Spanish woman, 25, dies by euthanasia after long legal battle with her father

A Spanish woman who has conducted a long legal battle with her father for the right to end her life died by euthanasia on Thursday, the BBC writes.

Barcelona resident Noelia Castillo, 25, was left paraplegic due to injuries suffered when she tried to take her own life in 2022.

The Catalan government granted her the right to assisted dying in the summer of 2024 but the process was suspended at the last moment after legal objections raised by her father.

He argued his daughter suffered from a personality disorder which affected her judgement.

He also pointed to “the obligation of the state to protect the lives of people, especially the most vulnerable, as is the case with a young person with mental health problems.”

That appeal started an 18-month legal battle which ended when the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled in Noelia Castillo’s favor.

Speaking to Spanish TV earlier this week, Castillo said her father had tried to legally block her decision to die with dignity.

She also recounted her difficult childhood, much of it spent in care homes.

She said she was first sexually assaulted by her ex-boyfriend of four years after she had taken sleeping pills to help her sleep, and said she was also assaulted on another occasion by several men in a nightclub.

The 25-year-old said she had always “felt alone” and never had doubts that she wanted to go ahead with the decision to die by euthanasia.