Details of singer Selena Quintanilla’s autopsy report were revealed for the first time in the Netflix documentary “Selena y Los Dinos: A Family Legacy,” 30 years after her death.
The death of the beloved singer gripped the headlines and her story was the center of the 1997 film “Selena” starring Jennifer Lopez. Quintanilla was shot to death in March 1995 at the age of 23 by the former president of her fan club, Yolanda Saldívar.
The original autopsy was performed just three hours after the famous singer’s death due to public interest, according to Us Weekly. Coroner Lloyd White confirmed that her cause of death was “a result of an exsanguinating internal and external hemorrhage, in other words massive bleeding, due to a perforating gunshot wound of the thorax (chest).”
Singer Selena Quintanilla is honored posthumously with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 3, 2017, in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / TARA ZIEMBA (Photo credit should read TARA ZIEMBA/AFP via Getty Images)
The bullet penetrated Selena’s back and its path was followed from her ribs to her “upper pulmonary lobe,” before it punctured “the chest wall,” according to the coroner’s report. Authorities found an exit wound on the “upper right anterior chest,” according to Us Weekly.
The coroner ruled that the bullet’s trajectory severely injured Selena’s subclavian artery and was a factor in her death.
Fans hols a photo of Selena during the ceremony honoring singer Selena Quintanilla with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 3, 2017, in Hollywood, California. / AFP PHOTO / TARA ZIEMBA (Photo credit should read TARA ZIEMBA/AFP via Getty Images)
The coroner’s report found that “blood [was] present over many areas of the clothes” Selena was dressed in when she died.
The gripping documentary began streaming Nov. 17 on Netflix and features new footage of the pop star’s life, according to the Rolling Stone.
BEVERLY HILLS, UNITED STATES: The parents of deceased Tejano singer Selena, Marcella and Abraham Quintanilla Jr. (R), confer at a press conference in Beverly Hills 18 June. The press conference was held to reveal the stars of the upcoming Warner Brothers Studio movie about Selena. AFP PHOTO Tiziana SORGE (Photo credit should read TIZIANA SORGE/AFP via Getty Images)
Prior to her death, Quintanilla confronted Saldívar over her suspicion that the other woman was embezzling funds from her businesses, CNN reported, citing testimony from Saldívar’s trial (RELATED: Legendary KISS Guitarist Ace Frehley Died After Blunt Trauma Caused Brain Bleed, Stroke)
Saldívar claimed the gunshot was an accident and pleaded not guilty after being charged with first-degree murder. She was convicted and received a life sentence with the possibility of parole. She was up for parole but her request was denied earlier in March 2025. She will be able to seek parole again in 2030, according to the Rolling Stone.
