Forensic Team Calls Cobain Death a Homicide
A private forensic group assembled by independent specialist Brian Burnett has concluded that Kurt Cobain’s death was a homicide, according to a report in The Daily Mail.
After reviewing the evidence, Burnett’s team determined that Cobain did not die by suicide. However, the Seattle Police Department continues to reject that conclusion and maintains that the original ruling stands.
“Our detective concluded that he died by suicide, and this continues to be the position held by this department,” a police spokesperson told The Daily Mail.
One researcher on Burnett’s team described the scene as appearing staged. The gun and a receipt for the shotgun shells were reportedly found in Cobain’s pocket, and a heroin kit was neatly arranged near his body. The researcher said it looked “like someone staged a movie.”
Michelle Wilkins, another member of the team, raised concerns about the suicide note, claiming inconsistencies in the handwriting.
“The top of the note is written by Kurt. There’s nothing about suicide in that. It’s basically just him talking about quitting the band,” Wilkins said. “Then there are four lines at the bottom. If you even look at the note, you can see that the last four lines are written in different … the text is a little bit different. It’s bigger, it looks more scrawly.”
Despite the private team’s findings, neither the Seattle Police Department nor the King County Medical Examiner’s Office plans to reopen the case.
“Our office is always open to revisiting its conclusions if new evidence comes to light, but we’ve seen nothing to date that would warrant reopening of this case and our previous determination of death,” the medical examiner’s office told The Daily Mail.
KIRO’s news partner MyNorthwest reported that Cobain and Nirvana achieved “instant success” with their 1991 album “Nevermind,” which featured hits such as “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
According to MyNorthwest, Cobain began using heroin to cope with an illness and had experienced multiple drug overdoses. He had been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as a child and was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Cobain was found dead at his home in April 1994 by an electrical contractor. Police said he had died by suicide with a shotgun three days earlier and was discovered on April 8, 1994, KIRO reported. His final performance took place about a month before his death in Munich, Germany, according to KIRO.
The case has been revisited before. In 2021, the FBI released archival files that included correspondence requesting a federal investigation into Cobain’s death, Billboard reported at the time.
One letter dated Nov. 20, 2006, alleged there were no fingerprints on the shotgun and pointed to differing handwriting in the suicide note. Another letter from 2003 asked that “inconsistencies surrounding his death cleared up once and for all.”
Esquire reported that the FBI declined to investigate, writing in response:
“In order for the FBI to initiate an investigation of any complaint we receive, specific facts must be present to indicate that a violation of federal law within our investigative jurisdiction has occurred,” the FBI wrote. “Based on the limited information you provided, we are unable to identify any violation of federal law within the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI.
“We are, therefore, unable to take any investigative action in this case.”
