Their Daughter’s 2011 Death Was Ruled a Suicide — Even Though She Had 20 Stab Wounds and Bruises All Over Her Body

For the past 14 years, Sandee and Josh Greenberg have been fighting to uncover the truth about the 2021 death of their 27-year-old daughter, Ellen Greenberg.

On Jan. 26, 2011, Ellen’s fiancé, Sam Goldberg, then 28, called 911 and said he found her on the kitchen floor of their Philadelphia apartment with a 10-inch long kitchen knife sticking out of her chest.

According to the autopsy, he beloved first-grade teacher had suffered 20 stab wounds and had 11 bruises in various stages of healing all over her body. Based on the observations of Dr. Marlon Osbourne of the Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office, Ellen’s death was initially ruled a homicide. 

ABC News Studios Death in Apartment 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg? , a new three-part documentary premiering Sept. 29 on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers, chronicles Ellen’s parents’ 14-year quest for answers after the Medical Examiner’s Office autopsy results were abruptly switched from “homicide” to “suicide” without explanation several months later, precluding any further official investigation of their daughter’s sudden death.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE ahead of the docuseries release, Sandee, a retired dental hygienist and Josh, 75, a retired periodontist, spoke about coping with the shocking death of their only child while trying to figure out why the manner of death was changed to suicide — and why the city officials wouldn’t change it back to homicide.

Says Josh: “We are just two parents who want the truth for our daughter. That’s it.”After investigating on their own for years, in 2019, the Greenbergs sued the City of Philadelphia and others, asking them to change Ellen’s manner of death back to homicide so police could investigate.

Last Feb. 3, the Greenbergs settled the lawsuits, with city officials agreeing to reevaluate the original autopsy. Meanwhile, Dr. Osbourne signed a statement saying the “manner of death should be designated as something other than suicide.”

The city has yet to complete its reevaluation and has been ordered by a Philadelphia judge to finish it by Oct. 14.

“That empowered Josh and I to dig deeper, look harder, find out more,”  Sandee tells PEOPLE. “And every step of the way, more things begin to unravel.”

The Greenbergs’ doggedness is one element “Death in Apartment 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg?” executive producer Nancy Schwartzman wanted to highlight in the docuseries.

“I think what’s so incredible about the story is that Sandee and Josh were never going to give up,” says Schwartzman. 

Referring to the cadre of professionals and experts who helped the Greenbergs uncover new evidence that raises questions about Ellen’s death, Schwartzman says, 

“This community of really talented people saw the facts and details of this case as discovered by the Greenbergs themselves and collectively came together and said, ‘This is not right. Based on our expertise, none of this adds up.’ ”

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