The mystery surrounding what happened to a 27-year-old Philadelphia teacher has been at the center of debate and the legal system for years, and now there’s another twist in the story.
The death of Ellen Greenberg was originally ruled as a homicide in January 2011, but later switched to suicide.
NBC10 obtained the 32 page document on Monday, Oct. 13 and in the final paragraph, the medical examiner states that “Ellen Greenberg’s death is best classified as suicide.”
This new review of Greenberg’s autopsy report from the medical examiner was part of an agreement the city reached with her parent’s earlier in 2025 in an effort to settle two of their lawsuits.
In her report, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Lindsey Simon says that she based her determination on several factors, including Greenberg’s struggle with anxiety.
Greenberg was discovered by her fiancé on their kitchen floor with 23 stab wounds.
Dr. Simon noted that “the distribution of wounds is admittedly unusual.” Though, she says the evidence she reviewed shows Greenberg would be capable of administering them herself and adding that many of the injuries were hesitation wounds.
Dr. Simon also says that there was no DNA detected from her fiancé or anyone else on the knife, and wrote that his statement and timeline matches things like text messages, phone logs, surveillance videos and there was no evidence she was in an abusive relationship.
Dr. Simon notes in the review that there is no evidence to support that anyone else was inside her apartment on the day that Greenberg died.
So, this means that the city of Philadelphia is standing by its 2011 ruling.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.
If Greenberg’s cause of death was switched to “homicide” or “undetermined” it would have triggered a police investigation.
Greenberg’s parents, their attorneys and other experts insist that Ellen was murdered in her Manayunk apartment in 2011.
“I’m not shocked by her conclusion that it is a suicide since the city has doubled down, tripled down on that over the years I’ve been involved in the case. But I am very troubled by the contents of the report. As far as I’m concerned, the entire document is trite,” Joe Podraza, the Greenberg family attorney, told NBC10. “It’s just a horrendous sabotage and attack on Ellen’s personality based on this alleged anxiety condition.”
The medical examiner’s office is scheduled to go before a Philadelphia judge on Tuesday, Oct. 14 to officially release their findings of this new review.
