Kurt Cobain Death Ruled Suicide in '94: Forensic Scientists Call For Homicide Investigation!

Body Bags with Joseph Scott Morgan

CrimeOnline and iHeartPodcasts

True Crime

4.7 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 18 February 2026

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The King County Medical Examiner's Office ruled Kurt Cobain's death on April 5, 1994, was the result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. In the last 30 plus years many theories of what "really" happened have appeared in books and documentaries but now comes a team of independent forensic scientists who are calling for a fresh investigation into the death of the 27-year-old. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss the investigation into the death of Kurt Cobain, was it self-inflicted as originally thought, or did someone get away with murder.

Transcribe Highlights
00:00.00 Introduction

01:54.87 Kurt Cobain death - study claims homicide

07:15.49 Grunge movement

10:06.79 The 27 Club

15:05.10 Working the Guthrie Kidnapping

20:16.32 Cobain had recent NPW

24:56.30 Drug abuse deaths are shocking

30:27.27 Cobain is in garage apartment, by himself

35:10.51 Checking mouth during autopsy - evidence of fouling, no stippling

40:17.50 Tolerance of the user is part of the discussion

45:27.40 Study is peer reviewed - International Journal of Forensic Science

50:08.25 Lungs become very heavy

53:57.93 Conclusion

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is an I-Heart podcast.
0:02.3	Guaranteed Human.
0:05.7	Bodybacks, but Joseph's Got More.
0:09.5	I can't help myself.
0:11.6	I have always been fascinated by the music industry.
0:18.7	Parts of it.
0:27.6	I've always been fascinated by people that can create things seemingly out of nothing. The ability to turn a phrase or work with the instrumentation that you, that's what's so amazing to me because I can't play an
0:40.2	instrument I can only hear what they've created and the idea that they can just summon these
0:46.9	things at will many times and there's so many out there that are really tremendous and
0:52.4	they go their entire lives without recognition.
0:58.0	But the case that we're going to discuss today, that person doesn't fit that bill.
1:05.0	The person we're going to discuss today is known worldwide.
1:16.5	He's known worldwide. His band or former band is known worldwide,
1:33.3	even though he's been dead since 1994. Of course, you know who I'm talking about about I'm talking about Kirk Cobain the lead singer and guitarist for the band Nirvana and today we're going to talk about his death you say why well
1:43.1	it just so happens that a study has recently been completed
1:48.8	and the forensic analysis, according to this team, that they have concluded that Kirk Cobain's
1:58.6	death, in their opinion, is not a suicide.
2:03.6	It's actually a homicide.
2:06.6	I'm Joseph Scott Morgan, and this is Bodybacks.
2:15.6	The early 90s, Dave, I can't really recall what type of music I was listening to.
2:23.8	Grunch is kind of, I've listened to it, and there's some of those bands that fit within that genre that I did enjoy.
2:32.1	I enjoyed some of Nirvana's music.
	...

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