Original subtitles

*

*

This is kind of like a bedtime story.

Once upon a time there was a girl named JonBenét.

She looked like a princess,

but she wasn't

She was just a normal girl who wanted to play outside

and ride her bike.

( whispers ) As I lay me down to sleep,

p. I pray the lord my soul to keep.

If I should die before I wake,

e. I pray the lord my soul to take.

That's the last thing I remember,

Saying those words.

Then I fell asleep.

I don't remember anything after that.

911, what's your emergency?

( Patsy ): Police!

What's going on, ma'am?

755 15th Street.

What's going on, ma'am?

We have a kidnapping!

Hurry, please!

Explain to me what's going on, ok?

There's... we have a-- there's a note left

and our daughter's gone!

There's a note and your daughter is gone?

Yes!

How old is your daughter?

Six years old.

She's blonde.

Six years old.

Ok, how long ago was this?

I don't know!

( gasping )

I just got the note and my daughter's gone!

Does it say who took her?

There's a... there's a ransom note here.

It's a ransom note?

It says "SBTC Victory."

Please!

And what's your name?

Are you-

Patsy Ramsey.

I'm the mother.

I'm sending an officer over, ok?

Please!

Uh, do you know how long she's been gone?

No, I don't.

Please send someone!

I am, honey.

Please.

I just need you to take a breath.

Hurry!

Hurry, hurry!

Oh my...

Patsy? Patsy?

Patsy?

That's Steve Thomas.

He's a Detective.

Maybe he's the one who is going to solve this puzzle.

Pete?

My meth head waving the butcher knives.

Are you cutting him a deal?

I've got bigger fish to fry right now, Steve.

What're you giving him?

Uh, community service and rehab again?

Wait, I have an idea.

Why don't you throw in a dental plan?

Not a bad idea.

I hear meth's terrible on the teeth.

Do you guys prosecute anybody?

Commander wants us in this meeting, too.

It's about the Ramsey girl.

Isn't that homicide?

They want to take the body back to Atlanta for burial.

We need it here for evidence.

The autopsy's been done.

The case isn't.

We need to do some more testing.

And we need to talk to them.

Commander...

Well, you can't ransom the body for an interview.

We're not ransoming the body.

It's just way to premature to release it.

Do I need to remind you that the Ramseys are important people?

We're not finished with her yet.

Have you read the autopsy report?

Why don't you go get us that interview?

You can't ransom the body.

What the hell was that?

Quinn briefed you?

Not really.

We need to get up to speed.

I'll talk to Linda, she was there.

I need this closed fast.

The city's gonna come apart

if there's a maniac running around.

Yeah.

Are you ready for this?

What do you mean?

Homicide isn't narcotics.

I've been an investigator for 13 years, John.

I've worked hundreds of cases.

You're in good hands.

The scene wasn't preserved.

What?

What do you mean, the scene wasn't preserved?

It just wasn't, alright?

Linda.

What went on in that house?

It was right over here.

I moved it here.

That's mommy and daddy.

Mommy was Miss West Virginia once.

She put me in lots of pageants too.

She said I looked so pretty in a tiara.

( sirens wailing in the distance )

Oh, John...

( police radio noise )

Are you in charge?

I am. I am.

Just tell me what happened.

I- I went into her room at 5:45

to wake her for our Michigan trip but she wasn't there,

and I thought maybe she had just got up early

in the excitement but I came downstairs and I found the note.

Oh my god.

"Mr. Ramsey, listen carefully.

"We are a group of individuals

"that represent a small foreign faction.

"We respect your business,

"but not the country that it serves.

"At this time we have your daughter in our possession.

"She is safe and unharmed.

"If you want her to see 1997,

"you must follow our instructions to the letter."

What've we got?

The note says they're being watched.

They talk to the cops or anyone, the girl gets beheaded.

( sirens )

Commander got word.

They're influential people.

Treat them accordingly.

I'll check for other exit points.

We were at our friend's house, the Whites,

for Christmas dinner.

She fell asleep in the car

and I carried her up and put her in bed.

She's a bed-wetter.

Don't touch anything.

Please.

( shutter snapping )

Our son's in here.

( sobbing )

( sobbing )

Patsy?

Oh, honey!

We called our friends, the Fernies and the Whites.

What's going on?

John what is happening?

What's going on?

JonBenét has disappeared.

What?

There was a ransom note.

What're you talking about?

My baby's been kidnapped.

( sobbing hysterically )

Patsy, what's happening?

My baby!

We just don't know where she is.

What do you mean?

( shutter sounds )

JonBenét? JonBenét?

JonBenét, if you're down here, sweetie,

this really isn't funny.

That's my dad's best friend, Fleet.

I came downstairs and I found the note

and so I went up to her room and she was gone.

( sobbing )

JonBenét?

JonBenét?

JonBenét?

John's gonna wake Burke,

he doesn't want him seeing Patsy this way.

Let's uh... let's take him back to our place.

He can stay with Fleet Junior.

Hey, Burke?

Burke?

Let's wake up.

Um, I gotta get you to the White's, ok?

I gotta get you dressed and to the White's, ok?

Ok.

Ok.

( shutter sounds )

Oh, thank you for coming.

This is our pastor.

Could everyone please just stay over here in the living room?

These people work for the City.

They help when bad things happen to good people.

I wish they could help me remember

what happened that night.

Mr. Ramsey.

Your son was the only other person here.

We'd like to ask him a few questions.

He was asleep.

He doesn't know anything.

Mr. White, if you could bring that roll of film

from dinner last night?

Sure.

( sirens wailing in the distance )

You doing ok?

Yeah.

Is that a new video game?

Yeah.

When the kidnappers call

it's imperative that you ask to speak

with your daughter so that we know she's ok.

This lady is a Detective too.

Her name is Linda Arndt.

She seems really nice.

Like she really cares.

How do we know that the note wasn't written after midnight

and they're calling between 8:00 and 10:00 am tomorrow?

We don't, but let's assume it's today.

Ask for details on where they tell you to bring the money.

Details on everything.

But tell them that you can't get it until 5:00pm.

Keep them on the phone as long as you can.

Is there any significance you can think of

to that ransom amount?

$118,000.00?

No.

I'd pay anything.

What about these phrases,

"foreign faction", "grow a brain", "fat cat"?

Anyone you know who talks like that?

No.

Anyone you can think of who might want to do this to you?

Yes, our housekeeper.

She recently asked for a loan.

She has money problems.

I don't know, the handwriting might look a little like...

she has a key.

( shutter sounds )

( police radio noise )

My family did everything with the Whites.

Priscilla was like my second mom.

And Daphne White was my best friend.

Look, just... we'll just pray together, ok?

Ok.

Alright?

Ok.

Our father...

Our father.

Who art in heaven.

Who art in heaven.

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come...

Mommy, look!

( giggling )

Once, as a joke, Daphne hid from her whole family.

But when I wasn't there that morning, I wasn't hiding.

And I wasn't joking.

*

*

Mr. Ramsey, it's protocol that we get handwriting samples

from you, your wife, and both children.

Sure.

Could everyone please just stay in the living room

and the study only.

You too, please.

( vomiting )

( toilet flushes )

How could I not have heard my baby?

It's ok.

How could I not hear my baby?

( sobbing )

So much for a call by 10:00.

Maybe it is tomorrow.

Either of them say anything, even noticed the time passed?

Not a word.

Alright, let's uh...

let's release anybody that doesn't need to be here.

Commander wants a strategy session at the station.

Can you hold down the fort?

Yep.

Alright.

If everyone could please just stay in one room or the other?

Patsy?

Tell me more about the housekeeper.

We have a detective going over to talk to her.

You know, I don't know.

I...

I'm thinking maybe it doesn't look so much like her wri-

Excuse me?

Maybe we should throw JonBenét's sheets in the wash.

No!

Don't touch anything, please.

Just... keep everyone in the living room and the study.

Excuse me.

It's Arndt.

I have paged a couple of times already and I need backup now.

I've got Buckingham Palace here

with nine Kings and Queens roaming around.

( toilet flushes )

I'm looking for Patsy?

Um, I think she's in the bathroom.

And John?

Uh...

John?

( shutter snaps )

Mr. Ramsey.

( stuttering ) I...I I thought there might be something

from the kidnappers.

Have you ever seen him like this?

His daughter's missing.

I don't know if I'd be even that together.

Mr. Ramsey.

Why don't you take Fleet and... just search the house?

Top to bottom.

See if there's maybe something missing,

anything that might help us.

John, was that always broken?

Hmm?

Oh.

Uh, yeah.

Locked myself out last summer.

I had to break it to get in.

Been meaning to fix that.

( dramatic music )

( dramatic music )

Oh my god!

( dramatic music )

( dramatic music )

Don't touch anything!

Don't touch anything!

PUT HER DOWN!

PUT HER DOWN!

( sobbing )

Yes, now!

I'm all alone here!!

He didn't mean to kill her.

He wrapped her... with a- with a blanket.

( sobbing ) Oh, god!!

John, no.

Please, nobody touch her.

Please.

Please.

( sobbing )

My little angel...

It's gotta be an inside job.

( sobbing )

No. No.

No.

( sobbing )

No, no, no! No, my baby!

( sobbing hysterically )

Oh, no!

( sobbing hysterically )

Jesus!

You raised Lazarus from the dead!

Please, raise my baby!

( sobbing )

I'm sorry.

I'm so very sorry.

It was a shit storm.

I was at the autopsy this morning

and there's a six-year-old girl

with an eight inch crack in her skull

and a garrote around her neck,

and you know what they're trying to figure out?

What?

Which one of those killed her.

And when and what and for how long

someone was shoving something inside of her.

Signs of sexual abuse?

Would the parents have any ideas?

A few, but we can't talk to them since...

we thought it was a kidnapping!

These are influential people,

everyone was treating it all with kid gloves,

hugging the body, cleaning up a murder scene!

I moved the body, Steve.

It's all contaminated.

I don't even know why I-

( knocking )

Thomas?

Somebody here to see you.

Yeah.

Mr. Ramsey, you can't walk away from an active crime scene.

They're getting my plane ready.

I have important business in Atlanta.

Your daughter?

We- we have unfinished business here.

You can't go to Atlanta or anywhere else.

We can't stay here another moment.

We obviously have to talk to you,

your wife and your son.

You'll stay with us.

Uh, I'll call you back.

Just um... give us a day.

Please.

We just lost our daughter.

These are my step-siblings John Andrew and Melinda.

Their older sister died in a car accident.

I know, most stories only have one bad thing happen,

but this isn't a story.

This is real life.

Lots of bad things happen in real life.

At least in mine.

This is a mistake.

We should be taking them downtown.

Separating them.

It was the Commander's call.

Where are you going?

I woke up and my father said JonBenét was missing.

You know about what time it was you woke up?

Didn't hear anything before that in the night?

Uh-uh.

Nothing at all?

Just... when I went to bed the water heater squeaks.

No... scream or cries?

A yell?

No raised voices?

No arguing?

Anything like that?

What's the first thing you remember hearing?

My father woke me and said JonBenét was missing

and they were gonna find her.

Your father woke you?

Oh.

I thought you said your-

Do you know if we're still going to Michigan?

I don't know.

What do you do up in Michigan?

We get to skate on the lake and build really big fires.

Sounds fun.

Let's get back to you waking up.

Can I go play video games?

( recording ) Patsy? Patsy?

Patsy?

Now, listen.

There's more at the end.

Like she didn't completely hang up.

( indistinct voices on recording )

Patsy?

Pats- Patsy?

Patsy? Patsy? Patsy?

( indistinct voices )

It was clear on the call.

Like it was her voice but not so hysterical.

Talking to someone nearby.

Who else knows about this?

No one.

Let's keep it that way.

FBI.

The Secret Service.

They do this stuff.

It's the War and Peace of ransom notes.

Normally, it's "we have your kid, get the money,

"we will call".

I've never seen anything like this before.

Now, this guy for sure didn't write it.

Now her?

There are a lot of similarities.

You definitely can't rule her out.

She's-

Wait.

It's practice.

The note was written on this pad.

That was John's lawyer.

Their investigators want to talk to us.

They say the police always look to the parents first

and they need to advise John and Patsy.

Fleet?

Her bed didn't look slept in.

And she was wearing the same clothes as the night before.

I don't think Patsy went to bed that night.

Bye.

Goodnight, guys.

Merry Christmas.

Thank you, you guys!

Merry Christmas.

Goodnight, everybody.

Goodnight!

Merry Christmas!

( knocking )

Mrs. White?

Yes.

Detectives Thomas and Gossage, with the BPD.

Would you mind if we asked you a couple of questions?

Uh, we already talked to your... your colleagues.

Why not? Everyone else has.

You just missed the last bunch.

Who was that?

Some private investigators from John's lawyers.

Yeah?

What did they want?

Basically to know what we had already told you.

Or anyone else.

Are they concerned about something?

I guess you'd have to ask them.

Mr. White, Mrs. White,

I want you to know that in cases like this

it's natural to look at the immediate family first.

Eliminate any potential-

That's what John says the lawyers are for.

To shift focus to where it should be.

And where's that?

You're the police.

You don't have any leads?

I want to remind you that under-

CRS 41.1:

Non-testimonial evidence only.

No questions.

Excellent.

Glad to see we're on the same page.

We're here to help.

Will this help find who killed my daughter?

I hope so.

I didn't kill my baby.

No one said you did.

( shutter snapping )

( shutter snapping )

Daddy and I have something to tell you.

And it's gonna make you feel really sad inside.

But it's ok.

JonBenét is gone.

What do you mean, JonBenét is gone?

To heaven, sweetie.

Is she coming back?

No.

What happened to her?

She-

Nobody knows for sure, honey.

( sobbing )

Today is mommy's birthday.

That's sad.

And let us say "amen".

( All ): Amen.

Please let the family pass

and then join us afterwards for a reception.

That's the housekeeper.

Who's handwriting looks nothing like the note.

Nope.

Detectives!

Detectives!

Just a couple of questions, please.

It's an active investigation,

you know we can't comment.

The chief is going to call a press conference, alright?

Can I just have a moment of your time, please?

Is it true you're ransoming the body for an interview?

The body's going to Atlanta today for a funeral on Tuesday.

You can go ask the Ramseys.

I wonder who told her that.

Here come the Ramseys!

John. Patsy...

( crowd clamouring )

...share what you're feeling right now,

your level of frustration...

( crowd clamouring )

They're in mourning.

( crowd clamouring )

Get the mic out of his face!

( crowd continues shouting )

( bells toll )

( sobbing )

The mind cannot accept

and the heart refuses to grasp the death of one so young

who was suddenly taken from us by the cruelty and malice

of some unworthy person.

When a child is lost

one feels a part of the future is gone.

( reporter ) The Ramseys in Atlanta today for the funeral

used to be where they lived until 1991

and where JonBenét was born.

The service, relatively small,

was attended by only close friends of the family

and the Ramseys have continued to cast suspicion on themselves

by not yet talking to Boulder police.

Unconfirmed reports also speculate that the Ramseys

are in fact now planning to stay in Atlanta

from this point forward.

There are children here.

Hiding behind lawyers, P.I.s and crisis management firms

is not the answer, John.

You look like O.J. in the Bronco.

We're not confident in how the police are handling this.

And we're gonna put up a $50,000 reward for information.

Like O.J.

What you do in the next 24 hours

is gonna define the rest of your life.

You need to come back to Boulder and talk to the police.

Patsy needs to talk to them.

We do. We all do.

To find out what happened to JonBenét.

You're making it look like...

you're involved.

And we're gonna tell them we're not.

We've made arrangements to go on CNN.

CNN?!

And get all this cleared up.

Stop it from getting out of control.

You need to talk to the police, not CNN.

Please.

As your friends.

For the both of you.

For Burke.

Come back to Boulder.

When mommy and daddy went on TV

it was the first time most people saw them.

But on TV, mommy doesn't even sound like herself,

and she looked so sad.

We are also assembling an investigative team to assist.

We have to find-

I want... I want the best minds this country has to offer.

There is a killer on the loose.

Absolutely.

I don't know who it is.

I don't know if it's a he or a she,

but if I were a resident of Boulder

I would tell my friends to keep...

keep your babies close to you.

There's someone out there.

Mr. Burroughs!

Is it true the Ramseys are back in Boulder

but still aren't cooperating with police?

Absolutely not.

The Ramseys are back in Boulder at an undisclosed location.

They're cooperating extensively,

they've answered all the questions

the police have for them at this time.

Answering a page of yes or no's in legal speak

is not "cooperating".

Look- look at this.

The best recollection.

Neither has a memory.

It is believed.

Look at this.

This is straight out of Johnny Cochrane's playbook.

Their attorneys are cooperating with us, Steve.

I don't know what more you want.

Don't you think you're spending too much time on this?

I mean, what about John's disgruntled employee?

Well, yeah, we're looking at him,

but... the Ramsey's attorneys

are running their own investigation, Pete,

and it's not to help us.

I'm late, Steve.

They want to cooperate?

Tell them to bring in Burke,

or social services is going to be at their doorstep

taking him away.

Are you threatening them

after everything they've been through?

Do you have children, Steve?

He's a minor who's sibling was murdered in his own house.

I'm not threatening, it's Colorado law.

Does yours have a moustache?

No.

Does yours have glasses?

No.

Do you usually wake up when you hear something?

Yeah, like a fridge door.

But you didn't hear anything at all?

Does yours have grey hair?

No.

How are things since she died?

Fine.

Do you feel safe after what happened?

Yeah.

Does yours have red hair?

No.

Do you know what did happen?

Yeah. She was killed.

Do you know how?

Someone quietly took her down to the basement

and took a knife out or hit her in the head.

And you're not afraid that they're gonna come back for you

or your family?

No.

Do you have secrets, Burke?

Probably, and if I did I wouldn't be telling you

because they wouldn't be secrets anymore.

Hey, that's mine!

I'm sorry.

I can't drink that now.

How about I'll get you another one

and in the meantime

would you like to draw me a picture of your family?

I'll be right back.

I thought this would be quicker.

He's been up there almost an hour.

I can't tell you what a hole it's left in me.

John's back at work, Burke's going back to school.

And me.

JonBenét was everything to me.

My little Jonny B.

I can't have any more children.

I had cancer surgery.

I'm sorry.

If I lost Burke I would have no reason to go on living.

They don't want to take him from you, Patsy.

They just want to ask him some questions.

The plane implies remoteness.

Distance.

Small stature Patsy, insignificance.

Powerlessness.

The fact that JonBenét isn't in it at all,

a week and a half after the murder?

It's interesting, but it's psychobabble.

It's not evidence.

He told the doc he was "just getting on with his life".

He's nine.

We're getting umpteen calls a day from kids

who are afraid this is gonna happen to them.

And this kid,

who's just down the hall from where it did happen,

he's not scared at all?

Look, it's the same thing I said about John.

There's no such thing as normal behaviour

after a trauma like this.

It's odd, but it's not evidence.

What I'd like you to do is listen to the end,

after Patsy thought she had hung up,

and just write down what you hear.

I've done the same, so have my staff, all independently.

Take your time.

Is this the part of the story

where the hero finally figures out how to save the princess.

( exhales )

Alright, first, a woman. Patsy.

"Help me, Jesus.

Help me, Jesus."

And then a more distant voice.

"Please. What do I do?"

And then a man, John.

"We're not talking to you."

And then that other voice again.

"Well, what did you find?"

The other voice.

How would you describe it?

A young boy.

It's 2:00 am.

Yeah.

( sighs heavily )

I know.

I'm sorry, I'll be uh... I'll be right up.

What a terrible thing to look at right before you go to sleep.

I don't think I could do it.

Do what?

Have kids.

Not anymore, not after this.

I mean, if anything happened to them I would...

Shh.

Listen.

You're worrying me.

You never turn off.

Something has to change.

And I'm not saying this because of us.

This is about you.

You are losing yourself in this case.

We left for dinner at the Whites'

at approximately 4:30 pm.

The last thing she ate was cracked crab.

At the Whites'.

She fell asleep in the car.

I carried her up and put her in bed.

No, I did not check the doors or the windows that night.

I don't know if Patsy slept on the covers or under them.

I did not write that note.

Where was Burke when you found the note and called 911?

Asleep.

Every puzzle can be solved,

except sometimes you lose the pieces,

or forget where you put them.

Or put the pieces from one puzzle

in the box for a different puzzle.

But if you find all the right pieces

you can solve the puzzle for sure.

He didn't ask anything about the investigation, the autopsy,

how his daughter was killed...

nothing.

His daughter was just murdered.

And that's the second daughter he's lost.

He's numb.

Traumatized.

What's happening with the 911 call?

We're reaching out to some private firms

with some more cutting-edge-

Hey. We've got the marker that wrote the note.

It's an exclusive match from the pot of pens

not far from the pad in the kitchen.

( sighs )

They staged it.

It was an accident

and they staged it to look like a blown kidnapping.

Don't jump to any conclusions.

I don't see a motive there.

And if it was an accident, then how? And why?

To avoid bad press?

A kidnapping isn't any better.

We're just looking at the evidence we have in front of us.

And why such a horrific staging?

Ok, what else are we pursuing?

Are we tracking the pedophiles

who may have attended her pageants?

Yeah, it's uh... it's a lot to process.

Well, what's going on with the housekeeper?

We're doing a handwriting analysis.

Ok, well don't get locked into only one theory,

Keep pushing on all fronts.

We need to talk to them.

To the Ramseys.

Separately and unprepared.

Which isn't gonna happen at this time.

The DA's words, not mine.

And according to the Ramseys' new lawyers

they'll take written questions but they want to review

everything in our case file before they talk to the police.

What?

Get some questions written up.

Dammit!

( knocking )

The DA has suspended any trace testing at CBI.

On what grounds?

No one was charged.

We can test anything we want.

John's lawyer asked them to.

There was male DNA found in her panties

that still has not been identified.

It could be direct evidence of the perpetrator.

This is absurd.

Who's side is the DA on?

I'll take care of it.

Linda?

We're taking a lot of heat for the way this all went down.

Well, maybe if the DA would...

No.

Four months into this thing...

I just can't keep this much manpower-

No.

I need to do this.

Commander, please.

I made mistakes, I wanna make good on them.

I'm building a relationship with Patsy,

I can be invaluable to this.

I'm sorry, Linda.

( slams door )

( cacophony of news voices )

Mommy always said lots of people would see me.

What's going on?

I'm not staying on a damn desk job.

I'd rather quit.

Promise me.

Promise me you'll see it through.

I'll see it through.

What happened after the funeral with John, Fleet?

Nothing.

I told him to come back here.

No fight? Altercation?

Well, I was agitated.

I had a disagreement with John's brother

and one of his team asking me to stay out of things.

He's one of my best friends

and Priscilla and I just went in and spoke our minds.

It was no fight.

Did someone say there was?

I just need you to confirm a couple things we went over.

Sure.

Can anyone other than Priscilla corroborate your story

that you didn't leave your house that night?

Anyone at all?

Woah, woah, woah.

Wait a second.

I want a public statement

that neither Priscilla nor I are suspects.

Mr. White, I can't comment--

Look, we've given you handwriting,

hair, blood, fingerprints, DNA.

We gave you a pound of flesh for that little girl.

Just tell me one thing.

Did John and Patsy suggest we had anything to do with this?

I can't comment on an ongoing investigation.

Make the statement.

It is the opinion of the FBI child abduction

and serial killer unit

that the Ramseys conditions were inconsistent

with sound investigative practices and would not

likely lead to a productive, investigative interview.

When the DA still forces us to show our entire hand

the 911 tape stays with us.

Ok?

They're bringing in an outside investigator.

A guy named Lou Smit.

Lou Smit?

Yeah, he's a legend.

Heather Dawn Church case.

And 149 others.

The DA won't call a Grand Jury yet,

but they're bringing on Smit to advise and organize their case.

Yeah.

I couldn't sleep.

You think anyone will actually read the police's statement?

I'm not looking at the statement.

Last summer, months before this happened,

Barb Fernie pointed out that damaged door to Patsy.

We thought someone had tried to break in.

She said it had been John traveling,

always forgetting his keys.

Possible point of entry?

She knows!

She knows what that is!

People may not have liked the pageants or the sexy outfits

or everything that Patsy was putting JonBenét into,

but an innocent six year old girl is dead!

We fed her her last meal.

Who is going to start standing up for the truth around here?

We are.

Detective Smit?

Lou.

Steve.

Thomas.

It's an honour.

Is that JonBenét?

Yeah.

I've told her that we're gonna solve this.

Let me show you something.

These are all cases I've been privileged to help solve.

We're gonna get her in there, too.

Yes, we are.

Can I show you around?

Lou?

We're about ready to pull out.

You done?

I don't think I've ever seen a more compromised crime scene

in my entire career.

Yeah.

There were mistakes made.

These were your people.

"Contaminated" doesn't even describe it.

How do you account for that?

They thought they were showing up to a kidnapping.

Just a kidnapping.

Basic police work.

Fundamentals.

No wonder the Ramseys feel exposed.

I would, too.

I made a drawing once at school.

My teacher thought it was a horse

and my friend thought it was a fish.

It was a picture of me.

But nobody saw that.

I wish someone would have seen that.

Beautiful day, Steve.

Why the cloud?

Did you hear the Ramseys are moving to Atlanta?

Yeah.

Had to give them our entire case file.

They're gonna be prepared for anything we ask.

No surprises.

But Steve,

I don't think the Ramseys had anything to do with it.

Here's how I see it.

He spotted her at one of her pageants

or the recent Christmas parade.

He waited 'til they were gone and then entered the house.

While they were out,

he familiarized himself with the complicated layout

and then, knowing he had time, sat down,

wrote the note, and waited.

( shutter snaps )

Around midnight he crept upstairs

and immobilized her with a taser.

( shutter snaps )

Lou, a taser is seriously loud.

Not if it's applied directly to the skin.

He taped her mouth,

wrapped her in her blanket and carried her downstairs.

( shutter snaps )

When she began to stir he restrained her

and then did what he wanted.

When she awoke and managed to rip the tape off and scream,

he struck her with a flashlight and then panicked,

hid her in the cellar and fled back out the way he came,

forgetting his ransom note on the stairs.

Lou, there are thousands of pages of material.

Hundreds of hours of video, stacks of photos,

and you came to your conclusion in 72 hours?

Mmmhmm.

And now I've had time to confirm and reconfirm it.

In my experience, murders usually are what they seem.

Rarely are they perfectly planned.

Nobody's saying this was planned, Lou.

This was an awful accident.

An outburst.

Something that was covered up

and staged to look like something else.

Lou, the Heather Dawn Church case was great.

Everyone thought it was the family, you said it wasn't,

that was true.

But that's not the blueprint for every case.

The blueprint for every case is evidence determining theory.

Not theory determining evidence.

Steve, this is your first homicide,

but remember, I've done a lot of these.

You won't find too many people in this department

agreeing with you, Lou.

Or the FBI or any other agency who's taken a look at this.

It's not the first time.

Gentlemen.

I want to say something to the person or persons

that committed this crime.

I mentioned the list of suspects narrows.

Soon there will be no one on the list but you.

This is nice.

A university professor saw me on television and says

he would stake his reputation that I'm innocent.

John?

I feel like the people that are supposed to be

protecting JonBenét aren't.

That includes the DA.

It's insane to suggest that we need legal council to deal with

our own District Attorney, but that's just it.

We don't trust him anymore.

Neither do we.

He's been accused in a national magazine of being incompetent.

It's been almost a year and he's done nothing for JonBenét.

The lawyers that I've been speaking with in Denver

have made a suggestion

that could just help us get a fair hearing

with a Grand Jury, but I can't do it by myself.

How can we help?

We want you to appoint a special prosecutor.

To take the case completely away from Hunter.

And politics and ego, Governor.

Everyone seems to have forgotten

that this is about a murdered six-year-old girl.

Yes, I think they have.

Let me consider it.

Thank you, Governor.

He's not gonna do a thing.

So then what?

We take it to his boss.

The people who elected him.

"We must be mindful however of the first cause

"of the investigation's failure

"the refusal of John and Patsy Ramsey

"to cooperate fully and genuinely."

I thought Fleet and Priscilla were our friends.

Why would they do this?

That's exactly what everyone's gonna think when they read it.

So the DA is trying to make a deal for new interviews

with the Ramseys.

Hallelujah.

Looks like the Whites' letter

might have actually had some impact.

What?

Chief sent the 911 tape.

To who?

DA or Team Ramsey?

It doesn't matter.

I scream at you.

What the hell is "I scream at you"?

It's the voice on the 911 tape that you never told us about.

I gave it to my brother-in-law at the lab in Los Almos.

It's not John, Patsy or Burke.

It's someone, maybe Larry, Curly or Moe

on a television somewhere.

"I scream at you".

No, look. It's there, Pete.

A young boy.

"What did you find?" I heard it with my own ears.

And he heard "I scream at you"

and a Japanese guy's gonna hear "domo arigato"

and a French man will hear "parlez-vous Francais".

And you know what John's lawyers are gonna say?

What?

"I laugh at you".

You should've given me the tape, Steve.

An entomologist?

Mmmhmm.

About these webs.

Uh, Lou, an intruder would have destroyed them

and wiped all the dust off the window sill.

Not so fast.

Oh, sorry.

Are you saying the spider,

uh, spun them back for a photo op?

That's why we need to talk to an entomologist.

Oh, for god's sake, Lou.

Uh, is there an outside chance of that?

Um, I guess.

There is.

Is there an outside chance that the person killed her

in the basement and then ran the flashlight upstairs

to the kitchen?

There is.

But forgot the ransom note on the stairs?

There is.

No. There isn't.

Because an outside chance of this

and an outside chance of that

and a hundred other this and thats add up to

an outside chance of the whole thing.

And there you go again, detective.

You're letting the cart lead the horse.

You know what I want to see, Lou?

Yes. You want to see John Ramsey hanging by his neck.

No.

Where was the John Ramsey that lost his first daughter

in a car accident?

He was inconsolable.

Devastated.

Bed-ridden for weeks over a car accident.

Where was that John Ramsey?

I can't say.

I've never lost two daughters before.

Let me ask you this.

Where does the garrote fit into your cart?

Why- why bother with something so sadistic?

So cruel?

And what about the unknown male DNA in her underwear?

That is a wild goose chase.

Steve.

Steve.

I've seen this before, Steve.

You're out to prove something.

It's got nothing to do with this case.

If you guys are finished in here...

Hunter just got a letter from Ramsey saying a Grand Jury

won't be necessary for them to talk.

What a surprise.

Go in front of a Grand Jury or do an interview?

Tough choice.

JonBenét fell asleep in the car.

She walked in slowly, went up the spiral stairs to bed

with my mom behind her.

She was sound asleep.

Carried her in, put her in her bed.

Say that the intruder was someone that JonBenét knew,

and they fed her the pineapple.

Priscilla has a jacket just like that one I was wearing.

She's the type that might have a stun gun.

My parents thought I was asleep, but I wasn't.

I was pretending.

You're a Christian?

Will you swear to God you didn't do this?

I swear to God.

Did your mother and father prepare you

for this conversation?

No.

What if I told you we had trace evidence that appears

to link you to the death of your daughter?

I did not kill my child.

I didn't have a thing to do with it.

Anyone else?

Your wife?

Swear to God?

I don't give a flying flip about scientific evidence.

I swear to God.

What if it was an accident?

Somebody legally, lawfully in the house-

You're going down the wrong path, buddy.

What about Burke?

Burke Ramsey did not do this.

Ok? He did not do it.

Get off it.

Got anything you'd like to ask me?

Is that a Rolex?

Are you aware there had been prior vaginal intrusion

on JonBenét?

What?

No I am not.

Prior to the night she was killed?

I... I am...

I wouldn't know what you're talking about.

I am... I am shocked.

ly member.

Didn't happen.

Period.

End of statement.

They're not gonna take this to trial or a Grand Jury.

No.

What're we doing?

What's this all about?

We're doing our jobs.

Just 'cause they're not doing theirs

doesn't mean we don't do ours.

We're better than that.

They think we're stupid, Ron.

They're laughing at us.

The DA, the Ramseys, Lou Smit.

Nobody's laughing at us.

They are.

So what do you want to do about it?

Walk.

You'll just walk?

Yeah.

What else am I gonna do after this?

Just go back to work like normal?

Catch a bad guy and uh, maybe they'll prosecute him?

Don't be naive.

There's always politics.

Everybody's looking out for their own skin.

But nobody's looking out for her.

Except for us.

This is the one that matters.

If I walk now, it'll actually say something.

Wait, the detective isn't suppose to quit.

He's supposed to solve the puzzle.

Why is he doing this?

This isn't how the story is supposed to go.

"I cannot continue to sanction by my silence

"for what has occurred in this case.

"Steve Thomas, Badge 638."

He writes well, I'll give him that.

Maybe the Whites were right.

We should consider a special prosecutor.

Take Hunter out of it altogether.

Get him on the phone.

The Grand Jury is a compromise.

So Hunter doesn't have to be removed.

It is, but it's still a win.

And a big one.

We know what you've given up, Steve.

Whatever I've given up, the point is it's not lip service.

Alex Hunter is not going to be running it.

They're bringing in Mike Kane from Pennsylvania.

He is a stand up guy.

I do think this is our shot for JonBenét.

What's this?

I will not be part of the persecution of innocents.

Mr. Smit told the Grand Jury that an intruder killed me

and kept trying to prove it until he died in 2010.

The grand jurors have done their work extraordinarily well,

bringing to bear all of their legal powers,

life experiences, and shrewdness.

Yet I must report to you

that I and my prosecution task force

believe we do not have sufficient evidence

to warrant the filing of charges against anyone

who has been investigated at this time.

If they don't indict,

a Grand Jury may issue a report,

usually at the behest of the DA.

Why the DA may not have requested one

in this case remains as shrouded in mystery

as the Grand Jury proceedings themselves.

And that's the end of it.

Hunter and everyone else just walks away squeaky clean.

No report.

No answers.

( reporter ) The public continues to speculate

on who broke into the Ramseys' house that night

and killed the innocent six-year-old.

Andrea Kerry reporting-

Steve.

You did everything that you could.

I gave up.

No. Steve.

I gave up.

Steve.

Steve!

What're you doing?

I made a promise.

I need to tell the truth.

( reporter ) Ramsey attorney Lin Wood responded swiftly

to the publication of Thomas's book with a lawsuit.

Uh, this is a man who has sat back and watched Steve Thomas

put his daughter's name and picture on a book,

illegally utilizing confidential police file information

to write a book so that he can profit.

He wants to profit off of the death of this child.

( reporter ) As if in response to Thomas's book,

John and Patsy Ramsey released today their own account

of their daughter's death

which starkly contradicts the former detective's account.

( phone ringing )

Hello?

Patsy?

It's Doctor Weiner.

Hi.

We got your scan results back in.

Are you able to come in this afternoon?

Sure.

Did they find something?

Come on in and we'll talk about it then.

Patsy?

Yes.

I'll come in.

I had to take a job trimming trees.

My boss is a kid named Carlos.

He's 19.

( laughs )

It's hard.

I read your book.

My legal bill?

Yeah? Bad?

It's all gone.

Everything.

I'm sorry.

I still think about her sometimes.

Not a day goes by that I don't think about her.

Yeah.

That was a lie.

I think about her all the time.

I hear Patsy's cancer is back.

Oh, I didn't know that.

Well, I gotta get to work.

What're you doing now?

I started a small carpentry business.

That fits.

That's good.

Yeah.

It's good to see you, Steve.

You too.

Patsy?

You once asked me to find JonBenét's killer.

I did.

And I told you that I would.

You did.

Patsy, there was just you, John and Burke in that house.

Is there something you want to tell me now?

( sawing )

( saw stops )

In a startling development in the JonBenét Ramsey case,

in response to a lawsuit brought by

the Reporter's Committee for Freedom of the Press,

the court released today four pages

of an 18-page Grand Jury indictment

secretly issued in 1999 against John and Patsy Ramsey

charging the couple with two counts each

of child abuse resulting in death an accessory to murder.

Andrea Kerry reporting live in Boulder, Colorado.

This is where I am now.

I've been here for 20 years.

I've seen a lot of things from here.

I've seen mommy die.

I've seen daddy get married again.

Burke working with computers.

I've seen you, too.

All of you, looking at me.

What do you see when you look at me?

What does Steve see?

I'm sorry.

I forgive you, Steve.

And I'm sorry, too.

Your life would have been better without me.

All the bedtime stories mommy and daddy read to me

had happy endings,

but my story doesn't have an ending at all

because it's not a fairy tale.

It's real life.

And in the story of my life the bad guys don't get caught

the nice people don't win.

I can't click my ruby slippers and go back home.

I still don't know who the bad guy in my story is.

I guess I never will.

Maybe that's ok with me now.

Maybe I can let go.

Can you?