John Bennett Ramsey, the father of murdered 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey, joined “CUOMO” just weeks ahead of the 28th anniversary of her Christmas death.
Ramsey was joined by correspondent-at-large Geraldo Rivera, whose 1997 mock trial surrounding the case appeared in Netflix’s new documentary, “Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?”
The film focuses on mistakes from police and media personnel in the years following her murder, which Ramsey called “primitive behavior” that was “disgraceful.”
Rivera told Ramsey, “I deeply apologize to you for what you and your family have suffered” in reference to his special. However, he added that “mock trials and moot courts … are not that unprecedented.”
JonBenét Ramsey mock trial by Geraldo Rivera
The documentary features clips from the defunct daytime talk show, “The Geraldo Rivera Show,” where the eponymous host conducted a mock trial about the Ramseys’ culpability for their daughter’s death.
His “jury” found the parents liable, which sent Patsy Ramsey to bed “for about two days because I was just so mortified,” she said in a previously recorded interview.
During the show, a child abuse expert also posited that she believed JonBenét Ramsey had been “sexually stimulated,” referencing a video of the child playing a saxophone as masturbation.
Rivera apologized for his mock trial’s inflammatory comments and conclusion, telling John Ramsey, “When I say I am sorry, I don’t apologize for my reporting … but I don’t know what happened. I just want you to know that I lament contributing to the hurt that you have endured.”
“I don’t think anyone deserves to go through what you went through,” he added. “That’s my bottom line.”
“Let me first say, Geraldo, I accept your apology and thank you,” Ramsey responded.
What happened to JonBenét Ramsey?
JonBenét Ramsey, who competed in beauty pageants, was found dead in the basement of her family’s home in the college town of Boulder the day after Christmas in 1996.
Her body was found several hours after her mother called 911 to say her daughter was missing and a ransom note had been left behind. The details of the crime and video footage of JonBenét Ramsey competing in pageants propelled the case into one of the highest-profile mysteries in the United States.
JonBenét Ramsey was bludgeoned and strangled. Her death was ruled a homicide, but nobody was ever prosecuted.
Police were widely criticized for mishandling the early investigation into her death amid speculation that her family was responsible.
“I think the police fed false information, misleading information, to the media … before even the evidence had been recovered, looked at,” Ramsey told .
However, a prosecutor cleared her parents, John and Patsy Ramsey, and brother Burke in 2008 based on new DNA evidence from JonBenet’s clothing that pointed to the involvement of an “unexplained third party” in her slaying.
The announcement by former district attorney Mary Lacy came two years after Patsy Ramsey died of cancer. Lacy called the Ramseys “victims of this crime.”
In 2021, police said in their annual update that DNA hadn’t been ruled out to help solve the case, and in 2022, they noted that some evidence could be “consumed” if DNA testing is done on it.
John Bennett Ramsey calls for further DNA testing
Boulder police found DNA evidence on JonBenét’s body, and years later, found DNA from the same male on her tights. Ramsey says he’s learned that, at the time, several items were sent to a DNA lab, and some of them were not tested but returned to the police.
He says today, labs can do so much more — but only if they are allowed to do new tests and only if the DNA is in a particular format.
“So the retesting needs to be done. Hopefully, we get a good sample and in the right format that then they could do the genealogy research,” John Ramsey said. “I believe if we do that, there’s a really good chance we can solve it.”
In a previous interview, John Ramsey pointed to expanding the DNA database search. He said police have only access to the FBI’s CODIS database, which holds genealogical data from felons.
Where does JonBenét Ramsey’s case stand now?
According to local affiliate KDVR’s reporting, in 1999, a grand jury had recommended an indictment be filed against Patsy and John in connection to her death.
In 2006, a man confessed to killing JonBenét and was arrested, but DNA evidence also cleared him.
Nobody has ever been convicted of her death. No new suspects have been announced.
John Ramsey has continued to advocate for the investigation, telling in 2023 that he wants the murder of children to be classified as a federal crime.
‘s Rich Johnson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
