One person is notably absent from “Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey,” a new Netflix docuseries investigating the still-unsolved murder of 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey in 1996.
Burke Ramsey, older brother of JonBenét Ramsey, declined to sit for an interview in the series, nearly three decades after his sister was found dead on Dec. 26, 1996 in their childhood home in Boulder, Colorado.
“Citing his treatment by the media and online websleuths, Burke Ramsey declined our request for an interview,” a card at the end of the third and final episode reads.
Director Joe Berlinger tells TODAY.com that Burke Ramsey, now 37, is “doing fine” and explained why he did not interview him for the series.
“We tried to gain access through our relationship with John Ramsey and through (his) son, John Andrew Ramsey,” Berlinger says.
Both John Ramsey, Burke Ramsey’s father, and John Andrew Ramsey, Burke Ramsey’s half brother, are featured in the documentary.
“But we didn’t want to pressure Burke and he didn’t want to talk to us, and he just didn’t want to participate. So we respected that,” Berlinger says.
Interest in Burke Ramsey’s life has remained high as true crime aficionados investigate the murder on their own time, though no one has been charged with wrongdoing in connection with the death of JonBenét Ramsey.
Burke Ramsey was cleared as a suspect in 2008
The Boulder District Attorney’s Office confirmed in 2008 that it had cleared Burke Ramsey, as well as his parents John and Patsy Ramsey, of having any involvement in the murder of JonBenét Ramsey, NBC News reported.
DNA testing conducted in 2008 on a piece of the 6-year-old’s clothing found DNA that matched previous DNA tested on her underwear in 1997, then-Boulder County District Attorney Mary Lacy wrote in the letter addressed to John Ramsey.
“The match of male DNA on two separate items of clothing worn by the victim at the time of the murder makes it clear to us that an unknown male handled these items,” Lacy said. “To the extent that we may have contributed in any way to the public perception that you might have been involved in this crime, I am deeply sorry.”
Burke Ramsey spoke to NBC affiliate KUSA-TV of Denver after the letter was released.
“I think the people that are in charge of the investigation are focused on that, and that gives me a lot of comfort,” he said. “Certainly we are grateful that they acknowledged that we, based on that, certainly could not have been involved.”
“But the most important thing is that we now have very, very solid evidence — and that’s always been my hope, at least in the recent past — that would lead us to the killer eventually,” he added.
Burke Ramsey was on ‘Dr. Phil’ 20 years after his sister’s murder
Burke Ramsey appeared on “Dr. Phil” in 2016, his first public sit-down interview since the crime occurred in 1996, and explained why he decided to speak out two decades later.
“I want to honor her memory by doing this interview,” he said. “I don’t want anyone to forget.”
In the three-part special, Burke Ramsey spoke with Dr. Phil McGraw and addressed the rumors that he and his family were involved in the murder.
“It blows my mind. What more evidence do you need that we didn’t do it?” he said.
“You won’t find any evidence because that’s not what happened,” he added.
At one point during the interview, McGraw presented Burke Ramsey with a copy of the ransom note found in their home on Dec. 26, 1996.
“I never really looked at it closely, ’cause I’ll see it and kinda get taken aback and it’s not something I really want to look at a lot, you know?” he said.
He added that he didn’t think it was his mother’s handwriting because it was “too sloppy,” and told a story about his mother making him rewrite things to have better handwriting.
Burke Ramsey sued CBS News in 2016
In 2016, CBS aired a two-part special that presented a theory that Burke Ramsey killed his sister. The special speculated that he could have killed JonBenét because she ate some of his snack.
Burke Ramsey sued CBS, the producers and the hosts of the special later that year for $750 million, according to the Associated Press, alleging that they conspired to defame him for publicity and profit.
Attorneys for Burke Ramsey alleged in the lawsuit that CBS conducted a “sham investigation” of the murder with “the preconceived the story line” that he killed his sister and conspired with his parents to cover it up, according to the Associated Press.
“The accusation that Burke Ramsey killed his sister was based on a compilation of lies, half-truths, manufactured information, and the intentional omission and avoidance of truthful information about the murder of JonBenét Ramsey,” attorneys wrote in the suit.
CBS declined to comment to the Associated Press when the lawsuit was filed.
The lawsuit was settled in 2019 after CBS and the producers agreed to pay an undisclosed sum, according to court documents.
Where is Burke Ramsey now?
