It has been proven that “most homicides of young
children are committed by family members either through death or strangulation”
(Finkelhor and Ormrod, 2). Unfortunately, it is widely believed that the death
of JonBenet Ramsey falls into this category. JonBenet was a six-year-old beauty
queen that was murdered sometime between Christmas night of 1996 and the early
morning hours of the 26th. Since her murder, a slew of conspiracy theories have
developed:
1. Did JonBenet’s own brother kill her?
2. Were her parents involved in her death in some way?
3. Did someone actually break in to the Ramsey house on
that Christmas night?
Let’s review the facts and conspiracy theories
surrounding JonBenet’s death, with the most probable theory being that her
brother, Burke, killed her and her parents helped to cover it up.
JonBenet Ramsey was born in 1990 to parents, Patsy and
Jon Benet Ramsey. She was killed sometime between the night of December 25 and
the early morning hours of the 26. She was a bright girl who probably would
have grown up to do amazing things. Unfortunately, this potential was halted by
JonBenet’s murderer. Many believe this killer could have been of the young
girl’s own blood, her brother. Three years before the birth of their daughter,
the Ramsey couple had a son, Burke. Burke was born on January 27, 1987 in
Atlanta, Georgia (“Burke Ramsey Biography”). As a child, Burke said and did
many things that can only be described as weird and off-putting. The young boy
had many odd characteristics and as we’ll see, has never grown out of most of
them.
Growing up, Burke was extremely jealous of JonBenet.
Werner Spitz, a professor who was involved in the Jon Benet case in 1996,
believes that the death of JonBenet could possibly be linked back to that
jealousy (Charlotte Willis and Vanessa Brown). Many people may question why
Burke would be upset at all, growing up as a kid that could have anything he
dreamed of. His parents were wealthy because of his dad’s company, they lived
in what can only be described as a mansion in the affluent area of Boulder,
Colorado. So, what would Burke have to be jealous about? The answer is simple;
he was tired of living in his sisters’ shadow. It is well known that JonBenet
was a successful beauty pageant star, always on stage and performing in shows
constantly. It is a common theme for the child in the family that excels in
sports or activities to also shine at home. It has never been proven, but
JonBenet’s parents probably treated her like a star at home just like when she
was on stage. In contrast, it isn’t known that Burke really exceled in any area
as a kid, which in turn probably granted him average treatment at home unlike
his little sister. It is likely that Burke got jealous of JonBenet because of
her constant presence in the spotlight in and out of the house.
Burke Ramsey is a very awkward person especially when
he is in stressful situations. A news article written to analyze Burke’s body
language in an interview said:
In the interview with Dr. Phil, Ramsey denied killing
his sister in 1996. Behavioral expert
Jan Hargrave observed Ramsey’s body language during a portion of his interview
and pointed to what she described as a forced smile as a sign of anxiety.
"He's thinking that if I do this pleasantness they will like me, but I
think it's really a facade for anxiety that he is feeling deeply inside,”
Hargrave said, although she noted that the pressure of a high-profile interview
alone could make someone nervous. (Donchey)
When
describing the events surrounding the death of his little sister, Burke can’t
help but to display a smile on his face. One would think that when talking
about the death of a loved one a person would not be happy, let alone smiling.
Discussing the murder of one’s family member on live television can easily be
enough to make anyone’s anxiety show. Although doing this interview put Burke
in an extremely stressful situation, it is possible that Burke’s body language is
a result of his guilty conscious. Either way, his body language proves that he
is a very awkward person.
Burke Ramsey is many things and although it has never
been proven that he is a killer, many of his character traits point in that
direction. He was an awkward and anxious kid who was jealous of his sister and
probably wanted her out of the spotlight.
The death of JonBenet Ramsey became a very high
profile case across the country. For many, their hearts broke because of the
tragic circumstances surrounding the young girl’s murder, but others were
interested in what wasn’t being said. As the case gained more publicity, people
began to question the information being provided to them and some started to
speculate for themselves. In turn, a slew of conspiracy theories began to form.
Some of them involved a man dressed as Santa Claus, while others surround pop
sensation, Katy Perry. Many of the theories developed could be considered
far-fetched, but it is quite possible that the one we are going to focus on is
at least part truth: JonBenet’s own brother killed her and her parents were
involved in some way.
One of the more popular theories is that Burke Ramsey,
JonBenet’s older brother, murdered his sister. Anyone who has looked into
Burkes behavior would discover that he was an odd child with a history of
violent tendencies. It is very possible that Burke got angry, like he often
did, and turned violent, accidentally killing his sister. Another odd tidbit
that conspiracy theorists often turn to is Burke’s claim that he was sound
asleep until the cops arrived. An article depicting what are known as the
“facts” of the case says, “Burke’s parents insisted that he was asleep at the
time of JonBenét’s death” (Locker). Patsy Ramsey claims to have run into
Burke’s room frantically searching for her daughter which was likely to have
woke him up. It is extremely unnerving to think that Burke was able to just go
back to sleep while there was a frantic search going on for his little sister.
Many believe that the girl’s death was a tragic accident caused by Burke’s
unpredictable temper. Either way, everyone that believes in this theory thinks
that JonBenet’s brother murdered his own sister.
Another theory that is often tied to this one
surrounds JonBenet’s parents. Some believe that when her parents discovered the
“truth” about her death (that her brother killed her) they decided to cover it
up. It is extremely likely that when Jon and Patsy realized they could possibly
lose Burke, like they had just lost JonBenet, they decided that they would do
anything to protect the only child they had left. One piece of evidence that
supports this theory is the fact that the ransom note that was found in the
Ramsey house was written on a notepad from their own kitchen. This leads us to
believe that the five-page ransom note was in fact written inside of the house.
It is extremely unlikely that someone would have broken into the house and
taken the time to write this note, while the entire Ramsey family was upstairs.
Another odd finding is that whoever wrote the ransom note, requested the exact
amount of money that JonBenet’s father received as a bonus that year. An
article written to depict the ransom note said:
"You will withdraw $118,000.00 from your account.
$100,000 will be in $100 bills and the remaining $18,000 in $20 bills."
This was reportedly the exact amount of John's Christmas bonus check from his
company. So not only did the author apparently have familiarity with John's
business, but also with his financial dealings, or at least with this
particular fact…As others have pointed out, this is not only an extremely odd
amount of ransom money for kidnappers to demand, but also fairly minimal given
a) John Ramsey's significant net worth, of which the letter writer was likely
aware and b) supposedly having to share the ransom money among a "group of
individuals" allegedly numbering at least three. (Diamond)
It
is unlikely that an intruder would know the exact amount of money that Jon had
received for his bonus that year. It is much more logical to believe that
JonBenet’s parents played a part in writing that note.
Although these theories are extremely convincing for
most, there are still those who think that the murder was committed by an
intruder. The claim that someone inside the house did not commit the murder is
still relevant, although there is little evidence to suggest this theory. There
was no sign of forced entry anywhere in the house and the evidence that points
to a member of the family is much more convincing. Many of the people that
believe this theory haven’t looked into the case beyond the information that
the police have provided. To see how many people truly believe this theory I
conducted a survey in which 79 participants were asked who they think killed
JonBenet Ramsey. A whopping 89% of people said that they think the murder was
committed by someone in the family while only 11% think it was done by someone
outside of the family. The results of this data show that while there are some
who still believe the crime was committed by an intruder, a vast majority of
the population believe otherwise.
Because of the high-profile nature of this crime, many
conspiracy theories were developed to satisfy the lack of information provided
to the public. Some theories are much more unrealistic than others, but almost
all were devised by concerned citizens that felt deprived of the truth. To this
day, some people are content with coming to the conclusion that the crime was
committed by an intruder based on the small amount of information that backs up
this theory, but many others are not satisfied by this. It is much more logical
to believe that someone in the family, specifically Burke, murdered JonBenet
and that her parents helped to cover up this horrific crime.
The death of JonBenet Ramsey was a tragic incident
that occurred almost 22 years ago. To this day, the case remains unsolved, but
three main conspiracy theories have developed:
1. Did JonBenet’s own brother kill her?
2. Where her parents involved in her death in some way?
3. Did someone actually break into the Ramsey house on
that Christmas night?
After closely examining all three of these theories,
it is most likely that Burke Ramsey killed his sister and their parents helped
to cover it up.
Works Cited
S Diamond, Stephen. “Who Killed JonBenet? Part 2: The
Ransom Note.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 23 Feb. 2017,
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/evil-deeds/201702/who-killed-jonbenet-part-2-the-ransom-note.
S Donchey, Sara. “Body Language Expert on Burke Ramsey
Interview.” KPRC, 13 Sept. 2016, www.click2houston.com/news/brother-of-jonbenet-ramsey-speaks-for-the-first-time-in-20-years.
S Locker, Melissa. “Lifetime's 'Who Killed JonBenet?':
10 WTF Moments, Fact-Checked.” Rolling Stone, 25 June 2018,
www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-recaps/lifetimes-who-killed-jonbenet-10-wtf-moments-fact-checked-106243/.
P Willis, Charlotte and Brown, Vanessa. “Brother of
JonBenet Reveals Who He Thinks Killed His Younger Sister.” Herald Sun, 19 Sept.
2016, owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/ mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_electronic_sources.html
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