I met Pat in 1987 during a short stay in Boulder. As a climbing enthusiast 19 years of age I asked everyone I met to be my climbing partner. Someone at church finally gave me a phone number to a Pat Ament who was thought to have climbed in his younger days. I did not know Pat or any of his history. Little did I know that Pat would take me on a journey "High Over Boulder." Over the next few weeks Flagstaff Mountain, Boulder Canyon, the Amphitheater, and Eldorado Canyon were opened to me. In a folklorish sort of way Pat would share memories and insight about each traverse and finger hold. He would mutter events of his youth with Royal Robins and Layton Kor. I learned of his friendship with Tom Frost & John Gill and how he mentored excellent climbers like Christian Griffith and Grey Ringsby. For the first time in my life I realized the modern climber must pay homage to the memories of the past. We won't get the chance for many first assents. We do not always climb "just because it is there". We climb because we want to bond with those that have gone before.

Two months later on my way out of Boulder I stopped by Pats one room pad to say my farewells. I thanked him for the time he had spent with me and the memories he had shared. From a shelf above his desk he pulled out a book. "Bryce, this is my personal Copy of a guide I put together some time ago." "I hope it will be of value to you some day." Little does he know the meaning of this simple gift.

Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. It seemed like every time I turned the page some startling new piece of information was revealed to me. Before reading this book I gave the Ramseys the benefit of the doubt. No more. Thomas leaves little doubt that the Ramseys are involved in the death of their daughter.

The insights this book gives into the workings of the Boulder Police are revealing. The insights into the actions of the Boulder District Attorney's office are absolutely shocking! Boulder residents who care about this community need to arm themselves with the information in this book. We need not only to find justice for JonBenet, we need to investigate the actions of our DA which, to me, suggest that something far worse than incompetence is happening here.

The murder of six year old JonBenet Ramsey will probably never be officially solved and no one will ever stand trial for the brutal death of the child with the angelic face.

The world watched in horror as the family suffered through intense media scrutiny and publicity. Our hearts were wrenched as we watched Patsy cling to her pastor and her friends after the child's memorial service. We sympathized with the family when they moved from Boulder to Atlanta to free themselves from constant reminders of their tragedy.

What we didn't know, or at least I didn't know, was that from the very day the child's body was discovered in a hidden room in the family's basement, the Ramsey's were being coached, guided, and directed by a dream team of lawyers, publicists and media-savvy handlers who probably did more to obscure justice than OJ Simpson ever thought of. In the least, they built a wall of protection around themselves so strong that no small police department like Boulder's could have ever challenged it.

If only 1/2 of the details that former Boulder Police officer Steve Thomas sets forth in his book are true, then I must re-examine my sympathy for the child's parents, Tom and Patsy Ramsey and look at the facts.

The family has always maintained that 'an intruder' killed the child. However, in painstaking detail, Thomas destroys that theory with the following questions.

Would an intruder:

have taken the time to close JonBenet's bedroom door, which Patsy said had been found closed;

have taken the time to relatch the obscure cellar door peg that police and Fleet White (friend of the family) found in the locked position;

have placed JonBenet beneath a blanket and taken care to place her favorite pink nightgown with her;

have tied the wrists so loosely that a live child would have hardly been restrained;

have wiped and/or re-dressed JonBenet after the assault and murder;

have fed her pineapple;

have known the dog was not home that night;

have been able to navigate through a dark, confusing, and occupied house without a sound in the quiet of Christmas night;

have been so careless as to forget some of the materials requires to commit the kidnapping but remembered to wear gloves to foil fingerprint impressions on the ransom note...

and many more....

Thomas resigned in protest over the police department's mishandling of the case and the incompetent District Attorney's unwillingness to prosecute someone as prominent as the Ramseys. Even if you don't believe everything you read in this book, it's worth the time it takes to sift through the intricate details and maze of frustration the police officers faced from the first frantic 911 call from Patsy until the day the Grand Jury adjourned without comment.

I had an opinion of what happened to the child before I read this book. I've changed my mind. I agree with Steve Thomas' theory and I'm sorry he's left law enforcement. He was one of the good guys.