Colorado Springs home. "Somebody knows something."

Smit has worked on the JonBenet case from the beginning. Back in 1996 he was hired by the Boulder district attorneys office to help investigate. Smit has been one of few who's always maintained John and Patsy Ramsey had nothing to do with their daughter's death.

This week John Ramsey released a statement urging the public to speak out with any information.

"We are hoping to jog memories and in doing so, asking everyone to examine their consciences," Ramsey said in a statement.

Smit says sometimes even the vaguest tip can catch a murderer.

"If this killer is still out there people can come forward and it may save another child," he says.

For now he's re-visiting and re-organizing his many notes on the case, hoping to find something to submit to police.

"I don't think anybody should forget about this little girl. Period," he says.

It's an investigation Smit literally holds close to his heart. Thirteen years ago he and the D.A. found a two shiny pennies in front of the Ramsey's home. They made them into necklaces, Smit says he'll keep wearing it until the killer is caught.

"I've always worn this necklace, and perhaps someday I'll be able to take it off," he says."

No. 6

In a low key distribution, the plea for the public's assistance with information about JonBenet's murder has produced almost two hundred thousand impressions globally when it was picked up by the API and UPI. Today, her case and the request from John Ramsey is mentioned again in Boulder's local newspaper --

Top 10 stories of the decade: No. 6 -- JonBenet Ramsey slaying still unsolved
Published in the Boulder Daily Camera
By John Aguilar

"Her death occurred 13 years ago, but the case of JonBenet Ramsey is built on such deep mystery and high intrigue that it continued blazing a trail right through the past decade.

...Investigators continue to focus on a sample of DNA from an unknown male that was found on the clothing that JonBenet was wearing when she was killed. So far, no matches in the federal criminal DNA database have been reported.

...Ramsey's attorney, Lin Wood, couldn't be reached for comment. Last week, however, John Ramsey asked, once again, for the public's help in finding his daughter's killer.

JonBenet's father looking for leads

JonBenet's father looking for leads in daughter's death 13 years later
By Associated Press

"BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — The father of JonBenet Ramsey is making a public plea for help in finding his daughter's killer 13 years after she was found strangled in the basement of her family's Colorado home.

John Ramsey said in a statement Wednesday that he is asking people to share any suspicions they had or recollections of people acting strangely around the time the 6-year-old girl died.JonBenet was found bludgeoned and strangled Dec. 26, 1996.

A former prosecutor said at the time that Ramsey and his wife, Patsy, were "under an umbrella" of suspicion, but authorities cleared them in 2007. Authorities said new DNA tests pointed to an unknown outsider.

Police continue to investigate the case.Patsy Ramsey died from cancer in 2006."

killer's traits

"The Fair Justice Foundation, a nonprofit founded by John Ramsey in 2008, has released a list of traits that the killer of JonBenet Ramsey may have exhibited before or after the girl's 1996 slaying. They include:

Having strong or persistently expressed opinions about organized religion, capitalism and U.S. participation in global affairs.

Being perceived as capable of acting without compassion, being violent toward others, setting fires or killing animals.

Having fantasies about kidnapping people, or the risks of what it would be like to abduct someone.

Being fascinated with children.

Being secretive, maintaining spaces or possessions that are strictly off limits to others.

Having discussed, demonstrated or practiced the construction of garrotes or other strangulation devices and body restraints.

Owning a stun gun and paying excessive attention to it by frequent maintenance, display and practice of it.

Having superficial wounds, like bruises, scrapes or scratches in the days after the murder.

Being absent unexpectedly from work, church, school or other routine habits or hobbies.

Being isolated, or taking a spontaneous trip or the sudden need to spend time alone after the murder.

Changing physical appearance after the murder.

Intense interest in the Ramsey murder, following the case with heightened attention and focus.

Having obtained a new or used vehicle in the days after the murder.

Relocating suddenly after the murder.

Collecting images or videos of JonBenet.

Stating or hinting that the Ramsey's -- or JonBenet -- are getting what they deserved.

Being complimentary toward the killer.

Possessing items that came from the Ramsey home."

JonBenet Ramsey: Father's foundation lists killer's traits
Published in the Boulder Daily Camera

John Ramsey keeps looking

Father of JonBenet Ramsey: Keep looking for killer
Published in the Boulder Daily CAmera
By Heath Urie

"As the anniversary of Boulder's most infamous murder approaches, the father of JonBenet Ramsey is once again reaching out to the public for help finding his daughter's killer.
In a statement released Wednesday -- three days before the 13th anniversary of the discovery of the 6-year-old's body -- John Ramsey said he hopes someone might still remember details that could lead to the identification of JonBenet's killer. As the anniversary of Boulder's most infamous murder approaches, the father of JonBenet Ramsey is once again reaching out to the public for help finding his daughter's killer.

In a statement released Wednesday -- three days before the 13th anniversary of the discovery of the 6-year-old's body -- John Ramsey said he hopes someone might still remember details that could lead to the identification of JonBenet's killer...[..read more]

more wood on woods

Lin Wood, the brilliant and highly regarded attorney that represents the Ramseys against false accusations made about family members in reference to the murder of JonBenet, weighs in on Tiger Woods public relations nightmare - -

Woods Must Protect Privacy

by By Lin Wood, Esq

"I believe a lawyer has a duty to advocate for a client in a court of law and in the court of public opinion.

I have long been an advocate for several high-profile clients over the years who found their reputations under attack in the court of public opinion by members of the media or "talking heads" who use the media as a forum to publish accusations or express opinions based on incorrect information, incomplete information or too often, no information at all.

These clients include Richard Jewell, falsely accused in the Olympic bombing, John and Patsy Ramsey, falsely accused in connection with the brutal murder of their six-year old daughter, JonBenet, and the victim in the Kobe Bryant case whose privacy was invaded and whose reputation threatened...My advice remains consistent, keep private matters private" [...read more]

blacklisted

It's been awhile since Captain High Pants has tried, or succeeded, at drawing draw attention to himself as being responsible for the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. Having secured and lost as many as a dozen teaching positions over just a few years in far away and exotic places, Karr's name as an undesirable expelled from Thailand in 2006 made news in Korea helping to bolster the expansion of the ever growing bad teacher blacklist --

Oops!

Posted at Gusts of Popular Feeling

by Matt

"...The article is about the Korean Recruiting Association's blacklist of 'low quality' teachers, something that became news in 2006, and was bolstered by the August 18/19 realization that John Mark Karr had taught in Korea.

The blacklist story also made MBC ("Foreign language hagwon, Unbelievable native speaking teachers") and SBS ("English speaking sex criminals openly teach English in Asia"). The blacklist was first brought to light, however, by an August 7 Breaknews story titled "Low quality English teachers..."[...read more]

MYOB

With over 30 years as a litigator, attorney Lin Wood has helped many average people as he specializes in high profile media management cases, but when instant recognition is order, the name drop is the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. Wood's take on the mess Tiger Woods is being pulled into in the gossip court of public opinion is mind your own business - -

Gal claims Tiger Woods tryst

Published in The Boston Herald

by Laurel J. Sweet

"...Woods, meanwhile, remained mum yesterday amid the media frenzy. And self-styled “attorney for the damned” L. Lin Wood - who persuaded John and Patsy Ramsey to publicly battle rampant speculation they murdered their 6-year-old daughter JonBenet in Colorado on Christmas Day 1996 - told the Herald that Woods is smart to keep his mouth shut.

“The simple answer is, ‘It’s none of your business,’ ” Wood advised. “Tiger Woods can go out and hold a press conference tomorrow and he’ll have accomplished nothing more than to feed the frenzy.”

a message from the Fair Justice Foundation

I am writing today to invite you to view a brief video message from John Ramsey’s Fair Justice Foundation:





We know that somewhere, someone holds information about what happened to JonBenet when her life was taken in 1996. Someone, somewhere knows the truth about who, how and why this happened. A special message has been designed by the Fair Justice Foundation for an individual who knows the story of how or why JonBenet became the target for murder. The message might have meaning for someone that was told about the events of that fateful night by a relative, work colleague, friend, neighbor or even a passing acquaintance. We need to relay this message to the right person; someone that knows something.

Until the owner of the unique identifiers left at the crime scene is discovered, while such a loss of life may never be reconciled, the unending nightmare for JonBenet’s family remains underscored by the acute understanding other innocents are similarly at risk.

The aim is to share this video message until it reaches that special person holding a critical piece of information about what happened to JonBenet.

To do so, we need your help.

Please send a link to the video message to your friends and colleagues by email, text or instant messaging. Please spread this message linking or sharing the video on websites and social networks like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter.

If you know of such a special person, or want to pass along vital information that could help, please email tips@fairjusticefoundation.org or call: 206-312-7399

The pursuit of truth is timeless; together let’s find a way to break the silence.

Thank you for watching, sharing and caring.

the new GOP ticket?

Unless of course you were like that self-promoting pedophile who made a fool of himself back in 2006 in a bogus claim he killed JonBenet Ramsey, would you dress your toddler or first grader daughter as the image of a raped, tortured and murdered six year old?





Seems Nebraska's own GOP leader Mark Fahleson did, pictured here with Captain High Pants.



Amazing resemblance, eh?

Jonathan Cumberland over at the Daily Koz picked up on how Fahleson, also Lincoln Lutheran Church Board Founder, dressed his daughter as JonBenet....which little girl is a still in question; Fahleson's daughter are aged 1, 3 and 6.

I suppose the little girl could have been dressed as a pageant-like-princess for Halloween and Mark grabbed the opportunity to tweet about it, thus seeming to make fun of a dead child - and his own daughter? I am not sure which is more disgusting, but he sure fits the ticket for bad taste.

In case you want to tell Mark how you feel contact information is below and he blogs at Mark That Down claiming to "protect your freedoms". Guess he only means adults that see it his way-

-
GOP Chair's Daughter was JonBenét Ramsey for Halloween
by Jonathon Cumberland

"Wow:
Done trick or treating with Cleopatra and Jon Benet-now at Dino's for family dinner and to watch 5 different games at once.

That is from Nebraska GOP Chairman Mark Fahleson: a nasty, partisan little man who has fallen in love with "the twitter." Now, I'm the first to admit I saw this tweet and didn't think much of it until I got a few emails from friends asking about it -- seems a little classless now that I think about it...."

You can reach Mark at:
Home:402- 474-4215
Work: 402-– 475-5100
mfahleson@remboltludtke.com

changes in altitudes

Chronicling Colorado con jobs in the Denver Post this morning after that 'balloon boy' hoax and fraudulent JonBenet Ramsey murder confession that dominated media outlets for days on end, I too am beginning to see a pattern here. Just look closely at the events leading up to this moment and then at the curious behavior of the parties involved after the fact. This is is not how normal people react in these situations. My highly developed critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills tell me there is more to this than meets the eye. Much, much more.

Could it be that the Centennial State is covertly writing scams in a ploy to divert attention away from Florida, according to Carl Hiaasen the paradise of scandals and the most bizarre state in the union?

It is probably more likely these events are evidence of some dark and evil cover-up by the best-selling author Hiaasen , the scene staged so he can flee the pressure of life in the Keys for the sensational stories he could write about at higher altitudes.

I can only imagine the poetic justice Carl would bring to Steve Thomas or the Captain High Pants fiasco. Well, on second thought, maybe not. Hiaasen's stories are based on reality so those colorful characters are perfectly suited for another twisted tale by Tim Dorsey.

Sorry Carl.

But seriously now, back to the real evidence. I am on to something very sinister here. I feel it in my gut after the 118th replay of the 60 Minutes interview with Hiaasen. He is hiding something; just watch how he blinked. And licked his lips.

Hiaasen has stated, publicly I might add, that there are contracts and lawyers involved so one doesn't have to get up very early in the morning to unwind the spin and expose a mass of suspicious contradictions. For instance, in one interview Hiaasen says he loathes having his picture taken. But go ahead, google him, and you too can see his pictures plastered all over the Internet, book backs and in newspaper articles. Busted!

It is just too easy to connect the dots and expose the truth about this dastardly cover-up conspiracy that reeks from wearing the same headphones two days in a row.

But here is the smoking gun: just replace Colorado (or JonBenet Ramsey was murdered by her parents theorists) for Florida when Hiaasen, in his very own words, describes his home state:

"The Sunshine State is a paradise of scandals teeming with drifters, deadbeats, and misfits drawn here by some dark primordial calling like demented trout..." --

Are we really that gullible? A history of Colorado hoaxes
Published in the Denver Post
By Dan Haley and Tom Noel with research from Jan Torpy and Barbara Hudson

"It should be no surprise that the balloon boy hoax was perpetrated here in Colorado. Our state was, essentially, founded on a hoax...

Daniel C. Oakes, the first documented Colorado hoaxer, wrote a 1859 guide book purporting to provide the speediest route to a Pikes Peak fortune. Oakes assured folks that "the whole country between the Cache la Poudre and Cherry Creek is a beautiful rich valley full of mountain streams of living water and exceedingly rich in gold."...

Here's our Hall of Shame of Colorado hoaxes:

2008 — Richard Glen Strandlof misled veterans, politicians and voters by claiming to be Rick Duncan..

August 2006 — His dazed stare, ill-fitting shirt and high-waisted pants, the strange way in which Thai authorities paraded him before the media — it had all the markings of a bad joke. But then-District Attorney Mary Lacy seemed to think John Mark Karr might have actually killed JonBenet Ramsey, so she dragged the odd bird from Thailand to Boulder for a DNA test. Karr started the hoax that he was with the former Little Miss Colorado when she died. Heck, nothing says "I love you" like confessing to a crime you didn't commit that carries a life sentence.

1993 — Gail Levine had all of us peering into our Pepsi cans after she claimed to have found a syringe inside hers..."[...read more]



Watch CBS News Videos Online

at Harvard

Today, ten years after the grand jury was dismissed on the JonBenet Ramsey case in Boulder, a sign of a new brand of journalism coming forth. Albeit too little too late for the media sensation that contributed to the persecution of the Ramseys in the investigation of JonBenet's murder, perhaps next generation will journalists could own the concept of innocent until proven guilty- -





Deja vu All Over Again
Posted in Ethics and Journalism
A section blog for Journalism E-120W students
by Dennis

The JonBenet Ramsey case is a tragic one. Not only is it still unsolved, but after so many years her mother tragically died of cancer without her knowing what really happened to her daughter. I feel for John and Burke Ramsey the two left behind in the wake of this terrible event.


If I were a journalist and was presented the dossier of a suspect being questioned repeatedly about JonBenet Ramsey's murder, I would need to know a few things before I would report it. I would want to know what kind of evidence the police had. Most importantly if they had DNA evidence....[...read more]

I said check it Sam!

I'm sure you recall the dialog from In the Heat of the Night:
Police Chief:"Check both ends of town, check the depot, and check the pool hall. OK?"
Officer Wood: Pool hall closed at one o'clock, Chief.
Police Chief: I said check it, Sam.

Now this is fiction. Its from a screenplay based on a novel by John Ball. Its not from real life. Or is it? After all, Rod Steiger had so much fun on that movie that distinctions between real life and fiction were blurred. Rod Steiger never once broke character on the set or on location. His staying in character is said to have had a pronounced effect on the film crew's pot-smoking and gambling behavior. The producers were happy to reimburse Rod Steiger for the 263 packs of chewing gum he went through during the filming. He stayed in character so well that when the time came to film a scene in which Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger were having a beer in the police chief's home, the entire scene was filmed without any scripted or suggested dialog at all.

So is it really important in a real life investigation to check a pool hall that had already closed? You bet it is. Unfortunately such matters are often not done since the personnel on the scene may not react to the situation quite as well as might later be desired. Yet we expect that the investigation will be thorough, but what exactly is a thorough investigation?

While I was surfing the net I happened to encounter a site that posed a question concerning what was described as a CIA-like atmosphere at the BPD headquarters soon after the murder and made mention of the fact that Access Graphics was a subsidiary of defense-contractor Lockheed Martin.

My immediate reaction to the implied theme of national security relating to the supposed secretive atmosphere at BPD headquarters was quite simple. Who observed this changed atmosphere, how skillful are they as observers, what specific acts did they observe that lead them to this conclusion, just how different was the new atmosphere from the normal close-mouthed attitudes around a police headquarters and how much of the new attitude was related to the police awareness of growing tabloid media interest in their activities. I would ofcourse want comparisons with the secretive atmosphere regarding the JonBenet killing with similar secretive atmospheres at BPD headquarters subsequent to other killings, but then ofcourse it must be remembered that the BPD did not have a history of any other major killings. It should also be remembered that since Linda Arndt is the suspected source of these "cia-like atmosphere" comments, her track record in other areas of police work is really not that impressive.

I was about to embark on a project to thoroughly analyze the nature of the corporate relationship between Lockheed Martin and its subsidiary Access Graphics to demonstrate that the subsidiary was a minute portion of Lockheed Martin's investments and that there was absolutely no national defense issues involved in John Ramsey's business of buying high speed unix boxes, high quality monitors and AutoCad software and selling the packages as customized, turn-key systems to companies that wanted to open the box, plug it in and start drafting.

It struck me as I was about to dredge up oodles of SEC data on corporate subsidiaries and their earnings, that I was about to embark on a fools errand. I was about to prove the obvious: That a Boulder based Value Added Retailer of drafting systems has nothing to do with political intrigue in distant locales. I then thought that I might want to reconsider the project yet again. We blame the BPD in general and Officer French in particular for failing to be thorough enough to unlatch that darned door more promptly. We blame the BPD for never having conducted a full scale and well organized search of the house, particularly its basement. We blame the BPD for not having been thorough enough. Yet there I was, about to take shortcuts and be less than thorough because I feel the conclusion is obvious and I would merely be re-plowing fields that have already been well plowed.

Had John Ramsey thought at the time to allege some sort of "spook status" would the FBI have shown up sooner and in greater numbers? Possibly. Yet I doubt that John Ramsey was capable of such a thought process in his stunned state and I doubt that any FBI influx would really have taken place or been sustained for long. After all, I think the FBI types would, as usual, be primarily concerned with maintaining friendly relations with the local authorities.

So what was my final decision? I opted to forego the detailed, more-scholarly work and just stick with the assumption that those who see any sort of foreign intrigue in the JonBenet Ramsey murder belong in a class with those who see UFOs everywhere. A value-added-retailer in Boulder, Colorado has nothing to do with internecine battles on foreign shores.

We have to allocate our efforts with an awareness of time and resources and with a view to how likely to prove fruitful the task is. Specific suspects have to be given greater interest than vague impressions of the atmosphere at police headquarters. I'm satisfied with my decision to not bother checking the pool hall, but I'm not thrilled with it.

kindred spirits

Few people could relate to the loss of a child in the way the parents of JonBenet Ramsey and Natalee Holloway can. Still looking for answers in these tragic cold cases, John Ramsey and Beth Holloway have formed a bond of friendship not many could ever imagine or begin to fully understand based on the tragic losses they share--



Mom of missing teen reveals her agony
Published in the Bermuda Sun
by Sirkka Huish

The mother of a teenager who went missing in Aruba clings to the hope that ­justice will be served thanks to the discovery of "a new thread of evidence".

Beth Holloway, who is coming to Bermuda to share her story, refuses to give up in the world-­famous, unsolved case....

It has been widely reported that Ms Holloway is in a ­relationship with John Ramsey, the father of ­murdered child beauty queen JonBenet, after meeting at a fundraiser.

But Ms Holloway says they are "just really good friends", adding: "We have a friendship based on tragedy as we feel we have so much in common. We've been able to learn from and ­encourage each other."...[read more]

About Beth Holloway and her book, Loving Natalee

Beth Holloway is the mother of Natalee Holloway, who vanished on the last night of her senior class trip on May 30, 2005. To this day Beth continues to search for the truth of what happened. She grew up in Arkansas, then lived and worked in Tennessee, Mississippi, and finally Alabama where she now lives with her son, Matt. Today Beth addresses schools, churches, law enforcement groups, and other organizations on personal and travel safety.

for art's sake

One topic that we haven't explored here too deeply is JonBenet art. Found a blog today with an overlay of John Ramsey on Oprah last year superimposed with an image of JonBenet. Apparently the artist Lisa Walcott, also a photographer, has found a muse in JonBenet's image for a few years now--

Panes
Posted by Lisa Walcott


"...It’s difficult to recall if this was part of my thought process when I started taking photo’s of the magazine pages on the window, but I’m pretty sure the first drawing I made in my apartment in the Bronx (summer 2004), with the lamp under a glass table where I traced Jonbenet Ramsey’s face intermingling with some Keebler elves I was thinking about this “practice”....[read more]"

from home

An elderly friend of John Ramsey's, anxious to help in doing his part where he could after the murder of JonBenet in 1996, is the the father of ABC editorial consultant Diana Aldridge. Find Diana blogging about those times, the tragedy; a vulnerable parent; the altitude and beautiful Boulder; over at HuffPost--


Chasing News and Nostalgia All the Way Home
Published at the Huffington Post
by Diana Aldridge


"A dozen years ago I started coming back to my native Boulder from my home and work in Washington, D.C.

My parents were aging -- my mother heartbreakingly ill with Alzheimer's; my father lonely and distressed, awkwardly adjusting to the many changes we were making to keep our mother at home. They lived in a charming University Hill house surrounded by caring and attentive neighbors, including their friends John and Patsy Ramsey.

And then, in the early weeks of 1997, I would abruptly head home.

The Ramsey's daughter, JonBenet, had been killed over Christmas. It seemed that my 76 year-old father, the one neighbor reliably answering his door, had been giving interviews, chats he thought, with a number of national and even international media, including but certainly not limited to The New York Times, People Magazine, the National Enquirer and the BBC....read more"


Diana Aldridge

Diana Aldridge is a third generation Colorado native, whose first job was in the Washington office of her Colorado senator -- the beginning of her career in politics and media that ultimately included the Clinton White House. She is currently an editorial consultant for ABC News/Good Morning America and the Creative Development Division of HarperCollins Publishing. At the moment she is fortunate to divide her time between Boulder and Washington, DC; her childhood and adult hometowns.