Steve Thomas

Steve Thomas

"What I witnessed for two years of my life was so fundamentally flawed, it reduced me to tears," he said. "I cannot continue to sanction by silence what has occurred in this case."

Resignation Letter
Detective Thomas resigned from the case in 1998.

"It is difficult to imagine a more compelling situation for the appointment of an entirely independent prosecution team to be introduced into this matter, who would oversee an attempt at righting this case."

After the Case
In 2000 Thomas was working in construction. He said "Do I miss police work? I miss the hell out of police work. I didn't anticipate that at 38 years old, I'd be a carpenter ... Do I miss police work in Boulder, Colorado? Not for a second."

Criticism of Steve Thomas
Supporters of the Ramseys claim Steve Thomas was financially motived, and that he resigned from the case and eventually wrote his book in the hopes of becoming rich.

John Ramsey: He's a profiteer. He's the only person from inside the system who has written a book, who has gone on national television. It's disgraceful, absolutely disgraceful.

In a CNN interview, District Attorney Alex Hunter described Steve Thomas as "pecking at the bones of a sweet little dead girl". Hunter said his book was written "clearly for profit" and said Steve Thomas should have taken his concerns to the confidential Supreme Court Grievance Committee rather than telling the public. Hunter also claimed that Thomas had secretly resigned for "medical reasons", and his outrage about the Ramsey case was just a cover story.

Patsy Ramsey said Thomas had an "ego the size of a barn".

When Thomas's book was published, ousted Police Chief Tom Koby said, "I won't be reading the book and I hope nobody else will."

Defenses of Steve Thomas
"He's one hell of an investigator and a good cop," says Jim Kolar, now working in Telluride.

Greg Idler: "The best police officer I have ever worked with,"... "Excellent in investigations and at interviewing. Steve never let anything die; he always worked it to the end. And he's an expert when it came to deceptive responses from suspects. Steve has never been one to take the easy or the most popular way. He's the one who wants to get justice."