Detective blasts Hunter over Ramsey case

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Detective blasts Hunter over Ramsey case

Boulder police officer sends resignation letter saying DA has allowed politics to rule probe

By Hector Gutierrez
Rocky Mountain News Staff Writer

A Boulder detective investigating the JonBenet Ramsey slaying unleashed a scathing resignation letter Thursday accusing the district attorney of "crippling" the case.

In his letter to Police Chief Mark Beckner, detective Steve Thomas said the Boulder County District Attorney's Office had been "thoroughly compromised" and that an independent special prosecutor was needed to take over the investigation.

"Until such time ... I will not be a part of this," wrote Thomas, who has been on a leave of absence since June.

District attorney spokeswoman Suzanne Laurion refuted Thomas' memo.

"The letter is outrageous and is substantially false and misleading," Laurion said. "We are meeting with Chief Beckner (this) morning" to discuss the former detective's letter.

In his eight-page resignation, aired by ABC News on Thursday, Thomas described an investigation and prosecution that was destined to fail. Thomas claimed that prosecutors told detectives several months ago that the case "is not prosecutable."

"We shook our heads in disbelief," Thomas said.

"Albeit an uphill battle of a case to begin with, it became a nearly impossible investigation because of the political alliances, philosophical differences, and professional egos that blocked progress in more ways, and on more occasions, than I can detail in this memorandum."

Thomas, a 13-year veteran, highlighted several aspects of the investigation he was angry with:

District Attorney Alex Hunter's office informed detectives they would not participate as grand jury advisory witnesses, he said.

"I believe (prosecutors) were, literally, facilitating the escape of justice," Thomas said.

The district attorney dismissed evidence collected by detectives, as well as opinions offered by national experts, including the FBI, Thomas said.

Prosecutors shared physical evidence and reports with lawyers for John and Patsy Ramsey, the parents of the slain girl, Thomas said.

Evidence remained in a laboratory untested as detectives and prosecutors grappled with how to proceed in the case, he said.

The district attorney's office did not clear innocent people, but pursued them with "shameless tactics," he said.

No one has been arrested in the beating and strangulation death of JonBenet, a 6-year-old Little Miss Colorado, who was found in the basement of her family's Boulder home Dec. 26, 1996.

The child's parents have proclaimed their innocence.

In accepting Thomas' resignation Chief Beckner said the detective's departure occurred at a "critical juncture of the investigation."

While acknowledging the investigation was very complicated and disagreements were inevitable, the chief said his department is working closely with the district attorney's staff and meeting with them daily.

August 7, 1998