EXCLUSIVE: Kurt Cobain's Cause of Death Questioned With 'Murder' Theories — As Tragic Nirvana Rocker's Autopsy is Revealed for First Time
Kurt Cobain's death continues to be questioned over 20 years since the tragedy.
Feb. 19 2026, Published 3:20 p.m. ET
Kurt Cobain joined the "27 Club" when he died from what authorities ruled a self-inflicted shotgun wound in 1994 – but newly disclosed autopsy documents and a private forensic review are reigniting claims his death may have been a homicide, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Cobain was found on April 8, 1994, slumped in the atrium above the detached garage of his Seattle home.
Authorities ruled Cobain’s death a self-inflicted shotgun wound in 1994.
According to the King County Medical Examiner, he had suffered a shotgun wound to the head, with a handwritten note nearby and a shotgun in his left hand.
The autopsy, signed by chief medical examiner Dr. Donald Reay on June 20, 1994, was never publicly released. But now, a group of independent forensic researchers say they have obtained and analyzed the full report alongside crime scene records, concluding that elements of the case are inconsistent with suicide.
Seattle Police have long maintained the original finding.
Undocumented Bloodstains Suggest Body Was Moved
Chief medical examiner Dr. Donald Reay signed the original autopsy report in June 1994.
Bryan Burnett, an independent crime scene reconstruction expert, said his team identified what he described as an undocumented bloodstain on Cobain's left pant leg. After enhancing one image, he said the mark was "extraordinary."
In a peer-reviewed study published in November, Burnett argued the irregular stain pattern was consistent with transfer bloodstains and not with blood pooling beneath a body. He said the absence of similar staining on Cobain's sock and shoe suggested contact with a bloodied hand or surface.
Burnett also pointed to blood on Cobain's shirt.
"Cobain was bleeding onto his shirts," he said. According to the analysis, blood from the troubled rocker's mouth, nose, and left ear should have flowed onto the face and floor if the body had remained in place.
Instead, the pattern suggests the upper body may have been lifted, causing blood to flow onto the shirt.
The report claims: "After the intraoral shotgun discharge, Cobain's body was moved, either from a different location in the greenhouse before the staging of his body or, more likely, he was carried up the exterior stairs at the side of the garage to the greenhouse."
Toxicology Report Findings Revealed
Expert Bryan Burnett identified an undocumented bloodstain on Cobain's left pant leg.
Toxicology results documented morphine, codeine, diazepam, and heroin in Cobain's system. Researchers have now questioned whether he could have injected himself and carried out the sequence described by the police.
Their report states: "Intravenous administration of a heroin dose sufficient to result in a blood morphine level of 1.52mg/L would likely lead to intoxication and sedation too quickly to allow for the series of events in the suicide scenario."
It adds a syringe imprint "seems unlikely to have been administered by Cobain, and could therefore be consistent with the action by an assailant."
The autopsy details the catastrophic head wound by stating: "ENTRANCE WOUND: Located on the superior hard palate 1/2 inch posterior to the anterior incisors is a 3/4 inch x 1-1/4 inch oval-shaped entrance shotgun wound defect."
Approximately 30 small BB lead-type shot and a distorted plastic shotgun shell wad were recovered from the cerebral hemispheres. Investigators found no evidence of a struggle beyond broken glass from the atrium entry.
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Investigators found the Nirvana frontman slumped in the atrium above his Seattle garage.
Burnett further questioned the positioning of the shotgun, arguing recoil and backspatter should have produced visible blood on Cobain's hand. While blood was found inside the gun's compensator grooves, the analysis says none was documented on his left dorsal hand. The expert also cited layered clothing pushed up on one leg as potential evidence the body had been carried.
A spokesperson for the Seattle Police Department insisted, "Kurt Cobain died by suicide in 1994. This continues to be the position held by the Seattle Police Department."
