Burke Ramsey speaks on the 1996 murder of his sister JonBenét in Boulder. Then he points to one piece of evidence: ‘It’s sitting right there’

Burke Ramsey, brother of former child beauty queen JonBenét, gave an exclusive interview to the Daily Mail about his sister’s murder in 1996. Burke was nine at the time of his sister’s death, and he’s only given one other public interview about the event, which was over a decade ago now.

JonBenét was found dead on December 26, 1996, shocking the country. Her body was discovered in the basement of her family’s home, where she was strangled. Naturally, the discovery sparked an investigation, but nobody has been officially charged as her killer.

The Ramsey family has been under suspicion since the death, and there are still theories that they’re behind JonBenét’s death. Now, Burke is speaking out and asking that one piece of evidence be used to hopefully bring closure to her murder.

Burke wants the DNA under JonBenét’s nails examined more closely

DNA results can be the difference between life and death for an inmate, which was the case when DNA showed that a man on death row wasn’t a DNA contributor in the case that led to his sentence. Similarly, Burke believes that the DNA from under her sister’s nails, which wasn’t a match to anybody in the Ramsey family, must belong to the killer.

As a result, he would like the speculation regarding him and his parents to end, and for the DNA to be focused on in the search for a match. Specifically, Burke wants the Boulder Police Department to send the DNA to a private crime lab, hoping that their technology and experience working on cold cases could be enough to find answers for JonBenét and give the family closure, as a toxicology report did for Hayden Panettiere’s loved ones.

Other pieces of evidence cast suspicion on the Ramsey family

Pherson Associates breaks down the JonBenét case, which includes details about the scene and crime that originally put the Ramsey family under suspicion. The first unusual piece of evidence was the ransom note.

It was discovered that the note was written inside the house, as both the pad of paper and the Sharpie used matched those in the family’s kitchen. Also, there are theories that the amount demanded was low compared to the family’s wealth, but matched the amount that John Burke received as a bonus that year. As for the writing, handwriting experts couldn’t clear Patsy as the author of the note, but they were also unable to say it was her with certainty.

The cursory investigation by police didn’t find signs of a break-in or forced entry. The broken basement window was found in the following days. At the crime scene, there was a footprint matching a shoe that no member of the family owned.

As the investigation continued, the DNA under JonBenét’s nails was confirmed as belonging to a male, but it didn’t match the Ramsey family or other samples that were taken in the following years from people who may have been in contact with JonBenét around that time.

For now, the DNA evidence that never received a match is likely the biggest clue. However, after 30 years, the case remains unsolved, despite claims over the years by people saying that they were responsible for the murder.

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