Burke Ramsey, JonBenet's Brother, Breaks Silence In Interview With Dr. Phil
By Libby Smith
BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4) Outside the Boulder house where JonBenet Ramsey was murdered, Dr. Phil McGraw spoke with CBS4's Karen Leigh about his interview with Burke Ramsey. This is Burke Ramsey's first interview about the death of his little sister since her body was found on Dec. 26, 1996.
"So can you tell us why Burke Ramsey is talking now? Why is he reaching out?" Leigh asked McGraw.
"If the story is going to be told, he said, 'I want to tell it. I don't want people talking about me. I would rather tell my own story,'" McGraw replied.
"Was it painful for him?" Leigh asked.
"It was painful for him to talk about this," McGraw answered.
McGraw's interviews with Burke and his father, John, will play out in three-episodes of the "Dr. Phil Show" on CBS4.
"I think once he decided to talk, he wanted to be forthcoming. He wanted to be asked the hard questions. He wanted to have an opportunity to tell his side of the story," McGraw explained.
The "Dr. Phil Show" digs into the case of JonBenet's murder, and uncovers never before seen interrogation tapes.
"We have those tapes, and he has never seen those tapes. And I watched those tapes with him. He watched himself 20 years ago…18 years ago," McGraw said. "It's was interesting to watch him, watch himself at that age, answering those questions and hear how he observes himself at that time. It was very interesting and very telling."
"Was there a moment during the interview where you said, 'Wow,'" asked Leigh.
"There were many of them. I spent many hours with Burke across two days. I spent many hours with his father, John. We really dug into this case, and looked at all the evidence," McGraw replied.
McGraw promises that the three episodes will clear up a lot of ambiguity about the case, and he said they will likely change your mind about who did it.
"IDI – intruder did it, BDI – Burke did it, RDI – Ramseys did it, he knows there are those factions out there. He knows there is a faction of people in society and on the internet who believe he killed his sister. He's very much aware of that," McGraw told CBS4.
McGraw also said that the man, who was just nine years old when his sister died and his life changed forever, has his own way of dealing with it, and you'll see that in the interview.
"People are going to notice that Burke has a social awkwardness to him. He has some unusual affect, and by that I mean you'll notice that there are times when he's talking about very dark content, but yet he's smiling. And people are going to see that and wonder, 'What's going on here?' And I'll leave them to make up their own minds about what's going on there," McGraw said.
The "Dr. Phil Show" featuring Burke Ramsey and the murder investigation of JonBenet Ramsey will air in 3-parts on Sept. 12, 13, and 19 at 4 p.m. on CBS4.
Libby Smith is a Special Projects Producer at CBS4. If you have a story you'd like to tell CBS4 about, call 303-863-TIPS (8477) or visit the News Tips section.
