Admission by JonBenet-case suspect spurs questions

Reuters on Yahoo ^ | 8/17/06 | Keith Coffman

[NormsRevenge]

BOULDER, Colo. (Reuters) - An American schoolteacher said he was with 6-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey when she died, but questions surfaced over his story a day after his arrest in Thailand.

A Colorado prosecutor cautioned that more work remained in the case.

John Mark Karr, 41, who was arrested in a dramatic breakthrough in the sensational 1996 murder, spoke to reporters on Thursday while being escorted by authorities in Bangkok. Asked if he was innocent, Karr shook his head and said, "No."

JonBenet was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her Boulder, Colorado, home on December 26, 1996 -- hours after her mother found a bizarre, three-page letter claiming the girl had been kidnapped -- and the unsolved case has since fueled countless theories.

Karr was detained in Bangkok on a U.S. warrant seeking his arrest for murder, kidnapping and sexual assault.

"I was with JonBenet when she died," Karr said. "The death was an accident."

Boulder County District Attorney Mary Lacy said Karr had started teaching second grade in a Bangkok school on Tuesday. She said investigators would have preferred more time to develop evidence but public safety worries and the possibility of flight sometimes prompts an arrest in criminal cases.

"There is much more work to be done now that the suspect is in custody," she said. "John Karr is presumed innocent."

Lacy would not say what evidence her office had against Karr, who came to the attention of authorities by writing a series of e-mails to a Colorado journalism professor who made three documentaries about the murder.

It was not yet clear if Karr's DNA had been tested to compare with fluids found in Ramsey's underwear, or whether other evidence tied him to the crime scene. An unidentified footprint and a handprint were found near the girl's body, which was discovered by her father, her mouth duct-taped and neck tightly garroted.

'I LOVED JONBENET'

Lacy would not comment when asked whether Karr, who once lived near JonBenet's hometown of Atlanta, could have made a false confession. Karr fled Northern California after being charged with possession of child pornography.

Questions arose about Karr's story when his ex-wife, Lara, told KGO-TV in San Francisco that he was with her in Alabama the entire Christmas season when JonBenet was killed.

His father, Wexford Karr, told the Denver Post that his son had been deeply interested in the JonBenet Ramsey case and had researched a book on the subject. KGO said Lara Karr told it her ex-husband had also been fascinated by the case of another murdered girl, Polly Klaas, which had attracted wide publicity.

Educators in Alabama, where Karr had studied education and served a teaching internship, said his interaction with children had raised concerns and he told many contradictory stories about himself.

"I did not think he could interact with children or adults .... You never knew what was true and what wasn't," Janice Myhan, a professor of education at the University of North Alabama, told Reuters.

Lacy's chief investigator, Tom Bennett, said talks were under way with Thai authorities to have Karr returned to the United States. Officials in Washington said Karr would not require extradition from Bangkok and could simply be deported.

Slender, sandy haired and dressed in a blue polo shirt and beige trousers, Karr looked pale and dazed as he appeared briefly at a Bangkok news conference, surrounded by police.

"I loved JonBenet," Karr said in a quiet voice. Asked if he had killed the girl, he appeared to shake his head, but said again: "She died accidentally.

University of Colorado journalism professor Michael Tracey, whose correspondence with Karr attracted the interest of authorities, told Reuters that he began getting the e-mails after the broadcast of his documentary "Who Killed the Pageant Queen."

He said he turned the e-mails, which did not use Karr's real name, over to authorities, who used them to track the suspect to Thailand.

"I am convinced an intruder killed JonBenet," Tracey said. "This guy has the right to be presumed not guilty. Let him have his day in court. The Ramseys were never given the right to be presumed innocent.

(Additional reporting by Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles, Rosalind Russell and Tanny Chia in Bangkok and Deborah Charles in Washington)

[Bogtrotter52]

Which is why whenever Greta Van What's-her-face appears on FOX.....i bail. She is like the new Geraldo doing nothing but no news stories on murders that have no place in the big scheme of things. I would rather read a copy of the Enquirer. LOL

[LisaMalia]

My first thought, when I heard this news this morning, was how bad I felt, because I REALLY was convinced Patsy and/or her husband was involved. So many things just didn't seem right, how the murderer got in their home. The ransom note written there on their paper, especially the phrase, something like, "Grow a brain, John", which some had said Patsy used. The way John went into the room in the basement and found her. And the total ineptness and contamination of the crime scene.

The more I hear about this though, I guess I'm still not convinced this is the man. He just sounds like your garden variety nutcase to me.

[garbageseeker]

Investigators should give him a polygraph test administered by the FBI. Even though its not admissible in court, its still very accurate and it can give investigators a picture whether he is telling the truth or not.

[Figment]

"He had been arrested in Bangkok on unrelated sex charges."


That's what was being said yesterday. I haven't seen that today though. Expect a lot of what is reported right now to be false when all is known

[Doomonyou]

I believe Petaluma was where Polly Klaas -- reportedly JMK's other obsession -- was killed. Did JMK live there before or after Klaas was killed? Just curious . . .

Klass was murdered in Oct. 1993 by Mr. Scumbag Richard Allen Davis. I think our current scumbag lived here after, 5 years ago or so(2001)? Not up to date on this dirtbags history yet.

[Valpal1]

He was arrested by Thai LE at the request of US LE because he was a fugitive on the 2001 child porn charges in CA.

MSM makes it sound like he was arrested for crimes committed in Thailand.

[AmericaUnited]

...I went to the dentist had much drugs

Well then you'd be in much better shape to spin a wild tale...

[Wolfstar]

we hear that the picture generated by a psychic looks just like this guy.

It does not look just like Karr. The drawing looks very different from Karr.

[finallyatexan]

I agree with you -
PS - see my tagline

[OldEagle]

As this yarn unfolds it will be interesting to see just how Karr was offered up and by whom. I see him as a sick person who has been obsessed with the murders of little girls to the extent of seeing himself as the killer.
There are many possibilities. Maybe he killed JonBenet and maybe he didn't. I wonder if he might have actually killed someone else????

[GovernmentShrinker]

I knew Polly Klaas' killer had been caught. If JMK lived there AFTER she was killed, that would suggest that he's prone to getting himself heavily involved in with cases like this AFTER they happened. Which would bolster the suspicion that his obsession with JonBenet also came AFTER he learned about her murder from the news media.

[Figment]

"MSM makes it sound like he was arrested for crimes committed in Thailand."


Yep. Last night it was reported he was being held on unrelated sex charges. All I was able to hear today was AP radio news. Shortly after accessing FR I learned different. I hate the MSM

[Rocko]

Who is Spike Lee?

Bruce Lee's illegitimate son. That's my conspiracy theory.

[Doomonyou]

Here's some Info from our local Rag:

Former Petaluma substitute teacher nabbed for JonBenet murder

Published: Thursday, Aug 17, 2006

A former Petaluma substitute school teacher terminated for possessing child pornography was arrested in Thailand Wednesday as a suspect in the highly publicized murder of JonBenet Ramsey in Boulder, Colo., in 1996.

John Mark Karr, 41, admitted to being in the room with JonBenet when she died, but claimed that her death was an accident.

He served for 11 days as a substitute teacher for Petaluma City Schools from Dec. 8, 2000 to April 2, 2001, said Steve Bolman, the district’s deputy superintendent of business and administration.

Karr taught at several of the district’s schools — as well as at schools in the Liberty, Old Adobe and Wilmar elementary school districts — and in 2001 was charged with five counts of possessing child pornography. His teaching credential was suspended and then revoked for violating the education code. He is still wanted in California for failing to appear on those charges.

Karr and his wife at the time, Lara, married in 1989 and lived in Alabama before moving to Petaluma in 2000. He began teaching in Petaluma and Napa. Carl Wong, Sonoma County superintendent of schools, said he received no complaints about Karr’s work. Laura Karr, who still lives in Petaluma with her three children, filed for divorce in 2001, after he was charged with possessing pornography.

His arrest in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday followed several months of highly intensified investigation, said Mary Lacy, the district attorney in Boulder. An investigator from the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office is bringing Karr from Thailand to Colorado.

JonBenet’s beaten and strangled 6-year-old body was found in the basement of the home of her parents, John and Patsy Ramsey, on Dec. 26, 1996. She received a massive blow to the head and was strangled with a device made from a paintbrush.

Karr is the first suspect arrested for the murder, which many people thought might never be solved.

Karr also was a suspect in several sex crimes near his former homes in Alabama and Georgia, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation reported.

[GovernmentShrinker]

No mention of any reason why they moved to Petaluma instead of any of the thousands of places in the US where one can teach in the public skools. And he didn't even have a regular job lined up there -- just substituting. I think most likely it was just because of an obsession with Polly Klaas.

[M. Thatcher]

It does not look just like Karr. The drawing looks very different from Karr.

I didn't say it does. That was the comment of poster "gorush." I simply found the drawing.

[bvw]

Put a toothbrush moustache on that sketch and it's young Mr. Shickelgrubber. Adolf H.

[Doomonyou]

I think most likely it was just because of an obsession with Polly Klaas.

Among other nasty things. This guy is a sick puppy whether he's guity of this or not.

[LisaMalia]

I'll try not to hold that against you....:)

[finallyatexan]

I'll do the same for you !!!!