(NewsNation) — The Boulder Police Department says it plans to use new DNA technology in hopes of solving the killing of 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey in 1996.
Ramsey’s body was found 28 years ago in her family’s Boulder home. Now, her father is planning to meet once again with local police to discuss new DNA testing technology that may hopefully fill in the forensic gaps and bring closure to the Ramsey family.
“They have the ability to separate DNA — mixed DNA samples, which is one of the issues with the sample they got in 1997. They had an unidentified male DNA sample in early 1997, and it was mixed, apparently with JonBenét’s blood,” JonBenét’s father, John Bennett Ramsey, told NewsNation in November. “That DNA can now, technology-wise, be separated. They have the ability to do familial genealogy research, which has been wildly successful in solving old cold cases. That's what we're asking the police to do.”
He says he is expected to meet with the Boulder police chief in January alongside representatives from a leading DNA lab to push for the new approach.
Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn says the department remains committed to finding JonBenét Ramsey’s killer and that the department has already taken significant steps to modernize its investigation. In a video statement released in November, Boulder police said they were working with forensic experts to find the latest advancements in DNA technology and recently digitized all of their case evidence. They hope to use those thousands of files to create a searchable database that could reveal new leads.
The department has also taken inventory of more than 2,500 pieces of evidence and reviewed 40,000 reports in the last year alone.
