June 23, 1983

Ellen Rae Greenberg, born on June 23, 1983, in New York City, was the only child of Joshua and Sandra Greenberg. 1994 The family moved to the Harrisburg from NY, Ellen attended Susquehanna Township Middle schools.

After graduating high school, Ellen Attended Pen State University. While at Penn State University, she worked as a “Lionizer,” where she introduced athletes and their parents to the campus and even helped out on the football field. Ellen graduated from Penn State with a degree in communications. She planned on becoming a speech pathologist, but realized it wasn’t the right career path for her. She then attended Temple University at night to earn her teaching credentials. After Ellen obtained her teaching credentials. Ellen began her career as a first-grade teacher at Juniata Park Academy.

2007

In 2007 Ellen met her fiancé, Sam Goldberg, through a mutual friend and they went on a blind date.

Summer 2010

In the Summer 2010, After three years of dating, Sam proposed to Ellen on the beach during a trip to California. Ellen accepted his proposal, marking the beginning of their journey towards marriage in August 2011. Ellen Greenberg and Sam Goldberg moved to a modern apartment on the 6th floor with views of the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia.

December 2010

December 2010, the month leading up to her death, Ellen Greenberg’s parents and friends began to notice a significant change in her behavior. Ellen, who had always been cheerful and composed, became increasingly anxious and stressed. When questioned about these changes, Ellen attributed her anxiety to work pressures and the stress of planning her wedding, scheduled for August. In December 2010 Her anxiety reached a point where she even expressed a desire to quit her job and move back home with her parents.

December 18, 2010,

Ellen’s computer revealed She search results for suffocation and suicide methods. Ellen asked her parents if she could move back home to Harrisburg. They thought it odd, given her impending marriage in August, but their daughter assured them it had nothing to do with Goldberg, her fiance. As Ellen’s anxiety continued to escalate and began affecting her sleep, her family urged her to seek professional help. Following their advice Ellen saw a psychiatrist on three occasions, who prescribed her Klonopin and Ambien. Klonopin, a long-acting benzodiazepine, was intended to help manage her anxiety and panic attacks, while Ambien was prescribed for her insomnia.

January 8, 2011

Ellen texted her mom, Sandra, “I’m starting the med I know u don’t understand but I can’t keep living with feeling this way,”

January 10, 2011 

a few weeks before her death, her computer revealed searches for quick death. She also opened an article on euthanasia and browsed a website about painless suicide.

January, 22, 2011

On the January, 22, 2011 Ellen sent out her save-the-date cards for the wedding as they had set a date to get married in August 2011. That day She was also helping her close friend with upcoming wedding, That Saturday they went dress shopping for bridesmaids dress. While looking for bridesmaids dress Ellen began crying and told her friend “I’m so sorry, I know I’m not myself. But I’ll get it together.”‘

January 26, 201

• 7:00 AM Ellen spoke to her mother.
• 12:00 PM Ellen received an text from a friend “Yah, you are getting out early” and replied with “Thank Goodness”
• 1:15 PM Ellen Greenberg left her job early as schools closed due to severe weather
• 1:26 PM Ellen stopped for gas. Topping off her tank ensured her fuel lines wouldn’t freeze during the massive winter storm.
• 2:30 PM, she makes a call to a local restaurant
• 14:33 PM – Ellen called someone call lasted 30 seconds
• 4:45 PM- Goldberg left the couple’s home around 4:45 p.m., surveillance at their apartment building captured Sam entering the on-site gym.
• 4:46 PM, Ellen uses her laptop.
• 5:30 PM Sam Goldberg left the on-site gym, stopped in the lobby to check his mail, and then headed back up to their 6th-floor apartment.
• 5:30 PM until 5:42 PM Sam calls Ellen and sends her texts from
• 5:32 PM – 5:54 PM Sam emailed and texted Ellen.
• 5:44 PM Neighbors heard Goldberg call Ellen’s name several times.
• Sam Goldberg called Kamian Schwartzman to let him know he was locked out of his apartment and that Ellen was not responding to repeated telephone calls and texts to let him in. Kanin suggested to ask Security Doorman for help.
• 6 PM, Sam went downstairs in the lobby requesting help from the doorman Phil Hanton, The doorman tells Sam that it is against policy for him to break down doors, but he can call Ellen. 
• 6:07 and 6:10 PM, Ellen’s cell gets two calls from Venice Lofts, but no one answers. The doorman Phil Hanton offers to call the police.
• 6:14 PM Sam Goldberg calls Kamian Schwartzman to tell them that the security guard could not help.
• 6:26 Sam Goldberg Answers a Phone Call from James Schwartzman
• 6:28 PM Sam Goldberg is seen on the video going upstairs 
• 6:30 PM Sam went back up to the apartment and Kamian and James instructed Sam to force his way in. Sam stayed on the phone when he broke the door and forced his way into the apartment.
  
• 6:31 PM –  James and Kamian heard Sam scream. They instructed Sam Goldberg to call 911.
• 6:33 PM – Sam Called 911
• 6:36 PM Emergency Responders Arrive On-Scene
• 6:42 PM – When medics arrived they found Ellen in a semi-upright position between two corner cabinets, she was pronounced dead.
• 7:30 PM James and Kamian Schwartzman arrived at the Venice Lofts Apartments, after they received multiple calls from Sam Goldberg
• 7:31 PM Officer Jamie Budd arrived, and requested the medical examiner
• 8:27 PM Detective arrived to the scene (20:27)

January 27, 2011

• 7:41 AM LE Interviewed Josh and Sandra Greenberg
  
• 3:00 AM Ellen’s body was removed from the Venice Loft apartments and transported to a morgue for an autopsy.
• 9 AM, a Dr. Marlon Osbourne performed an autopsy on the decedent. In his examination, he noted “multiple stab wounds to the chest, abdomen, and back of neck.”
• Melissa Ware, the property manager, contacted the police department because James Schwartzman, attorney and Sam’s uncle asked for access to the apartment to get a suit for his nephew. The police department told Melissa it wasn’t an active crime scene and went so far as to give Melissa the number of a crime scene clean-up crew.
• Made an arrangements with the Crime Scene Cleanup to clean up the apartment on the same day.
  
• Once apartment was cleaned, she called James Schwartzman who showed up and removed not only a suit from the apartment but also Ellen’s purse, cell phone, and laptop.

January 28, 2011

Dr. Marlon Osbourne classified the death as a homicide. Dr. Marlon Osbourne’s findings from the autopsy on January 27, 2011, provide critical details about the cause of death and the nature of the injuries sustained by the decedent:

• Multiple Stab Wounds: The decedent had numerous stab wounds to the chest, abdomen, and back of the neck.
• Critical Injuries: The stab wounds affected vital areas, including the aortic arch, left lung, and cervical spine (c-spine). This indicates severe trauma to essential organs and structures.
• Blade Details: A 12.5 cm (4.9 in) blade was embedded in the wound to the chest, with a depth of 10 cm (3.94 in). This suggests that the weapon used was quite substantial and the wounds were deep.
• Bruising: The presence of multiple bruises at different stages of resolution suggests a pattern of physical altercations or abuse occurring over time.

Jan. 29, 2011 Police Released a statement:

On Jan. 29, 2011, a police spokesperson said that despite the homicide ruling, authorities were “leaning” toward suicide in Ellen’s case and looking into “mental issues” she might have had.

Lt. Raymond Evers emphasized that the case is still wide open, but he said he wanted to assure residents of Greenberg’s Manayunk neighborhood that there wasn’t “a maniac on the loose.”

March 2011 Change the Manner of Death:

March, 2011, the PPD demanded a face-to-face meeting about Ellen’s case with Osbourne and Gulino, Osbourne’s boss, which was also attended by a high-ranking representative from the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. following meetings with investigators, Dr. Osbourne made an unprecedented decision to change his original ruling. He reversed his earlier classification of the death as a homicide and concluded that Ellen’s death was actually a suicide.

March 3, 2011, sometime after the clandestine meeting had ended, Ellen’s Death Certificate Information was quietly updated from homicide to suicide.

Three months later in March 2011, following meetings with investigators, Dr. Osbourne made an unprecedented decision to change his original ruling. He reversed his earlier classification of the death as a homicide and concluded that Ellen’s death was actually a suicide. interference in a sensitive homicide investigation. Ellen’s parents, Josh and Sandra Greenberg, were astounded by the sudden change. It made no sense to them that Ellen would have inflicted 20 stab wounds on herself.

March 7, 2011 Reversed Manner of Death:

After initially ruling Ellen’s death a homicide, on March 7, 2011 the ME’s Office reversed itself and changed the manner of Ellen’s death to suicide, siding with police investigators.

“We couldn’t prove anything else,” McNamee said. “We were just letting things go where it went, and that’s where it went.”

April 1, 2011 Laptop Forensics

Lab provided a search history from Ellen’s computer between Dec. 18, 2010, and Jan. 10, 2011, that was recovered by law enforcement’s Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory (RCFL) and turned over to police on April 1, 2011. It included the search terms _suicide methods, quick suicide,_ and _painless suicide._ He provided some of Ellen’s text messages, as well.

On April 4, 2011, Osbourne reissued a death certificate reflecting that Ellen’s death had been declared a suicide.

April 15, 2011, the MEO Investigation Report was revised to reflect that when the fiancé “forced entry into the apartment” “an apartment security man was reportedly present during the entry,” the very information Osbourne claimed he received at the clandestine meeting which he now claims convinced him to amend Ellen’s manner of death to a suicide

June 7, 2012

Dr. Wayne K. Ross issued a report stating “The scene findings were indicative if a homicide”

January 2012

Greenberg Family ordered Ellen’s autopsy report, photos of her body from the autopsy, photos of her body at the scene, and the ME’s investigation report from the scene.

• Dr. Cyril Wecht’s January 2012 report labeled it “strongly suspicious of homicide.”
• January 2012 report of Cyril Wecht, MD, on the death of Ellen Greenberg

2017

April 4, 2017 Detective Scott Eelman Provided a report. He state that Ellen’s Body was moved.

It is my opinion,that Ms. Greenberg wasnot In the position in which she was found at the time that the blood was deposited on her sweat pants, sweat shirt and shoes. lts also my opinion that Ms. Greenberg’s head had been in several positions during the time of blood flow and it remained so for enough time as to have the blood flow across her face and back toward her ear, upward toward her eyes and also downward toward her chin.

It is my opinion that tho blood stain evidence in this case ls inconsistent with positioning which Ms. Greenberg was found. Furthermore. I have serious concerns regarding the patterned blood stain to the loft of Ms. Greenberg’s right leg, the minimal amount of bloodstains on the floor in comparison with those found on the clothing of Ms. Greenberg and the flow patients of the bloodstains on Ms. Greenberg’s face relative 10 the position in which she was found.

June 7, 2012 Dr. Wayne K. Ross issued a report stating “The scene findings were indicative if a homicide”

2018

January 28, 2018 Dr. Henry-C.Lee-PhD issued a report stating “The number and type of wounds and bloodstain patterns are consistent with a homicide.

2019

October 15, 2019, the Parents, in their capacity as administrators of the Victim’s Estate, filed a Complaint in the Trial Court, seeking mandamus and declaratory relief. During the course of pre-trial discovery, the parties submitted several exhibits as evidence.

• a written declaration from Mr. Hanton, the security guard who was on duty at the apartment building on the night of the Victim’s death. R.R., Hanton Declaration. Contrary to Mr. Goldberg’s account, Mr. Hanton maintained that he did not escort Mr. Goldberg to the sixth floor, nor was he present when Mr. Goldberg forced open the apartment door. Declaration of Philip Hanton – Doorman
• The Parents also presented still images from surveillance footage, which confirmed that Mr. Goldberg went up to the apartment alone

2021

Josh and Sandra Greenberg have taken matters into their own hands, hiring attorney Joseph Podraza to help them file a lawsuit against the medical examiner’s office. They seek to have the cause of death officially changed back to homicide.

To support their case, they engaged two neuropathologists to review the autopsy report and examine brain tissue samples from their daughter.

Both experts concluded that suicide is not a viable explanation for Ellen’s death. In October 2021, a Philadelphia judge ruled that the case could proceed to civil court. 

October, 2021 Judge Glynnis D. Hill ruled in October 2021 that the civil suit filed by Ellen’s parents, Joshua and Sandra Greenberg of Harrisburg, against the Medical Examiner’s Office and Dr. Marlon Osbourne could proceed to trial.

The Greenberg’s are seeking to have the manner of their daughter’s death officially changed back to homicide or undetermined. This change would potentially allow for the reopening of the investigation and the filing of a wrongful death or misconduct lawsuit against the city.

Following Judge Hill’s decision, the city filed an appeal, arguing that Hill’s ruling was “an egregious abuse of discretion that ignored binding precedent.” The city contended that even if the medical examiner’s findings were flawed, the law does not compel a change in the manner of death.

2022

In February 2022 The court heard arguments from Joseph Podraza, the Greenberg’s attorney, and Kelly Diffily, a senior attorney with the city’s Law Department, at the Widener Building in Center City.

February 4, 2022 the Commonwealth Court granted the city’s petition and ordered the civil trial be placed on hold, pending a decision in the appeal case.

2024

July, 2024, the Petition for Allowance of Appeal is Granted

November 8, 2024 The Chester County District Attorney’s Office announced an update in the investigation related to the death of Ellen Greenberg. The DA office is currently unable to move forward with criminal charges and is placing the investigation into an inactive status.