DALLAS — Watch coverage of Selena’s death, 30 years later, on the WFAA+ streaming app on Monday, including archive footage from the day she was killed. Don’t have WFAA+? Here’s how to download and install the app.

Selena Quintanilla’s death remains one of the most heartbreaking moments in music history.

The 23-year-old Tejano superstar was on the verge of international stardom when she was fatally shot by the woman who once called herself her biggest fan.

The year before her death, I interviewed Selena and asked where she saw herself in 10 years. Her answer is now haunting.

“I just hope to still be alive, hopefully singing still and maybe later on 10 years down the road, I hope to have a family by then,” she said in 1994.

Selena never had the chance to fully live out her dreams. However, her fame has only grown in the decades since her murder.

Her story has been told in films, books and television specials. Most recently, her husband, Chris Perez, released a documentary about her life—a deeply personal reflection from the man who knew her best.

Now, for the first time, her killer, Yolanda Saldivar, was up for parole after serving 30 years of her life sentence in prison. But Saldivar was denied parole on March 27, 2025, and will remain behind bars until at least 2030, when she’s next eligible to have her case reviewed by the parole board.

Saldivar has rarely granted interviews, but last year, a documentary was released by filmmaker Billie Mintz, one of the few people who has spoken with her face to face to hear her side of the story.

“So, learning about Selena’s murder was obviously tragic. But it wasn’t until I started looking into the case, reading the trial transcripts, looking at the police reports that I realized the story we were told is not the full story,” Mintz said.

His investigation revealed documents and witness accounts never shared with the public.

Prosecutors and Selena’s family have always maintained that Saldivar was upset because Selena caught her embezzling money and fired her. Prosecutors say that’s why, on March 31, 1995, the two women were arguing inside a Corpus Christi hotel room when Saldivar shot and killed Selena.

“My daughter Selena was killed this morning by a disgruntled employee,” Abraham Quintanilla told reporters later that day.

However, Mintz, the producer of the Saldivar documentary, claims he uncovered evidence that contradicts the prosecution’s case. He said Saldivar resigned.

“The story fails because there is evidence of a resignation letter. So here we’re saying that Yolanda Saldivar was fired. But there’s a resignation letter, and she felt betrayed,” said Mintz.

He also asserts that Saldivar never embezzled money.

“The accusations were dropped, the trial was dropped, so this idea that Yolanda was stealing money is a myth,” Mintz said. 

But Selena’s family, friends and fans argue that none of that matters because, in the end, Saldivar pulled the trigger, taking away a beloved icon. A fan in 1995 told WFAA, “She worked so hard to get to the top, and now someone has come and taken it all away.”

Mintz states that Saldivar admits to having a gun but insists it went off by accident when Selena turned to leave the room during the argument.

“Yolanda, with the gun in her hand, cocked back, says ‘Don’t close the door,’ and with that motion…the gun fires and goes off. And that’s why she claims it was an accident,” said Mintz. 

However, the bullet, which struck Selena in the back of her shoulder, ended the life of the talented rising star.

“She left a big empty place in Tejano music, and I don’t think it will ever be filled,” said a fan, 1995. 

If Saldivar wanted to be released on parole, one of the criteria was that she had to admit she committed the crime, take responsibility and show remorse—something she has never done, instead shifting the blame to the victim.

“She has told me countless times, including in the documentary, that she took a life. She should have never done that. There are consequences for what she has done. She’s responsible for Selena’s death. I think because she has her own truth for what led to that,” said Mintz.

I covered Selena’s funeral in 1995 and witnessed the pain everyone felt—a pain that lingers to this day. Many still wonder: What if Selena was still alive?