Investigation

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Experts, media commentators, and the Ramsey's have identified potential suspects in this case. Boulder police having been focused on John and Patsy since the beginning, but by October 1997 had over 1,600 people in their index of persons of interest.
Lou Smit was a detective who came out of retirement in early 1997 to assist the District Attorney's office with this case.
In May 1998, he presented the case to Boulder police with other staff members of District Attorneys office. They presented 437 pieces of evidence pointing away from John and Patsy. However, they were unable to successfully challenge police departments steadfast to belief the Ramseys were guilty.
A grand jury was convened beginning September 15, 1998 to consider indicting John and Patsy for charges related to the case. In 1999, the grand jury returned a true bill to charge John and Patsy with placing the child at risk in a way that resulted in a gruesome death. District Attorney Alex Hunter did not prosecute them because he didn't believe that he could meet the higher standard of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, which is required with criminal conviction.
In October 2010, the case was reopened. New interviews were conducted following a fresh inquiry by a committee that included state and federal investigators. Police were expected to use the latest DNA technology in their investigation.There was no new information gleaned from those interviews, according to ABC News.
It was reported in September 2016 that the investigation into JonBenet's death continues to be an active homicide case, per Boulder Police Chief Greg Testa.

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