“This Was No Suicide”: Nancy Grace Sounds Alarm in New Book
Ellen Greenberg was bright, accomplished, and adored—a lively, warmhearted teacher who poured her energy into the young children she taught. She cherished her family and friends, and was deeply in love with her fiancé, Sam Goldberg. The two were planning their wedding and had just mailed out their save-the-date cards when tragedy struck. On January 26, 2011, Ellen was discovered in the kitchen of the upscale apartment she shared with Sam, a knife still lodged in her chest. She had suffered over twenty stab wounds, including at least one inflicted after death.
Initially, the Philadelphia medical examiner ruled her death a homicide. But after a series of behind-closed-doors meetings involving the Philadelphia Police Department, the District Attorney’s Office, and possibly even members of the Attorney General’s Office, the cause of death was abruptly changed to “suicide.” The question remains: how could such a determination make sense? Could a petite twenty-seven-year-old woman have repeatedly stabbed herself with such force, striking areas of her body that would be nearly impossible to reach? Leading forensic experts who have examined the evidence insist it could not have happened—they say suicide is simply out of the question.
Yet, despite overwhelming doubts, years of public outcry, and more than a decade of legal challenges from Ellen’s grieving parents, the Philadelphia justice system has refused to reopen the case. Even the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has described the investigation as flawed and mishandled—but still stopped short of demanding a new inquiry.
Famed author and television star Nancy Grace joins Kendall and Casey to discuss her new book What Happened to Ellen?: An American Miscarriage of Justice, in which she revisits the suspicious death of Ellen Greenberg and the troubling legal aftermath surrounding it.
Listen to the full interview here:
