KIRO NEWSRADIO OPINION

‘There are inconsistencies’: Curley revisits Kurt Cobain’s death despite SPD refusing to reopen case

Feb 19, 2026, 12:51 PM | Updated: 12:52 pm

More than 30 years after Kurt Cobain, the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter for the Washington-founded band Nirvana, was found dead, his case is getting a fresh look.

After reviewing evidence, a private sector forensic team brought in independent forensic specialist Brian Burnett, who, after three days, determined Cobain’s death was a homicide, according to The Daily Mail.

Although the Seattle Police Department has said Cobain’s case remains closed and has “no plans to revisit it,” John Curley, host of “The John Curley Show” on KIRO Newsradio, went through another review of the facts in the case.

“SPD officer [Neil Lowe] is saying that the problem is, they went in there thinking it was a suicide, and it was a botched investigation,” Curley said. “After Lowe looked at the autopsy, all other indications just don’t make sense. The condition of Kurt Cobain’s body, the position of the shotgun, which was in his hand, and how he shot himself in the head.”

Inconsistencies in Cobain’s suicide note, other evidence pointing to homicide

Despite rumors of an earlier suicide attempt while Cobain was touring Europe, many fans still believe his death was a homicide, rejecting SPD’s determination.

“Kurt Cobain fans still, many of them do not believe that he killed himself, and he had a lot of stuff to look forward to,” Curley said. “He had a new album coming out. He’s gonna do sort of acoustic stuff. He’s writing different types of songs. Yes, he might have been feeling quite despondent while in the UK, but it wouldn’t have led to him taking a shotgun to his own head.”

KIRO Newsradio producer Joe Wallace broke down why homicide rumors persist, including potential inconsistencies in Cobain’s suicide note, which may have been partially written by someone else. Wallace also noted theories about financial motives, suggesting Cobain’s then-wife Courtney Love may have had reason to arrange his death after allegedly being written out of his will.

“[Lowe] was asked to basically audit the investigation almost 10 years after it happened,” Wallace said. “They didn’t reopen it, but he determined that it was a homicide, not a suicide. I don’t know why he’s back in the news for it now, but there is also a theory that there are inconsistencies in the suicide note.

“Half of it seems to be in Cobain’s handwriting, and the other half seems like it was written by somebody else,” Wallace continued. “In half, he basically says, ‘Tell my daughter I love her,’ in the suicide note half, whereas the first half is just more kind of musings of a rock star kind of thing.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to John Curley weekday afternoons from 3 – 7 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

John Curley on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM
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John Curley

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‘There are inconsistencies’: Curley revisits Kurt Cobain’s death despite SPD refusing to reopen case