Timeline

December 23, 1996

A 911 call is made from the Ramsey home, but it is decided that the call was made by a drunk party guest by accident. 

December 26, 1996

Patsy Ramsey wakes up to a two-and-a-half-page handwritten ransom note. The note says that her daughter has been kidnapped. The amount stated in the note happened to be the amount of John Ramsey’s Christmas bonus. The note also states that the Ramseys should not call the police, but Patsy did anyway. 

Officer Rick French arrives at the home and does a brief search of the home, but when arriving at the room where JonBenet was later to be discovered in, he pauses and doesn’t open the door. 

Later in the afternoon, John is searching the house as instructed by Detective Linda Arndt. John enters to basement to find JonBenet’s body, which was covered in duct tape and it appeared that she had been strangled. He removes the duct tape and runs upstairs with his daughter in arms, tainting evidence along the way. 

December 28, 1996

The Ramseys willingly give hair, blood, and handwriting samples at the Boulder Police Station and then return to Atlanta, their former hometown, to prepare for JonBenet’s funeral. 

January 1, 1997

John and Patsy give a 45-minute-long interview to CNN, stating that they are heartbroken and warn those living in Boulder to be cautious of a killer on the loose. 

January 2, 1997

Five detectives in Boulder fly to Atlanta to search for clues in Georgia. They then search the Ramseys’ vacation home in Charlevoix, Michigan. 

January 3, 1997

Detectives determined that the ransom note was written on a piece of paper obtained from inside the house. They concluded that this meant the note was written following the murder. Patsy and John return to Boulder. 

January 8, 1997

There is evidence that there was a practice ransom note on another piece of paper. 

February 27, 1997

John Andrew, JonBenet’s older half-brother, and Melinda, JonBenet’s half-sister, were determined to have concrete alibis on the night their sister was killed, so they are cleared as suspects. 

March 7, 1997

Expert analysis confirms that John did not write the ransom note, but it is determined that there is a chance that Patsy did. 

April 19, 1997

John and Patsy become the prime suspects of the investigation.

April 30, 1997

John is interviewed for two hours, and Patsy is interviewed for six-and-a-half hours. These statements replace their originals. 

July 1997

John, Patsy, and Burke, their son, move back to Atlanta. 

July 14, 1997

The autopsy results are released and show that JonBenet was strangled to death, suffered a skull fracture, and there were signs of sexual assault. 

December 19, 1997

Police question several neighbors regarding the ownership of a stun gun, and the Ramseys’ lawyer tells the press that the Ramseys were aware of the use of a stun gun in their daughter’s murder, but did not own one. 

January 15, 1998

The Ramseys request to review evidence before giving any more interviews to authorities. Their request was denied, so they did not give an interview. 

January 28, 1998

John and Patsy give the authorities the clothes they were wearing on the night of the murder. 

March 10, 1998

The DA considers a grand jury investigation. The grand jury determined that a possible course of action could be to subpeona witnesses in the munrder case since it had been 15 months. 

June, 1998

Burke is questioned for the first time, but a retired FBI agent confirmed that the crime was too sophisticated for a child to commit, as Burke was 9 at the time of the crime. 

July, 1998

John and Patsy participate in a documentary about their daughter’s murder after avoiding press and public comments for several months. 

August 6, 1998

Detective Steve Thomas writes an eight-page resignation letter emphasizing that the DA’s office has compromised the case. 

August 20, 1998

It is confirmed that Burke’s voice is heard in the background of the 911 call made the morning after the crime was committed. Originally, John and Patsy claimed that Burke was asleep until the police arrived. 

September 15, 1998

The 12-person grand jury begins its investigation. 

September 24, 1998

Detective Lou Smit quits, giving the Ramseys the ability to convince authorities to shift the focus on the investigation. 

October 13, 1998

The grand jury begins hearing the case with forensic evidence, which includes DNA samples and touring the family’s home in Boulder. 

December 3, 1998

DNA evidence is requested from each of the Ramsey family members, even though they aren’t suspects. 

January 28, 1999

Investigators use the online community to attempt to find information about a teddy bear found in JonBenet’s bedroom, hoping to find the manufacturer and where it was sold. 

March 18, 1999

Detective Linda Arndt resigns due to the criticism faced from the case and the investigations. 

May 19, 1999

Burke is secretly questioned by the grand jury and is declared a witness and no longer a suspect. 

September 13, 1999

Detective Arndt claims that he knows who killed Ramsey on Good Morning America.

September 30, 1999

John Andrew and Melinda testify in front of the grand jury. 

October 13, 1999

Alex Hunter says that there is not sufficient evidence to charge anyone and the grand jury investigation is over. 

March 17, 2000

The Ramseys publish a book

March 2001

John and Patsy sue the authors of a book, Steve Thomas and Don Davis, for libel. 

August 16, 2006

An American teacher is arrested in Bangkok after confessing to the killing of JonBenet. However, there was no evidence, so Boulder District Attorney Mary Lucy moved to dismiss the case. 

July 9, 2008

Msry Lucy officially clears the Ramseys as suspects. 

November 9, 2022

Boulder police announces partnership with cold case unit.