John Bennett Ramsey

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John Bennett Ramsey (born December 7, 1943) is the father of homicide victim JonBenét Ramsey. He was the first to discover JonBenét's body in the wine cellar of the Ramseys' 15-room home in Boulder, Colorado, USA, on December 26, 1996, just hours after her murder.

In 2004, Ramsey unsuccessfully campaigned for a seat in Michigan's House of Representatives.^[1] Published reports indicate he is once again campaigning for the Northern Michigan-based seat in the House of Representatives in 2008. [1] However, he is not a resident of Michigan and isn't, by law, eligible to hold elective office. [2]

[edit] Life and business

Ramsey was born in Lincoln, Nebraska to Mary Jane Bennett and James Dudley "Jay" Ramsey.^[2] His net worth was reported at $6.4 million as of May 1, 1996. He attended Michigan State University. A distinguished naval officer, he holds a pilot's license and owns two planes.^[3] In 1989, late in his military career, he formed the Advanced Product Group, one of three companies that merged to become Access Graphics. After mandatory military retirement, he became president and chief executive officer of Access Graphics, a computer services company and a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin.^[4] In 1996, Access Graphics grossed over $1 billion, and he was named "Entrepreneur of the Year" by the Boulder Chamber of Commerce. Immediately following the murder he was "temporarily replaced so the company did not have to bother him about business matters as he grieved," according to Lockheed spokesman Evan McCollum.^[5] John soon left his job to move his family to Michigan, where he joined another computer company. Access Graphics was later sold to General Electric in 1997.

Ramsey was portrayed by Ronny Cox in the 2000 miniseries Perfect Murder, Perfect Town.

[edit] Case files

JonBenét's was the only murder in Boulder, Colorado in 1996. The Boulder police had little experience in that type of investigation. Regardless, the majority of them immediately thought that the Ramseys were guilty. The fact that JonBenét had been found in her own home by her father was considered highly suspicious, as was the family's reluctance to discuss the case with the authorities.

Boulder police dismissed the possibility that an intruder had somehow slipped inside the house and committed the murder. Instead, they leaked information to the media that seemed designed to put pressure on the Ramseys. Meanwhile, the Ramseys had themselves retained a public relations firm and repeatedly appeared on national television to plead their case.

Statements, amounting to character testimony, were given to the media by John Ramsey's ex-wife, brother, and sister-in-law. They categorically deny that John Ramsey is, or has ever been, a child abuser. To further defend the claims, John Ramsey's son, John Andrew, and elder daughter, Melinda, told interviewers that their father had always been a loving and gentle person who "cherished" his children and had never abused them in any way. Both children were interviewed as possible suspects in the murder but were later cleared.

In 2004, investigators began to emphasize a long-overlooked intruder theory. Throughout the investigation, the Ramseys maintained their innocence.

Even after the false confession, extradition, and later release of John Mark Karr, JonBenét's murder remains unsolved. Charges have not been filed against anyone.

Ramsey's wife Patsy died June 24, 2006 of ovarian cancer. John was dating Beth Holloway Twitty, the mother of Natalee Holloway, the Alabama teen who disappeared in a 2005 high school graduation trip to Aruba. Ramsey met Twitty while attending a fundraiser following his wife's death in June of 2006.^[6]

[edit] Footnotes