Dozens of items in the nearly 30-year-old unsolved JonBenet Ramsey case are being tested for DNA at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation in a renewed effort by Boulder police to find the 6-year-old’s killer.

The unspecified items range from old evidence which is being retested due to breakthroughs in DNA technology, to clues from the basement crime scene which have never undergone forensic testing, according to JonBenet’s older brother John Andrew Ramsey.

“It’s been a slow march, but they’re progressing,” said Ramsey, who met with Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn, for a half-hour update on the case Thursday.

Ramsey spoke to The Denver Gazette at CrimeCon, the popular annual convention for true crime enthusiasts which was held this weekend at Aurora’s Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center.

John Andrew Ramsey said his father, John Ramsey, and his wife, Jan, also were at Thursday’s meeting. He said that since Redfearn has been leading the JonBenet charge, his sister’s unsolved murder case is “no longer a bunch of files airing on a dusty shelf.”

The ongoing testing was initiated by the recommendations of a Colorado Cold Case Review Team, a panel of outside experts who, starting in 2023, spent a year coming up with ideas to restart the JonBenet investigation. In a video released last November, Redfearn announced that the team recommended updated technologies and forensic testing that might produce new leads.

The garrote

One of the Ramsey family’s former criminal defense attorneys broke his silence at the true crime convention. Hal Haddon did not hold back, telling JonBenet case followers that one of the murder weapons, a crude garrote that was used to strangle JonBenet, may hold hidden clues.

“I have pressed hard for DNA analysis of the knots in this garrote, which our DNA experts say could be promising, because someone had to tie those, and they’re fairly sophisticated.”

The cord was embedded in JonBenet’s neck, twisted from behind by a broken piece of wood made from one of Patsy Ramsey’s paintbrushes and a length of nylon cord. The original cord was never found and one of three broken pieces of the paintbrush is also missing.

JonBenet Ramsey’s body was found in the basement of her Boulder home on Dec. 26, 1996. She had been strangled with the crudely fashioned garrote and struck on the back of her head in a blow that caused an 8.5-inch skull fracture.

Thursday’s meeting marked the second time the Ramsey family and Boulder police have discussed the case in the past eight months.

John Andrew Ramsey said that he doesn’t think that the current police investigation is focused on the Ramsey family as suspects.

“Whether we are still under the so-called umbrella of suspicion doesn’t concern me except that focusing on us got in the way of the investigation,” he said.

At Saturday’s convention. John Ramsey, reporter Paula Woodward and Haddon spoke to upward of 3,500 JonBenet case followers in the main ballroom of the facility. Ramsey said his daughter’s killer is a weirdo and a psychopath and Haddon described the Ramsey couple as “innocent victims of a crime who have been slandered and mistreated by law enforcement for 29 years.”

Many people in the audience were not born when JonBenet Ramsey was murdered. Others have followed it for years and some got the opportunity to take the mic to ask John Ramsey a personal question. One woman wondered about why JonBenet was allowed to participate in child beauty pageants.

He explained that the pageants were an expansion of the skits and plays JonBenet and her friends would perform, and were also a mother-daughter activity for Patsy, who was recovering from Stage 4 ovarian cancer.

“If I had my way, my daughters would have worn burkas until they were about 30,” said Ramsey to a room full of laughs.

Murder mystery industry

Colorado has had its share of high-profile murders. Denver CrimeCon 2025 jumped on a couple of them, featuring panels on local atrocities like the recent James Craig trial and the Scott Kimball case featuring former FBI Special Agent Jonny Grusing.

CrimeCon has exploded in popularity since 700 armchair sleuths attended the first gathering in Indianapolis in 2017. Organizers said that as of Saturday, around 6,000 people had signed up for the Colorado weekend.

The cost went up with VIP status. Charolette Mills of Austin, Texas, for example, said she paid $5,000 to earn Diamond Status. Her family doesn’t understand why she spends so much money to immerse herself in the world of unsolved murder.

“They say ‘It’s dark. Why do you watch that stuff? But look around you at all of these people like me! I’ve found my people!” said Mills. She wore a forest green sweatshirt with “True Crime is my Therapy” written in hot pink.

Others say for them, CrimeCon is about remembering the victims.

“I’m a mom and I relate to the loss,” said Lee Naughton, a Diamond Status detective-wannabe.

In a huge exhibit hall, Fox News Nation broadcast a live program and T-shirts that said “Vans are creepy” sold for $30.

One sad, long wall featured pictures and messages from people who long for someone to listen to their stories of unexplained loss.

Ryan Lauren posted a photo of his infant son, Tate, who he says was murdered by his mother in December 2023. He came to CrimeCon in hopes of getting celebrity true-crime anchor Nancy Grace to mention the crime, which he believes was covered up by corrupt police, on her show. Until now, no one would listen.

“I got her to take this on,” he said, between gulps of air as he fought back tears.

When the Ramsey panel was over, a long line of people waited to get their photo taken with John Ramsey and shake his hand. When asked how he feels about the case now, his son, John Andrew Ramsey, said he’s not into feelings. “Our concern is that they’re adequately leading the investigation.”