Samuel Goldberg told the officers who responded to the 9-1-1 call that he had left the couple’s sixth-floor apartment to visit their building’s gym at approximately 4:45 p.m. Approximately 45 minutes later, Mr. Goldberg said, he returned to the sixth floor but found the apartment door’s swing bar lock engaged from the inside, he returned to the building lobby to try to reach the Victim via cell phone calls and text messages. When approximately one hour had passed without a response, Mr. Goldberg said, he decided to enter the apartment by force.

Sam Goldberg stated that he returned to the sixth floor accompanied by a building security guard, later identified as Philip Hanton, and forced open the door. Id. Once inside, Mr. Goldberg discovered the Victim seated on the kitchen floor, with her head slouched over.

Goldberg recounted that he immediately called 911. In accordance with the emergency operator’s instructions, Mr. Goldberg lifted the Victim’s slouched head in order to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). At that moment, Mr. Goldberg discovered the knife lodged in the Victim’s chest. Medics arrived and pronounced the Victim dead at 6:40 p.m.

In a written declaration Mr. Hanton stated that that he did not accompany Mr. Goldberg to the sixth floor on the night in question and was not present when Mr. Goldberg entered the apartment.

Death Investigation Report by Stephen Olszewski:  Read Report

8:27 PM: Detective arrived to the scene at 20:27 and was met by Fifth District Police, Snipes 6358 and Young 6960, holding the log. NWDD Sgt. Ferguson 446, Det Veal 9216 and Det Reve 9020, the assigned. DC 11-05- 001577. Homicide Sierra 9103 and Peters 851 arrived a short time later.

The decedents fiancé Samuel Goldberg DOB along with his family and some friends are also present.

• Ellen’s body was found on the hardwood kitchen floor, located just inside the door entrance.
• The decedent is found supine with her head and some of her upper body/shoulders resting against the lower half of the white kitchen cabinets next to the range.
• Her body, starting with the head is facing north and the legs west.
• She is clad in a zipper up dark colored shirt over-top a t-shirt, grey sweatpants, underwear, and light brown UGG boots.
• A pair of eyeglasses are on the floor to the right of the decedent.
• A white towel is grasped in her left hand.
• A hair tie or scrunchie is on her right wrist.
• There are no personal effects on the body.

Upon further examination of the body, the decedent has a knife embedded in her left chest, through her clothing. There are multiple stab wounds examined at the scene; at the chest where the knife is located, a few superficial grouped nearby, one to the left upper chest near the clavicle, 2 more at the mid chest between and just below the breasts. There are defects to the shirts consistent with the underlying wounds.

• There are no defense injuries to the hands, wrists or forearms.
• The right hand is closed in a loose fist.
• Postmortem findings at arrival at 20:27 and 21:55 are the same.
  The body is mostly flaccid. The hands appear to be slightly stiff.
• The body is cool to the touch at the extremities and warm to the touch at the torso, front and back.
• Lividity is inconspicuous.

Body:

Findings are consistent with current position of the body. Blood is present on the head, in tile hair and neck:

• The right hand has blood on it
• On the front side of her shirts, along her pants on tile front side and on the top of both of her boots is blood.
• The right boot has blood on the sole.
• The blood around her his generally confined to the area of the body, on the floor underneath and on the face of the cabinets behind her.
• One small blood spatter is on tile cabinet to the left of the body.
  
• Two separate drops of blood spatter are on the granite counter top above her.

Kitchen:

• Two kitchen knives are in the sink adjacent to the body. They are free of any blood or tissue.
• The sink underneath is dry and also bears no evidence of blood or tissue.
• A knife block is on the counter between the sink and range. It is turned over to the side.
• The three utensils are a spatula, fork and pearing knife, all that bears no evidence of blood or tissue.
• The knife in her body is consistent with the knife set found in the sink and in the block.

Bedroom:

Inside a bedroom drawer, Mr. Olszewski recovered the Victim’s prescription drugs, which included

• Two types of anti-anxiety medication and a sleep aid. 
• The medication had been prescribed by Dr. Ellen Berman, a psychiatrist, who saw the patient on three occasions in the two weeks preceding her death.

Fiance Sam Goldberg Statement 

• Goldberg told the officers who responded to the 9-1-1 call that he had left the couple’s sixth-floor apartment to visit their building’s gym at approximately 4:45 p.m.
• Approximately 45 minutes later, Mr. Goldberg said, he returned to the sixth floor but found the apartment door’s swing bar lock engaged from the inside.
• Goldberg explained that he returned to the building lobby to try to reach the Victim via cell phone calls and text messages. When approximately one hour had passed without a response, Mr. Goldberg said, he decided to enter the apartment by force.
• Goldberg stated that he returned to the sixth floor accompanied by a building security guard, later identified as  Philip Hanton*, and forced open the door. 
• Once inside, Mr. Goldberg discovered the Victim seated on the kitchen floor, with her head slouched over.
• Goldberg recounted that he immediately called 911. In accordance with the emergency operator’s instructions, Mr. Goldberg lifted the Victim’s slouched head in order to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). At that moment, Mr. Goldberg discovered the knife lodged in the Victim’s chest. 
• Medics arrived and pronounced the Victim dead at 6:40 p.m.

Note: * In a written declaration Mr. Hanton stated that that he did not accompany Mr. Goldberg to the sixth floor on the night in question and was not present when Mr. Goldberg entered the apartment.  Hanton Declaration

Key Observations from the Crime Scene Report

Apartment Condition

• Well-kept and clean, no signs of a struggle.
• No missing items, valuables untouched (suggests no robbery or forced theft).
• Three laptops found in different locations:
• One in the kitchen (likely Sam Goldberg’s).
• One in the master bedroom (Ellen’s personal laptop).
• One in another bedroom (likely her work laptop).

Locking Mechanism & Forced Entry

• The swing bar lock was broken with screws loose, indicating it was forced open.
• This contradicts any claim that Ellen was locked inside voluntarily and suggests an external force was needed to enter.

No Evidence of Suicide

• No suicide note or any clear indication of intent found in the apartment.
• No explicit messages on her devices indicating a final goodbye or self-harm intentions.

Rear Patio as an Alternate Exit

• Only other exit was the 6th-floor balcony.
• Snow was undisturbed, meaning no one left that way.
• This supports the theory that no intruder escaped via the balcony.

Weather Conditions & Apartment Temperature

• Winter snowstorm was ongoing.
• Apartment temperature 69°F.
• Further supports that Ellen had been inside for some time before her death.

Read Report

Incident Overview

• Date of Incident: January 26, 2011
• Time of Police Response: 6:33 PM
• Location: 4601 Flat Rock Road, Apt. #603
• Victim: Ellen Greenberg (27-year-old White Female)
• Height & Weight: 5’6″, 125 lbs
• Cause of Death: Multiple stab wounds
• Initial Manner of Death Ruling: Homicide (per Dr. Osbourne, Medical Examiner)

Crime Scene Details

Victim’s Body:

• Found: Lying on the kitchen floor, resting against the lower kitchen cabinets.
• Position: Supine (lying on her back), head facing slightly north, legs west.
• Injuries: Multiple stab wounds, including one with a kitchen knife still protruding from her chest.
• Clothing: Wearing a dark gray hooded sweatshirt, light gray sweatpants, and tan UGG boots, all blood-stained.
• Left Hand: Holding an off-white towel (not visibly blood-stained).
• Right Hand: A pair of eyeglasses was found next to it.
• Right Wrist: Had a black hair tie (scrunchie).
• Face: Covered in blood.

Apartment Scene

• Front Door:
• Tan-colored with apartment number 603.
• A Jewish religious prayer inside a glass container was affixed to the right of the door.
• Lock was damaged—screws were partially pulled out.
• Interior Layout:
• Bathroom to the left after entering.
• Bedroom converted to a family room/work area:
• Closet inside the bedroom door.
• Sofa and footrest against the north wall.
• Table with four chairs against the south wall.
• Flat-screen TV on the east wall.
• School papers & test papers on the table.
• Blood Evidence:
• Blood was found on multiple pillows in the apartment.
• The location of the blood on the pillows raised further questions about whether the incident occurred in another part of the apartment before the body was found in the kitchen.
• The presence of bloodstains outside the immediate crime scene suggested possible movement of the victim or struggle before her death.

Autopsy & Medical Examiner’s Report

• Conducted at the Office of the Medical Examiner.
• Examiner: Dr. Osbourne.
• Findings:
• Cause of Death: Multiple stab wounds.
• Manner of Death: Initially ruled Homicide.

Key Observations –  Report

• Blood was found on pillows, indicating that she may have been injured in a different location before collapsing in the kitchen.
• Multiple superficial wounds were present along with deeper stab wounds.
• Her left hand held a towel with no visible bloodstains, raising questions about whether she attempted to stop the bleeding.
• The position of the knife in her chest and the multiple stab wounds raised suspicions about the nature of the attack.
• The police initially treated the case as a homicide, given the stab wounds and circumstances of her death.

First Autopsy Report – Homicide

 2011-01-28 – Police Activity Sheet

Photo #2

The view of the decedent in Photo #2 shows a female on the kitchen floor with her bead and shoulders against the corner cabinets near the stove and sink.

• A pair of glasses are on the floor to the decedent’s right hand. Blood-like stains are seen on the floor and on the woman’s clothing.
• A white towel Is in her left hand. Several blood-like stains appear to be on the kitchen counter near the sink.

Photo #3

A close-up view of the decedent’s head and shoulders is seen in photo #3 shows a knife in her left upper chest.

• There are blood-like stains on the knife, her face and her clothes.
• There appear to be several cuts on her head.
• The Wood is flowing in different directions on her face This could mean that she moved after receiving the initial bleeding Injuries to her head. The location of several of the wounds would be a difficult position for her to cause these wounds.

Photograph #4

The decedent’s upper body and the cabinets behind her are shown in Photograph #4.

• Swipe- type patters can be seen on the cabinet corner area.
• There are also some blood spatter patterns and a blood dripping in a downward direction on the cabinet to her right These stains indicate that the decedent received some of her wounds while she was above the level of the stains.
• The swipe patterns are consistent with having been formed when she fell to the floor.

Photograph #5

Photograph #5 shows her middle torso and lower arms.

• There are at least 300 400 blood drops on her upper thighs and waist area. These stains arc consistent with vertical blood drops, formed when Wood fell from her wounds onto this area while she was in a sitting position.
• There is also blood on the floor between her legs. Based on the appearance of the bloodstains and their locations, these arc consistent with the knife being inserted at the area where she was found. She later fell onto the floor with the dripping wounds over her legs.
• Some blood-like stains are seen on her right hand. No defensive-type wounds can be seen

Photograph #6

The decedents lower extremities are shown in photograph #6,

• Multiple blood drops ore seen on the upper legs, with addition drops noted on the lover legs and on the boot tops. A closer view of the left boot (photograph 6) shows several vertical blood drops on the boot top and the sides of the boot sole- Some of these stains appear to be the result of vertical blood drops.
• Based on the number and distribution of the drops, these stains are consistent with having been from her initial injuries. If the decedent had received a massive Injury while upright, the number of stains should have been greater.

Photograph #8

The decedent’s right hand and the area around her right hand is shown In photograph #8,

• There is a blood smear on her right hand.
• A few blood drops can be seen on the floor, which may indicate that she was upright for some of her injuries.
• There is no indication of cleaning in this area.

Photograph #9

Photograph #9 is a closer view of the bloodstains on the cabinet doors near the decedent’s head.

• Several bloodstains can be seen that are dripping downward, further indicating that she was upright when she received some of her wounds.
• A small amount of cast-off type bloodstains are also seen in this area of the cabinets, indicating a downward direction.

Photograph #10

Photograph #10 is a close-up picture of reddish-colored stains on the counter.

• It is unknown if this stain is in fact blood; if, however, it is blood, it is consistent with a blood drop with some spatter. This would be further indication that the decedent was upright when she received some of her injuries, and then subsequently fell to the floor, leaning back against the cabinet.

Photograph #11

Photograph #11 shows the inside of the sink in the kitchen.

• Two knives and a wash brush are in the sink.
• Other photographs (See photograph #12) show cut fruit and other knives on the kitchen counter,

Review of the medical examiner findings showed that the decedent

• received multiple stab wounds to the chest, abdomen, neck and scalp.
• Multiple contusions / bruising were noted at various locations on her upper and lower extremities.
• These bruises were apparently in various stages of healing

Ellen Greenberg crime scene details

The apartment where Ellen Greenberg was found dead presents a complex and contradictory picture, raising significant questions about the initial suicide ruling and fueling the ongoing efforts by her parents to seek justice

• Location: Kitchen of the apartment Ellen shared with her fiancé, Sam Goldberg
• Body Position: Ellen was found slumped against kitchen cabinets with a knife embedded in her chest.
• Stab Wounds: She had 20 stab wounds, including 10 to the back of her head and neck.
• Bruises: Multiple bruises were found in various stages of healing on her arm, abdomen, and leg.
• Locked Door: The apartment door was reportedly locked from the inside with a swing bar latch.
• Clean Apartment: The apartment was found to be neat and tidy, with no signs of struggle or forced entry
• No Suicide Note: No suicide note was found at the scene.
• Undisturbed Snow: Fresh snow outside the apartment’s rear patio, on the 6th floor, was undisturbed, ruling out an escape route

Points of contention and further investigation

• Locked Door: While the initial police report supported Goldberg’s claim of forced entry due to a broken lock, photos re-examined during the Greenberg family investigation cast doubt on this, showing the latch intact.
• Security Guard Testimony: A security guard reportedly present during Goldberg’s forced entry later denied witnessing it.
• Phone Records: CNN’s analysis of phone records seemed to contradict claims that relatives were on the phone with Goldberg when he broke into the apartment.
• Discrepancies in Body Position: The 911 call suggests Ellen was found lying on her back, while police found her slumped against cabinets
• Post-Mortem Cleaning: The apartment was professionally cleaned the day after the incident, potentially removing crucial evidence.
• Missing Evidence: Goldberg’s uncle and cousin removed Ellen’s electronic devices and purse from the scene
• Footprint in Blood: A clear footprint in blood near Ellen’s hip was reportedly missed by initial investigators.
• Blood on Pillows: Bloodstains on multiple pillows in another room suggest Ellen may have been injured elsewhere in the apartment
• Evidence of Strangulation: Outside experts have pointed to bruising on Ellen’s neck as possible evidence of strangulation.
• Expert Opinions: Several experts, including Dr. Cyril Wecht and Dr. Wayne Ross, have concluded that Ellen’s death was not a suicide and may have been staged

Major Inconsistencies with Suicide Ruling:

No Defensive Wounds or Struggle, Yet 20 Stab Wounds

• If this were a suicide, self-inflicting 20 stab wounds, including to the back of the neck and head, is highly improbable.
• No defensive wounds indicate she was either unconscious, incapacitated, or ambushed.
• White Towel in her left hand

Forced Entry

• Some damage appears to be in the the area of the security lock in the close-up photograph.
• There does not appear to be damage to the doorjamb or evidence of break-In at the dead bolt look from the other side
  

No Footprints in Snow Outside

• If an intruder left, there should be some sign of movement in the snow.
• This suggests whoever was responsible never left through the balcony, meaning they exited via the front door—which was forced open later.

No Note or Explicit Suicide Intent

• Suicide cases often include a note, final messages, or clear indications of distress.
• The lack of a note or conclusive evidence of intent weakens the suicide ruling.

Body

• There was a mark over the front of the neck which was consistent with a fingernail mark.
• There were multiple bruises under the neck and in the strap muscles over the right side of the neck. The patterns were compatible with a manual strangulation.
• There were multiple bruises over the body some of which were fresh, many of which were older. The patterns were consistent with a repeated beating.
• Several blood-like stains appear to be on the kitchen counter near the sink.
• The blood is flowing in different directions on her fact. This could me.an that she moved after receiving the initial bleeding, injuries to her head. The location of several of the wounds would be a difficult position for her to cause these wounds.
• There was evidence of a stab wound which penetrated the cranial cavity and severed the cranial nerves and brain. As a result she would experience severe pain, cranial nerve dysfunction and traumatic brain signs and symptoms including numbness, tingling, irregular heartbeat and bradycardia, respiratory depression, neurogenic shock and impaired/loss of consciousness.

Crime Scene Photos:   2017 Detective Scott Eelman Report

Observations at the Scene:

• Ellen Greenberg was found seated on the kitchen floor, slumped downward, resting on her lower back and buttocks.
• Her arms were extended parallel to her body, with both hands rotated slightly inward.
• A white towel was clenched in her left hand.
• Ellen was wearing tan UGG boots, gray sweatpants, a dark gray zip-up sweatshirt, and a dark gray T-shirt underneath.
• Her head was tilted slightly forward, with her chin resting on her right shoulder and the right side of her head against a cabinet.
• A knife handle was protruding from the upper left chest of Ellen Greenberg. 
• Bloodstains were observed on her sweatshirt, sweatpants, boots, hands, face, and floor adjacent to her body. 
• Two large kitchen knives were found in the right side of the double sink, and a kitchen knife block was overturned with two empty slots.

Findings and Opinions:

• Ellen Greenberg died as a result of multiple stab wounds.
• The bloodstains on her face were inconsistent with the position in which she was found:
• The blood flow across her forehead would not have occurred if she had been in the seated position in which she was discovered.
• The blood flow pattern suggests her head was tilted backward at the time of injury.
• The circular and elliptical bloodstains on her sweatshirt indicate that blood originated from above her torso, likely from the head or neck region. This suggests her head was tilted forward during blood deposition.
• The void patterns on her clothing indicate that the blood source was above her body while she was slumped forward.
• If Ms. Greenberg had been in a seated position at the time of blood deposition, one would expect elliptical bloodstains with evidence of directionality on her lower body and floor. Instead, bloodstains were absent on the lower pant legs and minimal on the floor compared to the extensive stains on her clothing.
• No photographs were provided of the back of her clothing, but given the injuries to the back of her neck, bloodstains were likely present on the back of her shirt.
• Swipe patterns on the cabinet suggest Ms. Greenberg’s bloody hair came into contact with the surface multiple times, indicating movement after blood flow began.
• The minimal amount of blood on the floor does not correlate with the high volume of blood on her clothing.
• A specific bloodstain pattern on the floor near her right leg showed a hard edge, suggesting an intervening object may have prevented further blood flow.
• The pinkish discoloration of this bloodstain suggests possible cleanup or alteration.
• The presence of blood on the bottom of her right boot raises questions about movement. If she had walked through blood, more blood transfer stains would be expected in the surrounding area.

Ellen Greenberg was not in the position in which she was found at the time of blood deposition.

• Her head was in multiple positions during the blood flow process, contradicting the scene’s final state.
• The overall bloodstain evidence contradicts the theory that she died in the position in which she was found.
• The lack of blood on the floor compared to significant stains on her clothing is inconsistent.
• The blood flow patterns on her face further suggest she was moved after bleeding began.