Ellen Greenberg’s death has left many true crime lovers confused. After she was found stabbed to death 20 times in her Pennsylvania apartment in 2011, her death was ruled a suicide. While her family fought to have the decision changed, her death was once again ruled as a suicide in October 2025.
Life & Style breaks down everything to know about Ellen’s death and the latest case updates.
What Happened to Ellen Greenberg?
Ellen was found dead at the age of 27 in her Manayunk, Pennsylvania apartment with 20 stab wounds that covered her neck, back, head and heart, as well as 11 bruises all over her body. Police initially ruled her death a suicide at the crime scene before it was ruled a homicide by the initial examiner. However, then-assistant medical examiner Dr. Marlon Osbourne later ruled that she died by suicide, per ABC News.
She was living in the apartment with her fiancé, Samuel Goldberg, who has never been suspected of being involved in her death.
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Ellen Greenberg’s Family Fought for the Manner of Her Death to Be Changed
Following the ruling, her family fought to have the manner of her death changed to homicide or undetermined.
Her parents, Sandee Greenberg and Josh Greenberg, hired renowned experts including forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht and forensic neuropathologist Dr. Wayne Ross to look into the case. According to People, Wecht concluded that her wounds were not self-inflicted and Ross found evidence of strangulation, leading him to believe that Ellen’s death was staged.
Additionally, the Greenbergs were able to get 167,000 signatures asking the city of Philadelphia to reopen the case.
They filed one lawsuit against the Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office and Osbourne in 2019, followed by a second lawsuit in 2022 against the City of Philadelphia, former Chief Medical Examiner Sam Gulino and others. Sandee and Josh alleged that the investigation into their daughter’s death was “deeply botched,” according to their attorney Joe Podraza.
The Greenbergs eventually settled the lawsuits they had filed against the City of Philadelphia, Gulino and others. They received a monetary payment, while city officials also agreed to look into Greenberg’s manner of death again, per People.
Osbourne also submitted a court affidavit stating he believes Greenberg’s death should be “designated as something other than suicide,” according to ABC News.
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Ellen Greenberg’s Death Was Ruled a Suicide a Second Time
The Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office finished reviewing Greenberg’s death in October 2025 and ultimately concluded that she died by suicide, according to People.
The office’s findings were revealed just one day before a hearing with the Philadelphia Common Pleas Court is scheduled to take place on October 14, 2025.
Philadelphia Chief Medical Examiner Lindsay Simon submitted a 32-page review on October 10, 2025, explaining that the ME’s office was “asked to conduct an independent and unbiased review of all available materials relating to the death of Ellen Greenberg.”
After looking through evidence and recent findings, Simon wrote in the analysis that “while the distribution of injuries is admittedly unusual, the fact remains that Ellen would be capable of inflicting these injuries herself.” She also noted that Ellen was “suffering from anxiety” at the time of her death.
After noting that “the fiancé’s DNA was not detected on the knife used to inflict the injuries,” she said that there was no evidence to support theories that their relationship was abusive. Additionally, Simon said there were no findings of a struggle at the scene of Ellen’s death.
“With all of this information considered, it is the opinion of the undersigned that the manner of Ellen Greenberg’s death is best classified as ‘suicide,’” Simon wrote, per People. “All opinions stated in this report are expressed with a reasonable degree of medical certainty.”
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Ellen Greenberg’s Death Was Discussed in ‘Death in Apartment 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg?’
Those interested in the case got to learn even more in Hulu’s Death in Apartment 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg? miniseries, which premiered on September 29, 2025.
The docuseries featured interviews with Ellen’s closest friends, as well as experts who explained why they think she was murdered.
