John Ramsey, the father of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey, urged Colorado lawmakers to adopt a state law that would let families request formal cold-case reviews in unsolved homicides, saying such a change would close a gap between state and federal practice.
Ramsey made the appeal on stage Saturday at CrimeCon’s 2025 convention in Denver, announcing a petition that asks the Colorado Legislature to bring state law into alignment with the federal Homicide Victim’s Families’ Rights Act. The federal law guarantees families the right to request a cold-case review in federally handled investigations that have not produced answers, a protection that does not extend to state or local probes.
"Fairness over favoritism," reads the petition, which also states, "Families shouldn’t need media attention to get a second look," Ramsey said on stage. He argued that the state-level change would give families a formal avenue to seek reviews when they believe local law enforcement has not done enough to resolve a homicide.
The Ramsey family has been among the most high-profile bereaved families pressing for further investigation in an unsolved case. JonBenet Ramsey was found dead in her family’s Boulder home on Dec. 26, 1996. The killing remains unsolved more than a quarter-century later and has drawn extensive media attention and scrutiny of the original investigation.
Ramsey’s call for a state statute follows recent disclosures in the long-running inquiry: newly unearthed documents indicate DNA collected early in the investigation did not match certain individuals who were considered key players in the case at the time. The documents and evolving forensic analysis have been cited by the family and others as reasons to revisit investigative steps and testing done in the years after the murder.
Under the federal Homicide Victim’s Families’ Rights Act, families can request that federal authorities reexamine unsolved homicides handled at the federal level; the law does not compel a review, but it creates a formal mechanism to seek one. John Ramsey and supporters say a state equivalent would provide the same mechanism for cases handled by Colorado law enforcement.
Supporters of the proposed change say it would provide a structured process for families to request a second look without relying on media scrutiny to trigger renewed attention. Opponents and some law-enforcement officials have warned in other contexts that mandatory review procedures could strain investigative resources or create procedural complexities; Ramsey’s petition frames the change as an access-to-justice issue for families of homicide victims.
The Ramsey petition is intended for consideration by the Colorado Legislature; supporters plan to present it to state lawmakers in hopes of crafting legislation that mirrors the federal statute’s protections for families seeking case reviews. Any proposed bill would need to be introduced and pass through the state legislative process, where lawmakers and committees would examine its scope, mechanics and potential impact on criminal investigations.
The JonBenet Ramsey case has remained a subject of public interest and periodic legal and forensic developments. As calls for a state-level review mechanism grow among some advocates and families of victims, the debate is likely to center on balancing investigative integrity and resources with families’ desire for formal avenues to seek reexamination of unsolved cases.