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DNA in JonBenét Ramsey's 27-Year Cold Case Remains Untested · Murder Files Unsealed

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: It's a it's a case that just seems to stick
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  with you, you know, the John Benet Ramsey case. Three decades later,
• 0:07
  and it's like, yeah, we still can't shake this feeling
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  like there's something it's haunting.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, it really is just tragic.
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  Speaker 1: Six years old, a beauty queen, the ransom note, I mean,
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  come on, and then all the speculation about her family.
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  It's just it's a lot to unpack. And that's exactly
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  what we're going to do in this deep dive.
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  Speaker 2: I'm ready.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: We're really gonna dig into some of the latest developments,
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  especially what John Benet's father, John Ramsey, has been saying recently.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, he's been making some pretty shocking.
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  Speaker 1: Claims, right, like the fact that there might be untested
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  DNA evidence. Did you hear about this?
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  Speaker 2: I did. That's the thing about this case, even after
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  all these years, there's always something new coming to light.
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  Speaker 1: It's wild. But yeah, he's saying the DNA on the grout,
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  you know, the thing they used to strangle her, right right,
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  he says that was never analyzed.
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  Speaker 2: See, that's what I mean. That sends chills down your
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  spine if that's true.
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  Speaker 1: How you know, Like it's a huge deal.
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  Speaker 2: It's massive. I mean, DNA evidence is everything these days,
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  is how we solve so many cases.
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  Speaker 1: Right, Like, did they just miss that?
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  Speaker 2: You have to wonder if that wasn't looked at, what
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  else was missed in the initial investigation exactly?
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  Speaker 1: I mean, if they didn't test something that crucial, right,
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  it makes you question everything.
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  Speaker 2: Well, and we have to acknowledge the Boulder PDE. They
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  put out a statement. They couldn't really comment on what
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  John Ramsey's saying because it's still an open investigation supposed
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  to Oh right, of course, So maybe they did test
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  it and they just aren't saying, you know, okay.
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  Speaker 1: So maybe or maybe there have been new developments that
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  they just can't talk about yet.
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  Speaker 2: Exactly. We're in the dark a little bit here.
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  Speaker 1: So frustrating. But okay, let's say for a second that
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  there is testable DNA on that groat. What could that
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  mean now after twenty seven years? I mean, is it
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  even possible?
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  Speaker 2: Honestly, even after all this time, It could change everything.
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  The technology we have now, it's unbelievable. Oh yeah, even
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  from a tiny samp they could potentially get a match
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  or at least rule some people out. Wow, things like
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  familial DNA searching. They could compare it to public databases
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  see if there are any relatives, any connections.
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  Speaker 1: Oh wow, didn't even know that was a thing.
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  Speaker 2: Oh yeah, or even uh what does it touch? DNA?
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  Like even the tiniest trace amounts They can get something
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  from that. Now, it's incredible.
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  Speaker 1: That's kind of scary, actually it is, but also amazing,
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  like the things they can do with forensics these days,
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  It's come a long way.
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  Speaker 2: Oh. Absolutely makes you think about how different things might
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  have been back then, especially with the media frenzy around
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  this case. Remember that, Oh are you kidding?
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  Speaker 1: It was insane wall to wall coverage.
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  Speaker 2: Do you think all that attention Do you think it
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  helped or hurt the investigation? I mean, what do you think?
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  Speaker 1: It's got to be both, right, Like, on the one hand,
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  it keeps the case alive. People are looking, maybe they
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  find something they wouldn't have. But the pressure intense must
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  have been so much pressure on those investigators, and you
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  know it can.
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  Speaker 2: Lead to mistakes. Yeah, tunnel vision.
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  Speaker 1: Oh totally. What about the family? I mean, can you imagine.
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: It's easy to forget there are real people at the
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  center of all this. The cameras, the speculation.
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  Speaker 1: The constant scrutiny awful.
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  Speaker 2: It's a lot to deal with on top of you know,
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  already unimaginable grief.
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  Speaker 1: Speaking of which, we have to talk about what happened
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  with Burke, John Benay's brother.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, you mean with doctor Verner Spitz.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, Spitz. He's a big time forensic pathologist, right right.
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  He actually went on CBS like a whole special about
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  the case and accused Burke of killing his sister.
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  Speaker 2: I remember that.
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  Speaker 1: It was crazy, and Burke sued him for defamation.
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  Speaker 2: And rightfully so in my opinion, I think so too.
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  Speaker 1: It's just you can't just go around accusing people, especially
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  a kid, without any real proof.
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  Speaker 2: It was a landmark case, actually, and it really showed
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  how damaging those kinds of accusations can be. I mean,
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  doctor Spitz. He's entitled to his opinion, of course, but
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  to say that publicly with no real evidence.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, that's just irresponsible.
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  Speaker 2: It was settled out of court I think in twenty nineteen.
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  Speaker 1: It did, Yeah, which really tells you something.
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  Speaker 2: It does. At the end of the day, we can't
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  forget that these are real people's lives we're talking about.
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  Speaker 1: It's a good reminder for all of us, honestly, to
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  think before you speak, you know, because words have power,
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  even when we're talking about something that happened a long
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  time ago like this case.
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  Speaker 2: You're absolutely right, it's so easy to get caught up
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  in the true crime aspect and forget that totally.
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  Speaker 1: It's all public perception versus like what can actually be proven,
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  you know, exactly.
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  Speaker 2: The court of public opinion and a court of law,
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  very very different things, no kidding.
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  Speaker 1: So given all this, the DNA, the media, the cloud
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  of suspicion that's always followed the ramsays, I mean, do
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  you think we'll ever really know?
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  Speaker 2: That's the million dollar question, isn't it right?
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  Speaker 1: It's like, will we ever have a real answer?
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  Speaker 2: Well, Elizabeth Vargas she did a whole documentary on this,
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  and she said, there's a real chance we may never
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  know for sure. Yeah, And you know, the more time passes,
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  it gets harder. It gets so much harder. Memories fade,
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  evidence degrades. It's just the nature of these things.
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  Speaker 1: So you're saying it could just be a cold case forever.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I wouldn't say that necessarily. Remember what we were
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  saying about DNA and how much it's advanced the Boulder
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  PD mentioned that seven hundred and fifty sample update, right, right,
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  that's huge. I mean even after twenty seven years, they
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  might still find a match. And it's not just DNA, right,
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  There's so many other things they can look at now,
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  like what fibers, fingerprints, even digital footprints, things that maybe
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  they didn't even think about back then or just couldn't
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  analyze the way they can now.
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  Speaker 1: I'm like having a whole new set of eyes, right
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  exactly looking at the same evidence but seemed totally different things.
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  Speaker 2: And who knows what they might find. It's what makes
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  these cold cases so fascinating. You know, the past is
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  never really.
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  Speaker 1: Passed because there's always something new to discover, always.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, but it also shows just how hard it is
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  trying to solve something like this after so long.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, where do you even begin? I mean, after all
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  this time, it's got to be like what, starting from scratch.
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  Speaker 2: It's a balance. You have to look at the old evidence,
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  the old theories, but with a fresh perspective, and you're
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  constantly thinking about what's possible now that wasn't back then.
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  Like you said, that seven to fifty sample update, that's.
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  Speaker 1: Huge, So something that maybe was a dead end before totally.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, a partial DNA profile that meant nothing years ago.
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  Now it could be the key.
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  Speaker 1: It's amazing, that's incredible, But still part of me wonders,
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  even with all that, is there a chance we'll never
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  really know what happened to her.
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  Speaker 2: It's possible time. It's a cruel thing. Evidence gets lost,
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  memories get fuzzy. But I think the important thing to
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  remember is that every little thing, every new piece of information,
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  it gets us closer to.
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  Speaker 1: The truth, even if it's something small.
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  Speaker 2: Especially the small things. Sometimes that one tiny detail that's
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  all it takes. It change everything exactly. And in a
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  case like this, with so many twists and turns, you
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  have to look at everything, every possibility. It's about being meticulous,
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  being persistent.
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  Speaker 1: And that's what makes it so fascinating, right it is.
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  Speaker 2: It's the not knowing the what ifs. It's like a
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  puzzle you can't put down, even if you're missing half
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  the pieces totally.
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  Speaker 1: But we have to remember this isn't just some puzzle.
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  Speaker 2: Right, Oh absolutely not. We can't forget that.
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  Speaker 1: This is about a real little girl, a family.
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  Speaker 2: That lost a daughter, a sister, a community that was
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  rocked by this and.
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  Speaker 1: No matter what we find out, that loss that's always
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  going to be there.
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  Speaker 2: It is, and I think that's important to remember as
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  we're going through all of this.
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  Speaker 1: It's a good reminder for all of us, I think, yeah,
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  to be sensitive even as we're trying to figure things out.
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  Speaker 2: Exactly, So as we keep talking about this case about
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  John Binday, let's keep that in mind, the human element,
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  but also the fact that things change. You know, what
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  we think we know today, it could be totally different tomorrow.
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  Speaker 1: Because of some new technology, some new piece of evidence.
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  Speaker 2: Exactly. It's a case that just keeps on giving in
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  a way, keeps us on our toes for sure.
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  Speaker 1: And that's what makes it a good one for a
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  deep dive.
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  Speaker 2: It really is, because even after all this time, the
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  search for truth for justice, it doesn't stop.
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  Speaker 1: It really does doesn't. It's like this constant push and pull,
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  wanting those answers so badly, but never really knowing.
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  Speaker 2: It's the not knowing that gets you every time you
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  think you've got to handle on it this case, there's
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  another question.
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  Speaker 1: Another layer, right, Like it almost feels intentional, the way
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  it just pulls you back in.
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  Speaker 2: And you see that with everyone. I think people who
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  are obsessed with this case, people who are actually working
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  on it, even just casually following along. We all want
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  that resolution, that feeling of okay, now it makes sense.
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  Speaker 1: And do we ever get that? With a case like this?
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  Speaker 2: It makes you wonder, even if let's say they find
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  something DNA, a witness, whatever, will it be enough? Will
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  it actually answer that bigger question? You mean, like why
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  exactly why her? Or why like that? Why? Then? Sometimes
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  some cases I don't know if there's ever a good
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  enough answer.
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  Speaker 1: It's true, and that's unsettling RN.
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  Speaker 2: For sure, But maybe that's part of it too. Maybe
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  some mysteries just can't be solved, not completely, and we
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  have to be okay with that.
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  Speaker 1: Does that mean we stop looking though?
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  Speaker 2: Never, We keep asking the questions, we keep trying to
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  make sense of it, because that's all we can do, right,
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  even when the odds feel stacked against us.
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  Speaker 1: I like that. It's like the searching never really ends,
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  it doesn't.
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  Speaker 2: And I think for Jean Benet that's what matters, keeping
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  her memory alive, not letting her story just fade away.
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  Speaker 1: That's beautifully said, and I think that's a good place
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  for us to leave things today. But to our listener,
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  we want to hear from you. What is it about
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  this case that sticks with you. The DNA, the family secrets,
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  or is there something else, some other detail that you
• 9:32
  keep coming back to. Let us know because every thought,
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  every theory, it all helps in its own way. Until
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  next time, keep diving deep.