Elliott’s ‘suicide’ has been mentioned so many times in press articles, and in this 2007 Spinner short item about Jennifer Chiba’s failed attempt to get money from the estate, people who thought about Chiba’s possible involvement in Elliott death were qualified of ‘conspiracy theorists’… but a few years can make a difference. Now Elliott has entered Spinner’s top 13 mysterious Musician deaths at rank number 11. This is what they wrote:
‘On Oct. 21, 2003, singer-songwriter Elliott Smith died of two stab wounds to the chest inside his L.A. apartment. His girlfriend Jennifer Chiba claimed that, following an argument, Smith — who battled addiction and depression — stabbed himself in the chest, puncturing his heart, and left a note that read, "I'm so sorry-love, Elliot God forgive me." Chiba claimed she was in the bathroom when she heard a scream, then found Smith with the knife in his chest. She admitted to removing the knife, and the autopsy notes a lack of hesitation wounds and the fact that the stabbing occurred through clothing, which are both "atypical" in suicides of this nature. The report also notes possible defensive wounds on Smith's right arm and left hand, and that there was no alcohol or illegal drugs in his system. Chiba later sued Smith's family for 15% of his estate, claiming to be his wife and manager, but eventually lost.’
Not only they have linked to the Smoking Gun’s pages about the autopsy and police report, but they actually give accurate information, rightly pointing that the lack of hesitation marks and stabbing through clothing are atypical of suicides by stabbing. They only should have repeated that the incorrect spelling on the supposed suicide note was a mistake done by the police to clarify any other false theories, but beside this, it’s quite good,… Is Spinner reading rock nyc?
conspiracy theorists look too much into this death. I love Elliott Smith with all of my heart and he’s absolutely my idol, but you have to love him for all that he was — including his addiction and depressive state.
This is no conspiracy theory, sure there was the depression, the addiction and the talk about suicide, that’s why it is so easy to think he did it.
But once you look into the facts, there are inconsistencies and oddities. Superficially, it fits with a certain idea of Elliott Smith, but when you get closer, it doesn’t, and believe me, I have talked to people who were very close.
Just as Steven Drozd from the Flaming Lips said:
‘In my mind, I could totally see it being like, ‘Hey I’m outta here, I’m gonna do a shot and OD – game over, see ya’. But it’s another thing to actually pierce yourself in the heart with a fucking knife. And that’s what we’ve all been talking about. It’s really weird that he would do it that way – or could do it that way.’