Lou Smit appears on the Today Show with more of his intruder theory:

Catherine Crier gives a report of the Ramsey case with respect to Lou Smit.

May 2, 2001

Lou Smit appears on the Today Show with more of his intruder theory:

Air Taser representative Stephen Tuttle said Smit's conclusions about the stun gun defies the logic of what the weapon does. He also said that they have never seen those types of marks when you touch somebody with a stun gun and simply could not replicate the marks.Tuttle also said it is uncommon for the stun gun to leave only two marks on the skin explaining that the body moves away from the stun gun causing multiple, erratic marks.

Tuttle also said the Air Taser does not render people unconscious.

Nebraska Dr. Robert Stratbucker, who has conducted several experiments on stun guns and is considered a courtroom expert, said he takes considerable issue with Smit's stun gun theory. Stratbucker said it is pure nonsense that the stun gun would leave a blue mark in between red marks on the skin as Smit claimed. Stratbucker was quoted as saying:

"I have not seen ever, ever any blue marks, and I don't know what the cause of any blue mark could be."

May 3, 2001

Lou Smit appears on the Today Show with more of his intruder theory:

Gov Owens made a statement this date, with respect to Lou Smit appearing on Television. An excerpt of that statement is as follows:

"Trying the Ramsey case on television instead of the courts -- with one person making all the arguments and presenting all the evidence -- will do nothing to solve JonBenét's murder."

Owens said Smit's "personal theories" are "old news to those involved with the case."

Owens pointed out that as a matter of professional ethics, none of the law enforcement officers actually working the JonBenét murder investigation can comment publicly on the evidence and that if they could, they could respond to every one of his charges, which are well-known to the investigation.

Lin Wood said it was wrong for the governor to state that Boulder police cannot talk about the case claiming Beckner and Wickman have openly discussed the investigation at law enforcement seminars. But Beckner said he and Wickman spoke at an international homicide investigators conference last year at the FBI Academy, but nothing was discussed about the case that had not been in news media. He said the public was restricted from attending the event, and only law enforcement officials were present.

District Judge Jane Tidball refused to throw out criminal charges against Thomas Miller, a lawyer accused of trying to buy the JonBenét Ramsey ransom note, and set a trial date of June 12, 2001. Lawyers for Thomas Miller said evidence presented to the grand jury that indicted Miller was tainted. They also said prosecutors were guilty of misconduct.

RECALL: Miller is charged with criminal extortion and commercial bribery in connection with the alleged attempt to buy a copy of the note from handwriting expert Don Vacca, a former Denver police officer who was examining the note on behalf of JonBenet's parents, John and Patsy Ramsey.

Also Tidball issued a citation and bench warrant for Fleet White. White was subpoenaed by Gary Lozow, Miller's attorney, to testify, but he didn't show up. The warrant was vacated at the end of the day

May 4, 2001

Lou Smit appears on the Today Show with more of his intruder theory:

May 6, 2001

Beckner sends a letter to Epp with a complaint about Ainsworth. That letter can be found here:

May 10, 2001

Beckner sends a letter to Sheriff Anderson with a complaint about Ainsworth. That letter can be found here:

May 11, 2001

Current owner of the Ramsey's home where JonBenet was murdered, E.J. "Doc" Kreis, had attorney Bynum apply for a new house address to change it from 755 to 749

May 13, 2001

A news report surfaces that Linda Arndt feared John Ramsey or some of her supervisors might try to kill her. Also, she reportedly when she was taken off the Ramsey case she did not turn over two to three notebooks of investigative notes because she feared they would become lost. As an example of this type of "loss", she stated that investigative notes turned in by Sgt. Larry Mason later could not be accounted for.

Arndt's theory is that John Ramsey killed JonBenet, and she based this theory in part, she says, on John Ramsey's behavior the morning she was there, including the way he carried JonBenet up the stairs after he "found" her.

Arndt also stated she felt she was being stalked by Patsy Ramsey's best friend.

Arndt alleges that Koby placed the department under a gag order not to talk to the media, while at the same time some officers were leaking false information about her role in the case that was damaging to her reputation.

May 14, 2001

The state filed a motion to dismiss in the Fleet White criminal libel appeal.

May 21, 2001

A news report surfaces with Ollie Gray and Lou Smit discussing suspects they believe are out there that have not been properly investigated. The following represent those who Gray and Smit believe should be looked at more closely:

1) A Boulder County man who committed suicide on Feb. 14, 1997. (commonly referred to as "Bootman" on the internet forums) Reportedly photos of the suicide scene show a stun gun near his body. He also owned Hi-Tec boots.

2) A man who showed up at a memorial service for JonBenet a year after her death. The man has a criminal history, including the sexual assault of a 7yo girl in Oregon according to Gray. Records indicate the man once tried to strangle his mother with a telephone cord. Around the time of the murder he was getting food and picking up mail at a church near the Ramsey home. When arrested on an unrelated charge in December, officials found a stun gun and a poem about JonBenet in his backpack. Gray said Boulder police may be conducting DNA analysis on the man.

3) A man living in a suburb east of Boulder who an informant claims had a basement shrine to JonBenet. The shrine included a candy cane similar to the candy canes in the Ramsey's front yard at the time of the murder. The man also reportedly owned stun guns. Gray claims Boulder police have never contacted the tipster since Gray provided authorities with the information.(report does not state how Gray knows for sure of this information about the police not following up on the lead)

4) A man who said he killed JonBenet in an e-mail last October to Gray, Ramsey attorney Lin Wood and John Ramsey, as well as in phone calls to John Ramsey. Gray said he believes the man is probably running a scam because he sought money as part of his contact. But he passed the information on to Boulder police anyway because the man knew intimate details about the Ramsey home that Gray didn't believe had been made public.

Gray questions why police would eliminate other people on the basis that their DNA doesn't match that in question, but won't eliminate John and Patsy for the same reason.

Fox News did a report on the Ramsey case. The transcript can be found here:

May 22, 2001

Fox News did another report on the Ramsey case. The transcript can be found here:

May 23, 2001

Fox News did another report on the Ramsey case. The transcript can be found here:

May 24, 2001

Theodore Halaby, attorney for the Boulder Police Department, states there won't be any further settlement discussions because mediation discussions failed -- with respect to the Arndt lawsuit.

Last day Fleet White had to issue a response to the state's motion to dismiss in his criminal libel case. He did not respond.

May 28, 2001

Lou Smit appears on Larry King Live. Transcript is as follows:

May 29, 2001

Jury selection in Arndt's lawsuit began today.

Problems arose with the selection of the jurors as it was discovered that many of them already had strong feelings about the case, leading the Judge (William Downes) to conclude they were not impartial.

Six women, and two men were finally seated as jurors for the trial.

NOTE: inside the courtroom reports of the trial were reported on the Justice Watch Forum by a poster named "reporter" and these are captured here:

May 30, 2001

The Arndt lawsuit got underway this date.

Attorneys for Arndt said that her superiors refused to defend her or allow her to defend herself as she became a scapegoat in the media.

Police Department attorney Halaby said that Arndt compromised the investigation by making a large number of mistakes. The police dept position is that there was utter failure in preservation of the evidence.

Arndt's attorney informed the jurors that Arndt was now working as a tree trimmer at $8.00/hour.

The court was informed that Arndt had been named best detective in 1994, best employee of the month in April 1995, and was nominated for best detective in 1996.

The court also learned that Arndt was the sixth cop to arrive at the scene and was assigned to monitor the phone because a ransom note said the kidnapper would call between 8 and 10 a.m. Five other officers left after searching the home and Arndt was left alone to control eight Ramsey family members, their friends and their minister.

The attorney for Arndt also told the court that Fleet White had told Arndt about an instance where his own daughter had gone missing one day, only to be found hiding in a crawl space. Continuing, the attorney told the jury that Arndt then asked Mr. White and John Ramsey to search the home but "not to touch anything", whereby she said they immediately went to the basement, and John Ramsey soon emerged carrying JonBenet's dead body and placed it in a high traffic hallway area. Reportedly, Arndt herself moved the body to the living room and "before she could stop him", John Ramsey had pulled a throw off a chair and placed it over JonBenet's body. Patsy Ramsey then lay across the body herself, and a friend placed a sweatshirt over the child's feet. (this information provided via several news reports on the case. No actual copies of the court transcripts are available at the time of this timeline update)

June 1, 2001

Mary Keenan responds to the motion from Linda Hoffman Pugh:

June 2, 2001

Boulder reporter Chris Anderson was struck by lightning, while vacationing in Fort Lauderdale Florida, and died. He was 30 years old. Reports are that the lightning struck him on the head, burning even his hat. Several bystanders attempted to revive Anderson, but to no avail. His girlfriend was also struck. Initially she suffered paralysis and blurred vision, but is reportedly now in satifactory condition.

June 5, 2001

The Ramsey home address is officially changed from 755 15th St to 749 15th st.

Linda Arndt's lawsuit was the subject of Burden of Proof this date. A copy of the transcript can be seen here:

First day of Arndt's testimony began.

Arndt testified for two hours today.

Some of the highlights of her testimony included:

- Eller reportedly told her to fear for her safety during the first few months of the investigation;

- Eller reportedly also told her that she was a witness in a high profile murder case and that whoever killed JonBenet would not want her testifying;

- Arndt claimed that she was a "pariah" within her department.

Arndt's therapist had testified earlier that Arndt has symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, even to this day.

Because the state did not receive a response from Fleet White about the motion to dismiss in the criminal libel appeal, the state dismised his case this date.

June 6, 2001

Second day of Arndt's testimony. Some of the highlights were that Halaby accused her of lying about Eller telling her the BPD couldn't admit mistakes and always sought out scapegoats; Arndt was told she still should have preserved the crime scene even if her superiors did not (a point Arndt countered by stating she thought she was responding to an abduction not a murder); Arndt claimed she has lost $200K in wages since having to quit the force and that she had applied for some 30 jobs and was refused employment as a result of her credibility being ruined; Arndt also claimed to have liquidated some $32K from her retirement fund in order to pay bills during this time frame of being without work.

June 7, 2001

Arndt testimony continues.

Highlights of today's testimony including Arndt admitting that she did not make a report of her meeting with Patsy Ramsey on Jan 4 1997, nor did she turn her notes about that day over to anyone official. Arndt testified she kept those notes in her desk and then later gave them to a friend to keep -- citing her reasons to be because another officer's notes in the Ramsey case had disappeared and because her supervising sergeant didn't ask for them. She testified she did not trust her fellow members of the investigative team nor supervisors in the case, ultimately as a result of this incident. She also said feared for her safety after learning that the Ramsey lawyers had a copy of her report of happenings in the home for Dec. 26, 1997.

Arndt also testified that there "may be other investigative notes she did not transcribe."

Arndt later admitted in testimony that it was not proper conduct to keep these notes.

With the jurors out of the courtroom, U.S. District Judge William F. Downes (presiding judge over this lawsuit) ordered Arndt to turn her notes over to the lawyers representing the BPD.

Halaby was to review the notes over the weekend.

June 9, 2001

Darny Hoffman submits a response to Mary Keenan, reference Linda Hoffman Pugh:

June 12, 2001

Judge Downes ruled today that Linda Arndt failed to prove the chiefs violated her First Amendment rights by preventing her from commenting on allegations that she bungled the investigation, and he dismissed her case.

The trial for Tom Miller began this date. RECAP: Miller was indicted on commercial bribery charges in 1999.

Miller's lawyers (Gary Lozow and Charles Leidner) opened by stating that the Ramseys want to discredit Miller because he had concluded publicly that Patsy Ramsey was the writer of the ransom note. Charles Leidner further stated that the team representing the Ramseys put pressure on the DA's office to turn Miller into damaged goods in the event that the Ramseys are ever charged. part of the defense portrayed was that Miller was "shocked" when Lewis offered to buy the ransom note copy.(offer was made to Don Vacca, a former Denver police officer and forensic document examiner).

Steve Thomas left for German this date.

June 13, 2001

Bench warrants are issued for Fleet White and Steve Thomas for not showing up in court Wednesday after being subpoenaed to appear in court for the Tom Miller trial (both men had been subpoenaed by Miller's defense team)

June 14, 2001

After approximately 2 hours of deliberation, Tom Miller was acquitted of the charges against him.

June 18, 2001

Fleet White is arrested in the Jefferson County courthouse when he showed up to inquire about a warrant that had been issued for him. He had been charged with contempt of court and issued a bench warrant last week after he failed to answer a subpoena to testify in the trial of attorney Thomas Miller. White was processed into the Jefferson County jail and later released to his wife, Priscilla, on $1,000.00 bond.

June 19, 2001

Ramsey Case Forum of Record, "Justice Watch" owner announces it will close its doors on July 31, 2001.

Steve Thomas returned from German this date after being notified that a bench warrant for his arrest had been issued.

June 20, 2001

Steve Thomas appeared in the Jefferson County courtroom asking that a contempt-of-court arrest warrant be withdrawn. The motion was filed by lawyer Daniel Caplis on behalf of Thomas said Thomas was never served with a subpoena to testify in the Miller trial. Thomas stated in a sworn affadavit that he did not receive the subpoena, despite a process server's allegation he was served. Caplis spoke out stating that, contrary to rumors, lies, and other false innuendos about Thomas, he does in fact live in Colorado, and will continue to do so until such time as his lawsuit is resolved. Caplis further stated that Thomas and his wife are selling their home to help defray costs, and Thomas will be living with his father (in the Denver area) until the lawsuit issue is resolved.

June 23, 2001

A letter from Steve Thomas in response to the various lies and false innuendoes posted and spread across the internet from the Ramsey Spin Team with respect him was released this date.

June 25, 2001

Steve Thomas' hearing was held this date. Robert Ransome stated that the process server left the subpoena on Thomas' doorstep after "some conversation through the door." Ransome represented the private investigator who arranged for the subpoena to be served.

Another hearing on this issue will be held on July 16, 2001.

June 29, 2001

A hearing was held for Fleet White for failing to show up in court after he was subpoenaed to testify at Tom Miller's trial.

Judge Jane Tidball believes White's conduct goes against the integrity of the system. She also stated the White is not above the law and cannot decide whether he will or will not appear in court.

White appeared at this hearing with his lawyer Craig Truman.

As a result of this hearing, White was cited with contempt of court. There will be another hearing at 8AM on July 19, 2001. At that time, Tidball may punish White with jail time.The punishment is a fine and up to 6 months in jail if the judge and will be left up to the judge's discretion.