Kurt Cobain's 1995 Police File Request by Courtney Love Revealed

In October 1995, Courtney Love, the widow of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, instructed her lawyer Bryan Coluccio to write to Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper requesting the complete investigative file on Cobain’s death, with a stipulation that no copies be retained by the department. The request came about a year and a half after Cobain’s body was found in his Seattle home with a self‑inflicted gunshot wound, a case the police had officially ruled a suicide. Love and Cobain’s estate had publicly accepted that conclusion, but the letter explained that the motive for obtaining the full file was to prevent “various people” from profiting by selling or distributing the sensitive material, which included 35 mm film rolls, Polaroids, personal letters and financial documents. Seattle Police rejected the request, arguing that destroying or removing the records would compromise public‑record preservation. The letter was uncovered by the research group Who Killed Kurt?, which continues to argue that Cobain was murdered. The revelation adds another chapter to the long‑standing debate over the circumstances of Cobain’s death.