Seville court dismisses lawsuit against school in Sandra Peña suicide case

The Provincial Court of Seville has confirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the parents of Sandra Peña, a 14-year-old girl who died by suicide in October 2025 following alleged school bullying. The lawsuit targeted the administrators of the Las Irlandesas de Loreto school, alleging negligence and failure to prevent psychological harm.

The court ruled there was a “lack of causality” between the school's actions and the girl's death, noting that the incident occurred outside school grounds and that educators' duty of supervision does not extend to a student's home. While the court found the school's response to bullying to be “deficient,” it determined that criminal charges for homicide through negligence or degrading treatment could not be attributed to the staff.

In a separate reflection within the ruling, Judge Mercedes Alaya expressed profound consternation regarding the case. She called upon educational authorities to act with “promptness, efficacy, and decisiveness,” arguing that leaving the responsibility for managing bullying solely to school management teams has proven insufficient to prevent tragic outcomes.

In Chiclana, a memorial was held for the teenager, where local authorities and community members honored her memory and dedicated sports courts in her name. Attendees used the occasion to raise awareness about the devastating impact of bullying on adolescents.