A Philadelphia bride-to-be found with 20 stab wounds, including to the back of her neck and head, has been ruled a suicide for the second time despite her family’s 13-year fight for justice.
Story Highlights
- Ellen Greenberg, 27, found dead with 20 stab wounds in locked apartment in 2011
- Death initially ruled homicide, then controversially changed to suicide weeks later
- 2024 medical examiner report reaffirms suicide ruling despite family’s expert evidence
- Independent forensic pathologists conclude suicide explanation is not plausible
- Family alleges coverup and continues legal battle to change official cause of death
The Impossible Suicide That Won’t Go Away
Ellen Greenberg was planning her wedding when she died alone in her Philadelphia apartment during a January 2011 nor’easter. The 27-year-old first-grade teacher was discovered by her fiancé Sam Goldberg, who returned from the gym to find their apartment locked from the inside. After breaking in, he found Ellen’s body with wounds that would spark over a decade of controversy.
The scene defied easy explanation. Twenty stab wounds covered Ellen’s body, including strikes to her chest, stomach, and most troubling to forensic experts, multiple wounds to the back of her neck and head. The apartment showed no signs of forced entry, no evidence of an intruder, and Ellen had no defensive wounds on her hands or arms.
The Flip That Started Everything
Dr. Marlon Osbourne initially did what seemed logical given the evidence before him. The medical examiner ruled Ellen’s death a homicide, citing the sheer number and location of the stab wounds. For any forensic pathologist, multiple self-inflicted stab wounds represent an extremely rare form of suicide, particularly when they include strikes to areas like the back of the head.
Then something unprecedented happened. After meetings with police investigators who had treated the scene as a suicide from the beginning, Dr. Osbourne reversed his ruling. The death certificate was changed from homicide to suicide, setting off a firestorm that continues today. The police had focused on the locked apartment, the lack of defensive wounds, and Sam Goldberg’s corroborated alibi from gym surveillance footage and keycard data.
Family Fights Back With Science
Ellen’s parents, Joshua and Sandra Greenberg, refused to accept the suicide ruling. They hired two independent neuropathologists who reached a stunning conclusion after reviewing the evidence. The experts determined that suicide was not a plausible explanation for Ellen’s injuries, directly contradicting the official finding.
The family’s legal battle gained momentum in 2021 when a judge allowed their civil suit to proceed. Their attorney Joseph Podraza argued that the evidence pointed to either homicide or at minimum an undetermined cause of death. The case drew national attention as forensic experts debated whether the official ruling made scientific sense.
The Defiant 2024 Reaffirmation
Philadelphia’s medical examiner office delivered what many saw as a definitive response in 2024. Dr. Lindsay Simon, the current Chief Medical Examiner, issued a comprehensive 32-page report that reaffirmed the suicide ruling. The report emphasized the lack of evidence for homicide, the absence of any intruder, and the corroborated alibi for Ellen’s fiancé.
The family’s attorney called the report “an embarrassment,” but the medical examiner’s office stood firm. Dr. Simon maintained that Ellen could have inflicted the wounds herself, despite the location and number of injuries that have baffled independent experts. The ruling cited Ellen’s recent diagnosis with acute anxiety related to work stress as a contributing factor.
Sources:
It was very, very weird: A civil suit reveals new details in the case of Ellen Greenberg
Philadelphia medical examiner reaffirms Ellen Greenberg’s 2011 stabbing death was suicide
