"Bob Wise - helped Ramseys write book"
Posted by jameson on Apr-04-00 at 10:02 PM (EST)
LAST EDITED ON Apr-05-00 AT 08:11 AM (EST)
THE SUNDAY OKLAHOMAN
April 02, 2000, Sunday CITY EDITION
SECTION: DESTINATIONS; Pg. 9
LENGTH: 934 words
HEADLINE: Priest writes for JonBenet's parents
BYLINE: Dennie Hall, Book Page Editor
BODY:
AN Oklahoma City Episcopal priest heard John and Patsy Ramsey
pour out their anguish over six weeks then wrote a book, "The
Death of Innocence," which bears the Ramseys' names.
The Rt.Rev.Robert L. Wise, rector of Church of the Redeemer, 6009 NW
Expressway, wrote the book on commission from Thomas Nelson Publishers of
Nashville, Tenn. He was paid a fee at the beginning and will not share in the
book price of $24.99.
"I'm convinced the Ramseys didn't kill their 6-year-old
daughter," Wise said in an interview last week with The Oklahoman.
His career as a clergyman may have helped him judge human
character.
Some rumors claim the Ramseys may have killed their daughter,
JonBenet, in 1996 because she wet the bed. Wise discounts this.
"I have four grown children, one of whom wet the bed, and I know
I never had such a thought," Wise said.
As indicated in the book's subtitle - "The Untold Story of
JonBenet's Murder and How Its Exploitation Compromised the Pursuit
of Truth"- this is the first time the Ramseys have told their story.
Wise said he was contacted by his editor at Thomas Nelson, Janet
Hoover Thoma, and asked to write the book. Thomas Nelson has
published some of Wise's other 23 books on various subjects.
After Wise went to the Ramsey home in Atlanta to talk with the
couple, he decided to take the writing project. He spent Monday
through Friday for six weeks hearing the Ramseys' story.
Nearby is JonBenet's grave, under a tree on which visitors have
tied miniature angels. Sometimes graffiti is found on the grave
marker.
Many days, Wise said, the couple just talked in an easy manner.
"Sometimes they broke down, depending on the day and the subject,"
he said.
These interviews took place in fall soon after a grand jury,
after 13 months of deliberation, chose not to indict the couple.
However, they are still victims of public scrutiny and stories in
the tabloid press.
Law enforcement authorities in Boulder, Colo., where the Ramseys
lived at time of the slaying, also have indicated they suspect the
couple.
"The Ramseys are hopeful the killer will be found and then the
suspicion will be gone," Wise said. "They are patient people and
live a quiet, secluded life."
Some tabloids have tried to cast suspicion on the Ramseys' son,
Burke, who was 10 when JonBenet was slain. The parents find it
absurd that anyone would suspect him, Wise said.
"They have suffered a terrible tragedy and have paid a big
price," he said.
The Ramseys said proceeds from the book's sales will go toward
legal fees and to the Jon Benet Ramsey Children's Foundation, which
was established in her memory. The foundation will help fund
investigations when children are kidnapped or killed, the Ramseys
have said.
The Ramseys view JonBenet's slaying the night of Dec. 25 as a
kidnapping that turned to murder. Whether the killing occurred
before or after midnight is not known, but John Ramsey decided to
put Dec. 25 on the grave marker.
Wise said the couple believe the killer must be someone who knew
the family. JonBenet's body was found in a basement storage room
hours after a kidnapping note was discovered. The family was
gathering money to pay a ransom when the body was found.
The book, which hit store shelves March 17, accuses police of
mishandling the investigation. It also discusses the family's
activities the night before the the morning the ransom note was
found, how the media frenzy started and why it continues,
observations of people close to the Ramseys and the Ramseys'
realization that they unofficially were prime suspects.
The Ramseys said they were stung by criticism that they rushed
to get a lawyer and a public relations company. Appearing on CNN's
"Larry King Live" recently, Ramsey said a lawyer was contacted
after a friend told him family members often are suspects in a
child's death.
"We didn't hire a public relations firm; that is false," he said.
The rumor apparently surfaced because the law firm representing
the Ramseys hired someone to answer the barrage of media inquiries.
The Ramseys, described in stories as wealthy, said they have
spent most of their money on investigators and attorneys.
Wise, whose part in writing the book is acknowledged inside,
said all the information given to him was checked out by the
publishing company. His role was to hear the Ramseys' story and be
the ghostwriter. He used a tape recorder in the interviews then put
the results on a computer. The Ramseys would respond to the
materials Wise produced.
The clergyman not only leads his church, which is part of the
Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches, but also is a bishop
in that church and a principal lecturer for the Adult Christian
Foundation in Madison, Wis. He has spoken throughout the Western
Hemisphere, in Europe, Russia and the Far East.
Wise has ministered and worked ecumenically in the United
Methodist Church and the Reformed Church in America. During his
tenure as the highest elected officer in the Reformed Church in
America, he worked as a bishop behind the Iron Curtain in Eastern
Europe.
He holds a master of divinity degree from Phillips Graduate
Seminary. During doctoral studies, he focused on correlating
spiritual insight with emotional needs as a means of bringing
renewal to the church.
Wise was instrumental in founding Our Lord's Community Church in
Oklahoma City, which began with five people and grew in a decade to
a congregation of 2,000 with more than $ 5.6 million in facilities.
He is a frequent contributor to numerous magazines.
"The Death of Innocence" has attracted so much media attention
that sales are expected to be brisk. It is a gripping account of a slaying that
will be discussed for
decades.