For years, Geronimo Castillo fought tirelessly to prevent his daughter, Noelia Castillo, a victim of gang rape, from opting for euthanasia. Yet, despite his efforts, the courts ultimately ruled in favor of her decision to end her life.
Supported by the organization Christian Lawyers, Geronimo argued that Noelia’s mental health struggles compromised her capacity to make such a profound decision. He also criticized the Spanish state, accusing it of neglecting his daughter by suggesting euthanasia instead of providing more comprehensive psychiatric care.
In a poignant final interview, Noelia expressed awareness of the deep sorrow her decision would bring to her loved ones, particularly her father. She was euthanized on Thursday, steadfast in her resolution despite the emotional toll it would take on her family.
“None of my family supports euthanasia. But what about all the suffering I’ve endured over the years?” Noelia questioned, highlighting the depth of her pain.
She insisted, “The happiness of a father, a mother, or a sister cannot outweigh the life of a daughter,” standing firm in her belief that her suffering warranted the choice she made.
“The happiness of a father, a mother, or a sister cannot be more important than the life of a daughter,” she maintained defiantly.
Noelia launched her euthanasia process in April 2024, almost two years after she was paralyzed when she attempted suicide by jumping off a building — which her dad had witnessed, she said.
“My father saw me fall and couldn’t do anything. But after everything he’s done, I don’t feel sorry for him anymore,” she told Y Ahora Sonsoles in a final interview before her death.
“He hasn’t respected my decision and he never will,” she added.
She told her interviewer that the suicide attempt came days after three men assaulted her at an entertainment center.
Noelia also said she had been assaulted by a previous boyfriend and survived another attempted assault.
Her euthanasia was first approved by a medical board in Catalonia in July 2024 but in August, a day before the scheduled procedure, a Barcelona court accepted her father’s petition to postpone it.
The case moved through multiple courts in Spain throughout 2025 before, in January 2026, the Spanish Supreme Court upheld Noelia’s right to euthanasia, rejecting her father’s appeal.
In February, the Constitutional Court of Spain rejected a further appeal, stating there was “no violation of fundamental rights.”
On Tuesday, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rejected a final request for interim measures to stop the procedure.
A Barcelona judge denied a last-minute emergency injunction on Thursday, and Noelia received life-ending medication at 6:00 p.m. local time.
Noelia’s suicide attempt left her paraplegic and in a state of constant, “unbearable” physical and psychological pain, and she argued that under Spanish law, she met the criteria of having a “serious and incurable” condition and was mentally capable of deciding to end her life.
Geronimo argued that his daughter’s history of psychiatric conditions—specifically borderline personality disorder and OCD—meant she lacked the “mental capacity” to make a truly free and informed decision.
