Kurt Cobain’s death back in the news

The 27‑year‑old Kurt Cobain was found shot in the head in the back room of his Seattle home in April 1994, and his death was recorded as suicide shortly thereafter.

The independent research group “Who Killed Kurt?” claimed that in a November 2025 interview with then Police Chief Shon Barnes, the issue of no blood being found on Cobain’s left hand—supposedly holding the gun—was raised. According to the group, Barnes offered an assessment that the finding could be related to blood spatter after the shooting.

Researchers argue that the forensic examination and ballistic analysis they presented warrant a re‑evaluation of the incident. However, these claims have not definitively proven that Cobain was murdered.

Seattle police did not reopen the investigation.

The Seattle Police Department (SPD) announced in January that it would not reopen the investigation into Cobain’s death and had maintained the findings of the 2014 review. The review had also stated that no evidence pointing to a homicide had been found.

The Seattle Office of Police Accountability (OPA) began examining Barnes’s approach to the new evidence after a researcher filed a complaint on June 28.

Researchers want clarity on whether the findings they presented have been adequately evaluated. Barnes, OPA and Seattle police did not respond to the comment requests in the story.