Chester County DA's Office unable to move forward with criminal charges in Ellen Greenberg case

CHESTER COUNTY, Pennsylvania (WPVI) - The Chester County District Attorney's Office announced an update Friday in the death investigation of Ellen Greenberg.

The district attorney's office said they are unable to move forward with criminal charges and is placing the investigation into an "inactive status."

Greenberg was 27-year-old when she was found dead of more than 20 stab wounds inside her locked Manayunk apartment in 2011.

She was discovered by her fiancé in January 26, 2011, at the Venice Lofts on the 4600 block of Flat Rock Road. He has never been named a person of interest in the case.

Greenberg's family has long sought to get her suicide ruling changed to homicide or undetermined, have have filed two lawsuits against the city.

The Philadlephia Police Department, as well as the Philadlephia District Attorney's Office investigated the case, which was initially ruled as a homicide after an autopsy. That initial determination was later changed to a suicide by the Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office.

Then, in 2019, the investigation was turned over to the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office for review since Philadlephia District Attorney Larry Krasner had previously represented the Greenbergs.

The Attorney General's Office agreed with the suicide determination. But in July 2022, the AG's Office kicked the case back to Philadelphia

However, to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, the investigation was then turned over to Chester County Detectives in August of 2022.

Since then, Chester County investigators say they have been working to determine if there is sufficient evidence to reopen the investigation.

On Friday, those investigators revealed that their team has determined that they cannot prove "beyond a reasonable doubt" that a crime was committed, adding that without this standard of proof, they are placing the investigation in an "inactive status."

Officials added that there is no statute of limitations for a criminal homicide in Pennsylvania.

"Because investigation can take new directions, we are not closing the case," Chester County District Attorney's Office said in a press release.