For nearly 28 years now, the Boulder Police Department in Colorado has been accused of grossly mishandling its investigation of the still-unsolved 1996 murder of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey in her family's home.

Now, amid renewed scrutiny following a new Netflix documentary about the "cold case," the Boulder PD has provided an update on its ongoing probe of the murder and defended itself from criticisms, according to local NBC affiliate KUSA.

Despite what some critics may say, the police insist that they have done everything possible to find the killer of the little girl whose horrific death nearly three decades ago continues to haunt her family.

New Netflix special probes unsolved murder

Premiering on Netflix this week was a new three-part docuseries called "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey," which takes a hard look at alleged "police missteps" and the "media circus" that "derailed" the investigation into the little girl's untimely death.

JonBenet's family initially reported her as missing on the morning of Dec. 26, 1996, but later found her dead body in the home's basement, where she appeared to have been sexually assaulted, savagely beaten, and strangled until she was deceased.

For several years, police and the media pointed a finger at JonBenet's family, including her father and mother, John and Patsy, and her older brother, Burke, who was 9 years old at the time, as the prime suspects.

However, they were eventually exonerated by the discovery of DNA at the crime scene that didn't match the family, and John has been quite outspoken in accusing the police of failing to properly handle or test alleged pieces of evidence that include the unknown DNA.

Boulder police say JonBenet case remains a top priority

In an early annual update -- the update typically comes in December -- the City of Boulder shared that over the past 28 years, detectives have followed up on leads that came from at least 21,000 tips, letters, and emails, and have interviewed more than 1,000 people in 19 different states about the unsolved murder.

The city further claimed the case has been under "constant review" and that the police department has collaborated with various federal, state, and local law enforcement entities and DNA experts from across the country.

Boulder Police Chief Steve Redfearn said in a statement, "The killing of JonBenet was an unspeakable crime and this tragedy has never left our hearts. We are committed to following up on every lead and we are continuing to work with DNA experts and our law enforcement partners around the country until this tragic case is solved. This investigation will always be a priority for the Boulder Police Department."

Likewise, District Attorney Michael Dougherty said, "The murder of JonBenet Ramsey is a terrible tragedy and sparked years of unanswered questions and theories. Our office has successfully prosecuted other cold case homicides and many murder cases. In every one of those cases, it was the evidence that proved the defendant(s) guilty. Whether it is DNA or other evidence, more is needed to solve this murder. I appreciate the collaboration with CBI, the FBI, and the Boulder Police Department."

Update came in response to Netflix special

Though the annual update did not specifically mention the Netflix docuseries, that show as clearly the impetus for the early release of the annual update on the JonBenet investigation, which it attributed to "the increased attention on this investigation."

The release also sought to debunk two of the claims put forward by John Ramsey -- namely that the police had failed to properly test DNA evidence and that the Colorado Bureau of Investigations had opened up a Cold Case Review Panel to reexamine the mystery.

"The assertion that there is viable evidence and leads we are not pursuing -- to include DNA testing -- is completely false," the update stated. "Additionally, it was the Boulder Police Department -- not the Colorado Bureau of Investigation -- who convened the Cold Case Review Panel as part of its investigation efforts."