IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA

ATLANTA DIVISION

JOHN RAMSEY, PATSY RAMSEY and:

BURKE RAMSEY, a minor, by his

next friends and natural parents,:

JOHN RAMSEY and PATSY RAMSEY,:

CASE NO.: 1 03 CV-3976 (TWT) :

Plaintiffs,:

vs.:

FOX NEWS NETWORK, L.L.C., d/b/a:

Fox News Channel,:

Defendant. :

DECLARATION OF CAROL McKINLEY IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO TRANSFER VENUE

I, CAROL McKINLEY, declare as follows:

1. I am a reporter employed full time by Fox News Network, LLC (the "Fox News Channel" or "Defendant"), the defendant in this action. I have personal know ledge of the facts set forth in this Declaration and, if called as a witness, I could and would testify competently to such facts under oath. I submit this Declaration in support of the Defendant's motion, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), for an order transferring this action in its entirety to the United States District Court for the District of Colorado.

2. I obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1981. I have been a full-time journalist for

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sixteen years, and more specifically, I have been a full-time reporter for the Fox News Channel since January 1998.

3. I reside in Lakewood, Colorado, and I am based in the Fox News Channel's Denver Bureau. Prior to joining the Fox News Channel, I served as the lead reporter for KOA-AM's Colorado's Morning News and as a news anchor for KBCO-FM in Boulder, Colorado.

4. I was working for KOA-AM when JonBenet Ramsey was killed on the night of December 25 or the morning of December 26, 1996. The news of JonBenet Ramsey's death and the ensuing police investigation was widely covered both in Colorado and elsewhere. I was the lead reporter at KOA-AM for news surrounding the investigation. I have continued to report on the investigation regarding JonBenet's death during my employment with the Fox News Channel. I also covered the JonBenet case prior to joining the Fox News Channel as a featured contributor for NBC's Today Show, NBC's Dateline NBC, ABC's Good Morning America, CNBC's Rivera Live and CNN's CNN & Company.

5. I understand that plaintiffs John Ramsey, Patsy Ramsey and Burke Ramsey claim they have been defamed by a December 2002 Fox News Channel report marking the six-year anniversary of the unsolved death of Jon Benet Ramsey in her Boulder, Colorado home (the "News Report"), and have filed a defamation

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action against the Fox News Channel in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. I understand the crux of the Ramseys' complaint concerns whether there has been evidence discovered linking an intruder to JonBenet's death.

6. Although Plaintiffs filed this lawsuit in the Northern District of Georgia, I understand that Plaintiffs reside year-round in Michigan. A true and correct copy of news articles indicating that Plaintiffs now reside in Michigan is annexed hereto as Exhibit A. In one of these articles, from the January 13, 2004 edition of the Denver Post, the article states that "[Plaintiffs' counsel L. Lin ] Wood said as a footnote that the Ramseys recently moved year-round from Atlanta to Charlevoix, Mich., where they own a summer house."

7. The News Report was one of three television stories that the Denver Bureau prepared to coincide with the anniversary of JonBenet's death. Those reports were cablecast on the Fox News Channel in late December 2002.

8. All of my research for the News Report took place while I was in the state of Colorado.

9. I wrote the entire News Report while I was in the state of Colorado.

10. All of the documents and materials I used to prepare the News Report

are located in Colorado.

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11. All of the interviews for the News Report, including my interview of

Plaintiffs' attorney L. Lin Wood that appears in the News Report and indicates that he has personal knowledge of the investigation, were conducted by me either in person in the state of Colorado or over the phone from the state of Colorado.

12. I did not visit the state of Georgia in connection with the News Report.

13. All of my recorded statements contained in the News Report were made while I was in Colorado.

14. The News Report concerns JonBenet's death and the subsequent investigation, topics about which I have extensive knowledge from my years of reporting on the case. I also am aware of numerous individuals who have participated in the Ramsey investigation. These individuals are essential witnesses to this matter as they have personal knowledge about the investigation of JonBenet's death, including the search for a possible intruder. These matters go to the core of the complained-of statement in the News Report. These individuals are:

(1) H. Ellis Armistead, Plaintiffs' former private investigator, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding the various leads he independently pursued on behalf of the Plaintiffs shortly

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after JonBenet's death, including his investigation of a possible intruder, among other topics;

(2) Linda Arndt, former Boulder Police Department detective, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding her role in the early stages of the investigation from the first day JonBenet was found, including evidence she collected, leads she pursued, suspects she explored, and any investigation she conducted regarding a possible intruder, among other topics;

(3) Mark Beckner, Boulder Police Department's Chief of Police, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding all stages of the investigation including the search for evidence, the pursuit of leads, the interrogation of suspects and the investigation conducted regarding a possible intruder, among other topics;

(4) Tom Bennett, retired detective hired by the Boulder District Attorney to investigate JonBenet's death, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding his recent efforts in the investigation, including any additional evidence he has collected, any additional investigation of a possible intruder that he has conducted and any new leads that he has pursued, among other topics;

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(5) John Eller, former Boulder Police Department chief investigator into JonBenet's death, who, upon information and belief, resides in Florida, and can testify regarding his role in heading up the early investigation, including evidence that was collected, leads that were pursued, suspects that were interrogated and any investigation that was conducted regarding a possible intruder, among other topics;

(6) Ron Gosage, Boulder Police Department sergeant, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding the ongoing investigation, including evidence that he has collected, leads he has pursued, suspects he has explored, and any investigation he has conducted regarding a possible intruder, among other topics;

(7) Ollie Gray, the Plaintiffs' private investigator, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding the various leads he has recently and independently pursued on behalf of the Plaintiffs, including his investigation of a possible intruder, among other topics;

(8) Thomas Haney, homicide detective in the Denver District Attorney's office, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding evidence, leads and the general investigation, among other topics, given his role as an interviewer of plaintiff Patsy Ramsey;

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(9) Jane Hanner, Boulder Police Department detective, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding her role in the full breadth of the investigation, including any evidence she collected, leads she pursued, suspects she interrogated and investigation she conducted regarding a possible intruder, among other topics, given her role as one of the few law enforcement personnel who has been involved from the beginning of this case and who is still involved today;

(10) Linda Hoffmann-Pugh, the Plaintiffs' former housekeeper, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding the details of the days leading up to JonBenet's death, including the location of material later collected as evidence, among other topics, as she was an employee of the Plaintiffs, working in their home right up until JonBenet's death;

(11) Alex Hunter, former Boulder County District Attorney, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding each and every stage of the investigation while he served as District Attorney, given his knowledge of virtually every piece of evidence, lead, suspect and theory that arose during his tenure;

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(12) Michael Kane, former grand jury prosecutor, who, upon information and belief, resides in Pennsylvania, and can testify regarding all stages of the investigation including any evidence of a possible intruder, among other topics;

(13) Mary Keenan, current Boulder County District Attorney, who, upon information and belief, resides in Co1orado, and can testify regarding certain stages of the investigation, including pieces of evidence that have been collected, leads that have been pursued, suspects cleared and any investigation regarding a possible intruder that has been conducted while she has served as District Attorney;

(14) Tom Koby, Boulder Police Department's former Chief of Police, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding all stages of the investigation since the day JonBenet's body was found until his 1ast day as Police Chief, including the search for evidence, the pursuit of leads, the interrogation of suspects and the investigation of various theories, including the possibility of an intruder, among other topics;

(15) Pete Mang, deputy director of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding his ongoing role overseeing the forensic work in the JonBenet

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case, including evidence that has been tested, DNA analysis that has been conducted, fibers that have been investigated, handwriting analysis that has been completed and suspects who have been eliminated, among other topics;

(16) Dr. John B. Meyer, Boulder County Coroner, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify to his findings and conclusions regarding JonBenet's injuries and her cause of death as the doctor who completed the autopsy on JonBenet's body;

(17) Mitch Morrissey, Denver Assistant District Attorney, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding all stages of the investigation, including any evidence of a possible intruder, among other topics;

(18) John, Patsy and Burke Ramsey, plaintiffs, who, upon information and belief, reside in Michigan, and can testify to their involvement in the case;

(19) Lou Smit, retired Colorado detective hired as District Attorney investigator, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding the evidence that has been collected and the possibility of an intruder, among other topics;

(20) Tom Trujillo, Boulder Police Department detective, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding his

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substantial role in the full breadth of the investigation, including any evidence he collected, leads he pursued, suspects he interrogated and investigation he conducted regarding a possible intruder, among other topics, given his role as one of the few law enforcement personnel who has been involved from the beginning of this case and who is still involved today;

(21) Chet Ubowski, Colorado Bureau of Investigation document analyst and handwriting expert, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding the handwriting analysis performed on the ransom note found in the Plaintiffs' home, including all suspects eliminated as a result of this work, among other topics;

(22) Carl W. Whiteside, former director of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, who, upon information and belief, resides in Florida, and can testify regarding the forensic work conducted during his tenure at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, including evidence that was tested, DNA analysis that was conducted, fibers that were investigated, handwriting analysis that was completed and any suspects that were eliminated, among other topics; and

(23) Tom Wickman, former Boulder Police Department detective, who, upon information and belief, resides in Colorado, and can testify regarding

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any evidence he collected, leads he pursued, suspects he interrogated and investigation he conducted, among other topics, during his substantial involvement with the case from the beginning until his recent departure from the department.

15. As evidenced above, to my knowledge, none of the 25 individuals

who are essential witnesses in this matter reside in Georgia.

16. In plaintiffs John and Patsy Ramsey's book, The Death of Innocence:

JonBenet's Parents Tell Their Story (the "Book") they describe the size of their daughter's police case file which, upon information and belief, is located in Colorado: '"The case file contained thirty thousand pages of material and indicated that the police had investigated 119 possible suspects. Potential evidence samples were ponderous, amounting to 1,058 pieces of collected material." A true and correct copy of the relevant pages of the Book is annexed hereto as Exhibit B.

17. It would be disruptive and a burden both personally and professionally

for me to travel from my home in Colorado to Georgia to appear for a deposition and/or potential trial of this matter. I am responsible for my two children who live in Colorado. In addition, I am required to follow closely many developing stories on a day-to-day basis. For example, my extensive involvement in reporting the ongoing criminal proceedings involving professional basketball player Kobe

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Bryant requires my constant attention and availability in Colorado. Additionally, because I am one of only two Fox News Channel reporters based in the Denver Bureau, my prolonged absence puts a strain on the entire Bureau.

I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America and the State of Colorado that the foregoing is true and correct and that this Declaration was executed on February 13, 2004 at Denver, Colorado.

SIGNED: CAROL McKINLEY

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EXHIBIT / ATTACHMENT A

(To be scanned in place of tab)

[THIS IS THE FULLTEXT)

Ramseys' nanny loses appeal in publishing case Author challenged grand-jury secrecy law

Mike McPhee, Denver Post Staff Writer

Denver Post

, TUE FINAL ED

, P B-03

Tuesday,

January 13, 2004

DOCUMENT TYPE: NEWSPAPER

JOURNAL CODE: DP LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

RECORD TYPE: FULLTEXT

SECTION HEADING: DENVER AND WEST

Word Count: 466

TEXT:

JonBenet Ramsey's nanny has lost the final appeal to publish her account of a state grand jury's investigation into the slaying of the girl seven years ago.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to review a U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals decision denying permission for Linda Hoffmann-Pugh to include her account of the grand-jury investigation in a book she wrote about the killing.

JonBenet Ramsey was slain Dec. 26, 1996, in her home in Boulder. An extensive investigation failed to bring charges against anyone. The state grand jury never indicted anyone and never issued a report about its investigation. The case remains unsolved.

Hoffmann-Pugh, of Platteville, was questioned a number of times by prosecutors, police and later in front of a grand jury. She challenged the Colorado grand-jury secrecy law in federal court. U.S. District Judge Wiley Daniel ruled in her favor, stating that the law violated the First Amendment as it pertains 'to witnesses talking about what they already knew. '

After Wiley's ruling, Hoffmann-Pugh publicly accused Patsy Ramsey, the mother, of the killing. She then wrote a book, 'The Death of

an Innocent,' but left 32 pages blank as Boulder officials

appealed the ruling.

Hoffmann-Pugh's attorney, Darnay Hoffman of New York City, said he wasn't surprised by the decision Monday. 'We're disappointed but

not surprised,' he said. 'The court handles only one or two First Amendment cases a year.'

He said Hoffmann-Pugh will now edit the book to fit the ruling and release the book in late spring. 'It's going to be a good book,'

he said. 'It will have a lot of new material.'

L. Lin Wood, an Atlanta attorney who represents the Ramseys, said they have no legal role in the case but are disappointed because they believe the public has a right to know everything that was

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said in front of the grand jury.

'But they do not support in any fashion the efforts of Linda to profit off the murder of their daughter by publishing lies,' he said.

Assistant Boulder County Attorney Andy Macdonald said the court's decision was predictable. 'We're pleased. We thought the 10th Circuit decision was correct and that a Supreme Court review wasn't necessary,' he said.

Two lawyers defended the secrecy law for grand juries.

'Guaranteeing secrecy gives the grand jury incredible power, , said Rick Kornfeld, a former federal prosecutor who now is a private criminal-defense lawyer. 'If someone isn't charged, you can't release their name that they were being investigated. Evidence can't be identified. Nor can witnesses who testify. It would be very intimidating without the secrecy.'

Wood said as a footnote that the Ramseys recently moved year-round from Atlanta to Charlevoix, Mich., where they own a summer house. John Ramsey is doing consulting work.

DESCRIPTORS: authors; appeals; murder; Boulder Cty

END OF DOCUMENT

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1/12/04 PPLEMAG 66

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2004 WL 55344279

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People Magazine

Monday, January 12, 2004

Up Front

Justice for JonBenet? I DNA evidence that had been ignored for years has been sent to the FBI--and could help find her killer

On Dec. 26, the seventh anniversary of JonBenet Ramsey's murder, her parents, John and Patsy, met their lawyer Lin Wood for dinner at an Atlanta steak house. Despite the day's somber significance, the Ramseys were in a buoyant mood. "They view Christmas as a season of hope, this year especially," says Wood. "They're elated."

In a dramatic turn in the still unsolved case, Colorado authorities recently submitted DNA evidence that could identify the 6-year-old's killer. In November they finally sent the DNA from a spot of blood found on her underwear to the FBI's Combined DNA Index System, which logs genetic profiles of criminal offenders. The sample--which comes from a male unrelated to JonBenet--was gathered after her murder on Dec. 26, 1996, in her Boulder, Colo., home, but police never submitted it to the FBI database. (Attorney Wood charges Boulder investigators were so convinced of the Ramseys' guilt "that they didn't pursue it"; the Boulder police, who turned over the investigation to the district attorney a year ago, have declined comment.) Although Wood cautions it could be months, if not years, before authorities get a "hit" on the DNA, he says the family is optimistic. "The investigation has given them a renewed hope," he says.

Also lifting their spirits: After a round of chemotherapy, Patsy, 47, is in remission from ovarian cancer. The family relocated last summer from Atlanta to Charlevoix, a small town in northern Michigan with a slower pace, where their son Burke, 16, is a junior at a public high school. John, 60, a former CEO of a high-tech firm, is now a part-time consultant. And they still get back to Atlanta, and spent the holidays there with family and friends. Not surprisingly, the murder remains a constant in their lives. In December John and Patsy filed a $12 million lawsuit against FOX News Network over a story that said no evidence had been found that an intruder killed their daughter. The DNA samples could put that argument to rest too. "John and Patsy never stop living with their loss," says Wood. "They miss their child."

Quote: "John and Patsy never stop living with their loss. They miss their child"

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COLOR PHOTO: BOULDER POLICE DEPARTMENT/AP The DNA is "compelling evidence that someone other than the Ramseys killed" JonBenet (above), says Lin Wood (near left), attorney for John and Patsy Ramsey (far left, in 2001). TWO COLOR PHOTOS: ERIK S. LESSER/GETTY (2) [See caption above]

---- INDEX REFERENCES ----

NEWS SUBJECT:

(Crime/Courts (GCRIM); Law Enforcement (GHOME); Political/General News (GCAT))

OTHER INDEXING:

CRM; CRIME; Murder; Crime; Law Enforcement; JonBenet Ramsey; Wood, Lin; EN

Word Count: 446

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Newsday

Thursday, December 4, 2003

NEWS

Going Wacko for Jacko Liz Smith

'You supply the pictures, and I'll supply the war," said William Randolph Hearst to his reporters way back at the turn of the century as the United States embarked on the Spanish-American war. Even as I write, war chests are being amassed, strategy is being laid, troops are being gathered. For the invasion of what? Where? Why, for the coming Michael Jackson trial in California, of course. The networks are getting ready to pile it on, to play it for all it's worth, to out compete, out report, outdo and attempt to vanquish one another on the back of what may be the 21st century's most sensational show-biz scandal.

It hasn't been lost on a single network executive that the people who pursued the O.J. Simpson trial from the get~go, the ones with the most pizzazz, push and perseverance were the ones who left the others, the more fastidious ones, in the dust. (I do recall when "60 Minutes" producer Don Hewitt sniffed at coverage of O.J. and took his show out of the running. I don't think the great news magazine has completely recovered even yet.)

But this time they are all going to mix it up; they are going to war like you can't imagine. As Al Joison said, "You ain't heard nothing yet!"

THOSE TALENTED married directors, Sofia Coppola, of this year's great "Lost in Translation," and Spike Jonze are still talented, but no longer intend to be married. They sadly announce their decision to divorce. I guess something was lost in translation.

SITTING IN the Four Seasons Grill room with Miramax movie king Harvey Weinstein and the newly victorious- over-all-his-foes Edgar Bronfman Jr. of Seagram's fame is quite a heady experience for an old girl. I won a lot of undeserved points the other day at lunch just for showing up with these big-deal guys.

What did they want to talk about? No, not the coming Oscars or the music business, not Disney and Michael Eisner. Nothing like that. They were onto the perils of producing shows for Broadway, what hard work it is against the odds of the thumbs-down critic naysayers, what blood, sweat and tears are required. But these guys aren't living by Sitting Bull's dicta via "Annie Get Your Gun""Don't put money in show business!" No, they also wanted me to come See their latest legit effort with producer Jay Harris, "Never Gonna Dance," which opens tonight at the Broadhurst with the glorious music of Jerome Kern.

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OK. OK. I'll go. And I sure hope I'll like it, thrown off the "little" movie train that could out of a window of the Seagram's Building.

because I wouldn't want to be (and is no longer so little) nor

SPEAKING OF SCANDALS, the parents of the murdered child JonBenet Ramsey disappeared from Colorado and went back to Atlanta. Now, I'm told, they have disappeared from Georgia and gone back to Michigan ... SPEAKING OF CRIME, don't miss the Dominick Dunne column in Vanity Fair for January. Not only does he do a telling bit on the butler and the royals, but he celebrates the late C.Z. Guest and then takes a run down memory lane with the Liza 'n' David wedding. There's also a splendid recent Billy Farrell paparazzi shot of Liza. And Dominick recalls columnist Michael Musto pronouncing that his "appearance at the wedding cemented it as a crime scene." Very funny.

IF YOU MARKED your calendar for Andrea Marcovicci's performances at the Algonquin's Oak Room, which were supposed to begin two nights ago and run through Saturday, well, now you know that she had a hemorrhaged vocal cord and postponed. This wonderful singer, who knocked 'em dead singing with her talented mother Helen at the recent Gael Greene "Power Lunch," will do her Frank Loesser show again Tuesday, and then a Cole Porter program Jan. 6-24.

I hope Andrea's vocal cord problem wasn't caused by the kiss we exchanged at the Power Lunch, a silly little bit of fun and games that raised an extra $1,000 as the dynamic City-Meals-on-Wheels program forged ahead to pull in $825,000 to feed hungry New Yorkers.

SPEAKING OF SINGERS, the glamorous Yanna Avis is performing at 240W. 47th St., tomorrow and Saturday, at 9 p.m. Her opening this week drew the curdled creme de la creme that now passes for society in this burg. Yanna is tawny, slim in her glittery dress and does those songs we all knew and loved in the great heyday of jazz and blues. Her theme is "Illusions" as Marlene Dietrich sang it in Billy Wilder's "A Foreign Affair." I particularly loved hearing her do the "Carmen Jones" version of Bizet's opera.

The King Kong Room of The Supper Club comes alive, especially when a gorilla appears among patrons at the close.

REQUESTING MR. MANILOW! Tomorrow, the A&E network airs "Barry Manilow Christmas: Live by Request," from 8 to 10 p.m. This takes place at the KaufmanAstoria Studios in New York. As with other "Live by Request" shows, the prolific Barry must be ready to perform anything the audience asks of him from his huge hits to, perhaps, some numbers from "Harmony," his stalled Broadway-bound musical.

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AP Photo - MICHAEL JACKSON/ News outlets will have him covered.

---- INDEX REFERENCES ----

NEWS SUBJECT:

(ArtS/Entertainment (GENT); Commentary/Opinion (NEDC); Political/General News (GCAT)I COntent Types (NCAT))

EDITION: ALL EDITIONS

OTHER INDEXING: COLUMN; Column; Arts Culture & Entertainment

Word Count: 925

12/4/03 NWSDAY A13

END OF DOCUMENT

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EXHIBIT / ATTACHMENT B

(To be scanned in place oftab)

(RAMSEY BOOK COVER HERE)

THE DEATH

OF INNOCENCE

The Untold Story of JonBenet's Murder and How it's

Exploitation Compromised the Pursuit of Truth

JOHN AND PATSY RAMSEY

JANET TOMA BOOK

THOMAS NELSON PUBLISHERS

Nashville

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Scriptures marked NIV are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION'. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

ISBN 0-7852-6816-2

Printed in the United States of America

1 2 3 4 5 6 BVG 05 04 03 02 01 00

A NEW YEAR, A NEW PROCESS 253

On Wednesday, April 22, the prosecutors in JonBenet's case were hard at work selecting citizens who might comprise a jury to consider JonBenet's murder. Of the fifty-seven people, eight women and four men ended up qualifying to sit on the grand jury. In addition, four women and one man were selected as alternates. The Boulder Daily Camera reported that those selected ranged from a University of Colorado graduate student to a licensed pyrotechnican. Interests, they said, ranged from outdoor activities such as fishing and hiking to more indoor fare, such as listening to National Public Radio, which encouraged us to think that they would be thoughtful in their deliberations. By the end of the day, the legal components were in place. Although District Attorney Alex Hunter hadn't officially announced that this panel would pursue JonBenet's investigation, we believed they would do so.

In order to appease the police and the governor, on May 5 Hunter hired Michael Kane, Denver's former assistant district attorney, who had also served as an assistant U.S. Attorney and was now working for the Revenue Department of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Kane would work for Hunter's office as a grand jury specialist. Forty-six-year-old Kane had the reputation of being a no-nonsense prosecutor.

Patsy and I weren't afraid of the grand jury process. We strongly believed that eventually the truth would win Out. In fact, in March we had publicly stated that we were "eager to assist" a grand jury investigation into JonBenet's death. At the same time, our attorneys strongly believed that this panel should also examine how the Boulder Police Department had handled the case. Our primary concern was that this be a fair and objective proceeding. Our first disappointment came when two Boulder police detectives were named as investigators for the grand jury. It started to look like "fair and objective" might be wishful thinking.

On the first of June, the police department finally presented their case to the district attorney. Several "experts" were in attendance, but they left after the first day of the Tuesday presentation. Like a mountain moving into town, the enormous quantity of paperwork came thundering down on Alex Hunter's offices. The case me contained thirty thousand pages of material and indicated that the police had investigated 119 possible suspects. Potential evidence samples were ponderous, amounting to 1,058 pieces of collected material. And yet, no one had been indicted, restrained, arrested, or even

254 THE DEATH OF INNOCENCE

named as official suspects. Once this data was in their hands, the district attorney had to immediately begin assimilating it, and we hoped, conduct his own investigation. Hunter's plate was full.

On June 23 the news broke that Mark Beckner would replace Chief Tom Koby as the new chief of police or "director of police services." Beckner opted for the title "chief" and immediately moved into the responsibilities of the office. Tom Koby had his departure accelerated and would be working for the rest of the year in the Boulder city manager's office. In turn, Alex Hunter praised Koby for his work.

WHILE JOHN WORKED ON his new business and the constant grind of the legal issues, I tried to go about establishing our home in Atlanta. Much of the time John was with us, but he did spend time in Boulder, trying to help our investigators as much as possible. I worried as he traveled back and forth.

I knew about many of the issues and struggles within the Boulder Police Department. However, I tried to avoid much of the public discussion because the reporting was often slanted and inaccurate. Every time one of these stories hit the newspapers, I would get upset. I didn't need any more trauma. The continual struggle had its own insidious way of gnawing and chewing on me, undercutting my will to rebound, day after day, week after week. John and I were trying to rebuild our lives, but mentally we kept getting the legs knocked out from under us.

One afternoon, I knew I was coming to the end of my rope. I had always thought that I was able to handle everything: my career, my checkbook, my daily schedule, my children, and my roles as daughter, mother, wife, volunteer, and friend. Now I knew that wasn't true. Patsy Ramsey had no more places to rum. Everything was completely out of my control. At that moment, I remembered an idea. an admonition, I'd heard many. many times through the years. When) was a child in Sunday school. the teachers had talked about "complete surrender." The idea sounded wonderful and powerful, but I had never quite grasped how people reached the place in their lives where they truly turned everything over to God.

Now, as I listened to the lawyers and saw John wrestle with decisions, I suddenly realized that there wasn't one thing Patsy Ramsey could do to change