Former Boulder Detective Steve Thomas Maintains That Patsy Ramsey Killed Her Daughter

It's been more than 25 years since the murder of JonBenét Ramsey took over nearly every aspect of life in America. Many people still recall being overwhelmed by multiple images of the smiling 6-year-old beauty pageant queen, whose face was on every magazine cover. Somehow the press uncovered a new angle to the crime on an almost daily basis. Some of the trashier tabloids printed wild theories such as accusing JonBenét's 9-year-old brother of killing his own sister. People were desperate.

No one was more desperate to solve this crime than the Boulder Police Department and those tasked with investigating the murder. Former detective Steve Thomas was assigned to this case, despite previously working exclusively in narcotics. He would go on to spend two years of his career trying to solve this murder and was convinced JonBenét's mother did it. So, where is Steve Thomas now? Details to follow.

In December 2022, Thomas was a guest during a Websleuths livestream on YouTube where host Tricia Arrington Griffith spoke with the former detective about JonBenét Ramsey. Thomas told Griffith that he hopes justice will prevail, but did not say whether or not he still believed Patsy killed her daughter. He hasn't worked in law enforcement since he turned in his badge in August 1998, per The Daily Camera.

Thomas revealed that he still keeps in touch with various members of law enforcement, including folks from the Boulder Police Department, even though he works in the private sector. He still misses police work and described it as a "career calling" for him. "Sometimes you find something in life that you latch onto early as a kid, and I sought that career field out. I really really enjoyed my time in police work," said the former detective.

There are not a lot of people who know what Thomas used to do for a living and they certainly have no idea that he worked on such a high-profile case. "I lead a fairly anonymous life," he revealed. "Everything is good. I'm very grateful for where I am in life." He still bristles at the idea that only inexperienced investigators were working on the JonBenét Ramsey murder. In the years that followed, multiple agencies have "put eyes on this case," he said. So, what did he think happened?

When it comes to the murder of JonBenét Ramsey, Thomas has quite the involved theory. In his book, JonBenét: Inside the Ramsey Murder Investigation, Thomas goes into great detail regarding what he believes happened the night she was killed. According to Thomas, Patsy was particularly stressed that evening due to an "approaching fortieth birthday, the busy holiday season, an exhausting Christmas Day, and an argument with JonBenét."

He posits that Patsy and JonBenét began fighting after the young girl wet her bed. He alleges that this resulted in a physical altercation in the bath while Patsy was cleaning her daughter up. Thomas says there was "some sort of explosive encounter in the child's bathroom," which resulted in a head wound. Instead of helping JonBenét, Thomas says Patsy panicked when her daughter lost consciousness. She then wrote a fake ransom note and brought JonBenét to the basement.

Things get more complicated as Thomas theorizes that once Patsy saw that JonBené wasn't dead, she broke off the handle of a nearby paintbrush and used it to fashion a garrote using a bit of cord. In order to make this look like a kidnapping, Thomas claims Patsy then tied her child's hands above her head. It should be noted there is no evidence to support this theory. In 2008, two years after Patsy died from ovarian cancer, she and John were cleared thanks to DNA evidence.