It was a brutally cold evening in January 2011 when Ellen Rae Greenberg, a 27-year-old teacher in Philadelphia, was found dead in her apartment—stabbed 20 times.
A knife still jutted from her chest. Her fiancé, Sam Goldberg, told police he discovered her body after kicking down the locked door. Her lifeless form was slumped in the kitchen. There was no sign of forced entry. No defensive wounds. No struggle.
What followed wasn’t just baffling. It was infuriating.
A Staggering Autopsy—And a Stunning Reversal
Ellen’s autopsy read like the aftermath of a brutal homicide:
- 10 stab wounds to the back of her neck and head
- 10 additional wounds to her abdomen and chest
- A knife buried so deep it had to be removed by the medical examiner
At first, it seemed obvious: this was murder. The original homicide ruling from Dr. Marlon Osbourne reflected that. But after a closed-door meeting with Philadelphia detectives, the medical examiner changed the ruling to suicide.
Yes, suicide—despite no suicide note, no prior history of self-harm, and no logical explanation for how a person could stab themselves in the back of the head.
A Family’s Fight for the Truth
Ellen’s parents, Josh and Sandra Greenberg, were devastated. Their daughter had been planning her wedding, teaching first grade, and had just started seeing a psychiatrist for work-related anxiety.
She was anxious—but not suicidal.
And the method? It didn’t add up.
So the Greenbergs launched their own investigation, hiring forensic experts, neuropathologists, and attorneys. What they uncovered was damning:
- One of Ellen’s wounds showed no internal bleeding, meaning it occurred after her death.
- A neuropathologist confirmed that at least one stab wound to the skull was postmortem.
- Multiple bruises in different stages of healing were found on her body.
- No hesitation wounds or indications of a psychological breakdown.
The Question That Won’t Die: Could Someone Do This to Themselves?
Mental health professionals were blunt in their assessments:
“Incredibly rare. Unbelievable. Virtually impossible,” said Courtney Conley, a counselor specializing in suicidal ideation.
And Dr. Cyril Wecht, one of America’s most respected forensic pathologists, went even further:
“There’s no way she stabbed herself that many times—especially in the back of the neck—without losing consciousness.”
The Fiancé’s Behavior: Innocent or Incriminating?
At the center of the suspicion is Sam Goldberg, Ellen’s fiancé. He claimed to have been at the gym. When he returned to their locked apartment and found the door latched from the inside, he sent a series of increasingly angry and demanding texts:
- “Hello?”
- “What are you doing?”
- “I’m getting pissed.”
- “You better have an excuse.”
When he finally kicked down the door, he found Ellen dead—but claimed he didn’t see any blood at first. A paramedic later testified that blood was everywhere.
The Bruises and the Red Flags
Ellen’s body told a story no one wanted to read:
- Older bruises on her arms and legs.
- No defensive wounds, but multiple injuries from different time frames.
- A pattern some experts say is consistent with domestic abuse.
She had recently begun therapy. She had expressed wanting to move back home. She’d been prescribed Klonopin and Ambien for anxiety. Was she scared? Was she trying to leave?
Legal Stonewalling and a Civil Suit
After years of silence, the Greenbergs filed a civil lawsuit against the Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office, alleging negligence and demanding the cause of death be reclassified as homicide.
In October 2022, their case cleared a critical hurdle when a judge ruled they had the right to sue. Yet as of 2024, the official cause of death remains suicide.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia law enforcement has refused to reopen the case, despite overwhelming forensic contradictions.
A Community Rallies for Ellen
The public has not remained silent. Online communities, true crime podcasts, and advocacy groups have taken up Ellen’s story. Many see her case as a textbook example of a possible cover-up—or, at minimum, a catastrophic failure in forensic investigation.
A new Change.org petition has gained over 200,000 signatures, demanding a federal investigation.
“Ellen deserves the truth,” says her father, Josh Greenberg. “And if this can happen to her, it can happen to anyone.”
The Unanswered Questions
- Why were Ellen’s wounds consistent with an attack—but ruled self-inflicted?
- Why were critical pieces of evidence—like her computer—never fully analyzed?
- Why has law enforcement refused to reopen the case?
- Could this be a cover-up?