JonBenét Ramsey Timeline
Her life, the investigation, grand-jury history, DNA updates and the records behind them, in date order.
August 6, 1990 | JonBenét Is Born
JonBenét Patricia Ramsey was born. She was six years old when she was killed in December 1996. Her childhood matters beyond the headlines that followed.
December 26, 1996 | Missing-Child Report Becomes a Homicide Case
Her family reported finding a ransom note and told police JonBenét was missing from their Boulder home. Her father later found her body inside the house. Police classified her death as a homicide.
September 1998 | Grand Jury Begins Its Review
A Boulder County grand jury began examining evidence. This was a preliminary legal process, not a trial to decide guilt.
October 1999 | Charges Proposed but Not Prosecuted
The grand jury voted to seek charges involving John and Patsy Ramsey. District Attorney Alex Hunter did not pursue those proposed counts. Neither parent was tried or convicted of JonBenét’s murder.
August 28, 2006 | John Mark Karr Claim Does Not Hold
After investigating Karr’s claimed involvement, prosecutors ended the case against him. Contemporary reports said DNA evidence did not match. His statements did not solve the homicide.
July 9, 2008 | District Attorney Issues DNA Statement
District Attorney Mary Lacy wrote that DNA findings had changed her office’s view of the Ramsey family. This was her office’s assessment at the time, not a court verdict or identification of the killer.
October 25, 2013 | Grand-Jury Papers Become Public
A court-ordered release revealed portions of the 1999 proposed indictment. The 2013 release date must not be confused with the grand jury’s 1999 vote, and the proposed charges did not produce a trial verdict.
May 2022 | Police Report Continuing Work
Boulder Police described continuing cooperation with other agencies and forensic laboratories after receiving more than 21,000 tips. That work did not announce a suspect’s guilt or a solved case.
November 9, 2022 | Police Explain Why DNA Must Be Preserved
Police warned that remaining DNA material was small and complex. Further testing could use up a sample, so detectives were consulting outside laboratories before choosing methods.
December 28, 2023 | Outside Cold-Case Review
Boulder Police described a review by outside experts and an organized archive of nearly 2,500 evidence items and about 40,000 reports. The department did not publish every recommendation.
December 2024 | Investigation Remains Active
Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said the department would continue working with specialists and other agencies. The update did not announce an arrest or a trial.
December 2025 | New Interviews and Testing Reported
Boulder Police reported new and follow-up interviews, additional evidence work, and testing or retesting of evidence. The agency did not publish confidential laboratory details or declare the homicide solved.
November 6, 2026 | Further DNA Testing Discussed
In an ABC News interview, Chief Redfearn said police were discussing possible forensic genetic genealogy approaches with laboratories. He did not announce that a test had identified a suspect.
Why It Matters
The dates separate what police reported, what a grand jury proposed, what prosecutors decided and what testing methods were only being considered. None of those steps is a conviction or a finding identifying JonBenét’s killer.
Presumed Innocent: This homicide remains unsolved. Allegations, grand-jury proposals and possible forensic methods do not establish criminal guilt.
