In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Castillo and the second or maternal family name is Ramos.

Noelia Castillo
Castillo in 2026, in her final interview
Born
Noelia Castillo Ramos

(2000-11-14)14 November 2000[1]
Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain[1]
Died 26 March 2026(2026-03-26) (aged 25)
Sant Pere de Ribes, Catalonia, Spain
Cause of death Euthanasia

Noelia Castillo Ramos (14 November 2000 – 26 March 2026) was a Spanish woman who died after receiving euthanasia. Her request for euthanasia became a landmark case in Spain on the application of the Organic Law Regulating Euthanasia in the country. At age 25, she was one of the youngest people to receive medical assistance in dying after demonstrating chronic and irreversible pain. Her case garnered significant public attention due to a two-year legal battle, in which the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) had to intervene to validate her right against appeals filed by her father and the Christian Lawyers Association [es], who questioned her legal capacity.[2][3]

Background

When Castillo was 13, her parents lost their home, and she was taken into social care.[4] Castillo was diagnosed with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD).[5] She was in social care from July 2015 to February 2019, when she voluntarily left as a legal adult.[6]

Castillo stated in an interview that she suffered from three incidents of sexual assault that she did not report and therefore were not officially investigated or judicially confirmed: one from an ex-partner, a second by a group of two males at a nightclub, and a third also at a nightclub by a group of three males.[6]

On 4 October 2022, several days after the second group assault, Castillo attempted suicide by jumping from a building.[6] Castillo survived, but the incident left her with irreversible paraplegia, accompanied by chronic physical pain, neurological damage, and severe psychological suffering.[7]

Campaign

Castillo formally requested euthanasia in 2024, invoking the provisions of existing Spanish law. The main obstacle was the opposition of her father, who, with the support of the Christian Lawyers Association (Asociación de Abogados Cristianos), initiated a series of legal appeals to halt the procedure. All courts rejected the request to stop the procedure and upheld Castillo's right to die.[8] The father argued that his daughter could not make her own judgements due to her personality disorder, and that the state had a responsibility to protect her.[9]

Despite having legal approval, the procedure was delayed for 601 days due to the protracted legal battle.[10] Her procedure was unanimously approved in July 2024 and was due to take place the next month, until her father appealed.[11] In March 2025, her father's appeal was rejected by a court in Barcelona that found that Castillo was not incapable of making a decision on euthanasia.[12]

An appeal to the High Court of Justice of Catalonia upheld the euthanasia in September 2025, but permitted an appeal to the Supreme Court of Spain.[13] On 29 January 2026, the father's appeal was rejected by the Supreme Court,[14] and his appeal to the Constitutional Court of Spain was dismissed as he did not specify how his human rights were violated.[15] On 10 March 2026, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg, France rejected the father's final appeal.[16]

In her final interview, broadcast on Antena 3's Y ahora Sonsoles [es] on 25 March 2026, Castillo said that her decision to die was personal and she wasn't encouraging other people to request euthanasia.[17]

Reactions

British concert pianist and writer James Rhodes, who lives in Spain and is a survivor of child sexual abuse, offered to pay for Castillo's mental and physical healthcare.[18]

Castillo's euthanasia was debated in the Congress of Deputies. Politicians from parties including the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, Republican Left of Catalonia, Galician Nationalist Bloc, EH Bildu and Sumar spoke in support. The People's Party and Vox criticised the decision.[19]

Luis Argüello, archbishop of Valladolid and president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference of the Catholic Church, condemned the euthanasia.[20] José Mazuelos Pérez, Bishop of the Canary Islands, said the outcome was "another step towards a culture of death, throwing in the towel on the humanisation of medicine."[21] The bishops of the Subcommission for the Family and the Defence of Life said that the case exemplified "an accumulation of personal suffering and institutional shortcomings that calls the whole of society into question" (cf. Christianity and euthanasia).[21]

Death

On 26 March 2026, Castillo, age 25, underwent euthanasia at a healthcare centre in Sant Pere de Ribes in the Province of Barcelona. The procedure consisted of the intravenous administration of drugs that induced deep sedation and subsequent respiratory arrest, designed to prevent the patient from experiencing pain.[22][23] Her mother requested to be present in the room, but she chose to die alone.[24]

Castillo was the third youngest person to receive euthanasia in Spain. Of the 1,123 people who had received euthanasia, two people aged 22 and 23 were younger.[25]

Castillo's father's lawyers said that they had information from a relative that she was gang-raped by unaccompanied child migrants while in a care centre. This was then disseminated by Vox leader Santiago Abascal. Various fact-checking websites consider this to be misinformation: Castillo was 21 when she attempted suicide days after the group assault, and had left care over three years earlier. In her broadcast interview, she did not describe her assailants, and said the incidents happened at a nightclub.[6][26][27]

Castillo's euthanasia was also reported as being granted due to her having depression, year officially it was granted due to chronic and irreversible pain from her suicide attempt.[6][26] Her father's lawyers also said that her euthanasia could not be suspended as her organs were already committed to donation, and that doctors had financial interests in the donation of her organs.[26][28]

See also

  • Euthanasia in Spain

References

  1. ^ a b Raphael, Ricardo (28 March 2026). "Saber acompañar: el caso de Noelia Castillo" [Knowing how to accompany peple: the Noelia Castillo case]. Milenio (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 March 2026.
  2. ^ Damestoy, Cindy (26 March 2026). "La entrevista completa de Noelia Castillo Ramos, la joven de 25 años que murió tras recibir la eutanasia: "No quiero ser ejemplo de nadie, simplemente es mi vida"" [The full interview with Noelia Castillo Ramos, the 25-year-old who died after receiving euthanasia: "I don't want to be an example for anyone, it's simply my life"]. Clarín (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  3. ^ "Murió Noelia Castillo Ramos tras recibir la eutanasia en España" [Noelia Castillo Ramos died after receiving euthanasia in Spain]. La Voz (in Spanish). 26 March 2026. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  4. ^ Requeijo, Alejandro (18 March 2025). "La historia tras la eutanasia de Noelia: unas religiosas, un notario y una vida tutelada". El Confidencial (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  5. ^ Mosquera, Pau (26 March 2026). "Después de una batalla legal de 20 meses, España permite que la joven Noelia Castillo reciba la eutanasia" [After a 20-month legal battle, Spain permits young Noelia Castillo to receive euthanasia] (in Spanish). CNN. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  6. ^ a b c d e García Bueno, Jesús (26 March 2026). "Los bulos sobre Noelia Castillo: de la violación de 'menas' a la "eutanasia por depresión"" [Fake news about Noelia Castillo: from rape by 'unaccompanied child migrants' to "euthanasia for depression"]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  7. ^ "Qué le pasó a Noelia Castillo Ramos, la mujer que recibirá la eutanasia en España" [What happened to Noelia Castillo Ramos, the woman who will receive euthanasia in Spain?]. La Nación (in Spanish). 26 March 2026. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  8. ^ "España: una paciente psiquiátrica de 25 años será este jueves la persona más joven en recibir la eutanasia" [Spain: A 25-year-old psychiatric patient will become the youngest person to receive euthanasia this Thursday]. Diario Perfil (in Spanish). 26 March 2026.
  9. ^ Gozzi, Laura (26 March 2026). "Spanish woman dies by euthanasia after long legal battle with father". BBC News. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  10. ^ García Bueno, Jesús (26 March 2026). "Noelia Castillo, the young woman who fought her parents for her right to die: 'I can't take this family anymore'". El País. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  11. ^ Hedgecoe, Guy (4 March 2025). "Father tries to block daughter's euthanasia in landmark Spanish case". BBC News. Retrieved 29 March 2026.
  12. ^ Pérez Medina, Alfonso (17 March 2025). "La Justicia avala la eutanasia de Noelia y rechaza que su padre pueda impedir su derecho a morir dignamente" [Court upholds Noelia's euthanasia and rejects her father being able to impede her right to die with dignity] (in Spanish). laSexta. Retrieved 29 March 2026.
  13. ^ Villalvilla, Elena L. (19 September 2025). "La Justicia catalana avala la eutanasia de la joven de 24 años con paraplejia que se frenó hace un año" [Catalan judiciary upholds euthanasia of the 24-year-old with paraplegia which was put on hold a year ago] (in Spanish). Infobae. Retrieved 29 March 2026.
  14. ^ Ochoa, Liliana; García Bueno, Jesús (29 January 2026). "El Supremo avala la eutanasia de Noelia y tumba el recurso del padre para impedirlo" [Supreme Court upholds Noelia's euthanasia and rejects father's appeal to stop it]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  15. ^ "El Constitucional rechaza por unanimidad el último intento del padre de Noelia para frenar su eutanasia" [Constitutional Court unanimously rejects Noelia's father's final appeal to stop her euthanasia] (in Spanish). Onda Cero. EFE. 20 February 2026. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  16. ^ "El TEDH rechaza suspender la eutanasia solicitada por Noelia pese a la petición de su padre" [ECHR rejects suspending the euthanasia requested by Noelia despite her father's appeal]. El Confidencial (in Spanish). EFE. 24 March 2026. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  17. ^ Mallo, Juanma (25 March 2026). "La última entrevista de Noelia, la joven que recibirá la eutanasia este jueves: «No quiero que mi familia me vea cerrando los ojos»" [The last interview of Noelia, the young woman who will receive euthanasia on Thursday: "I don't want my family to see me closing my eyes"]. El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  18. ^ Gamarra, Lorena (26 March 2026). "El pianista James Rhodes se ofrece a pagar los gastos médicos y psicológicos de Noelia para que dé marcha atrás a la eutanasia" [Pianist James Rhodes offers to pay Noelia's medical and psychological costs so that she steps back from euthanasia]. ABC (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  19. ^ "De "fracaso del Estado" a "máximo respeto": la eutanasia de Noelia Castillo llega al Congreso" [From "failure of the State" to "maximum respect": Noelia Castillo's euthanasia reaches Congress] (in Spanish). RTVE. 26 March 2026. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  20. ^ "Los obispos españoles, contra la eutanasia de Noelia: "Su verdadero alivio no es el suicidio"" [Spanish bishops, against Noelia's euthanasia: "Her true relief is not suicide"]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 26 March 2026. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  21. ^ a b Maturana, Jesús; Caraballo, Cristian (27 March 2026). "Catholic Church criticises Noelia Castillo's death by euthanasia". Euronews. Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  22. ^ de Cárdenas, Nicolás (26 March 2026). "Over Parents' Objections, 25-Year-Old Woman Euthanized in Spain". NCR. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  23. ^ Izquierdo, Ignacio (26 March 2026). "Eduardo Verástegui quiso "ayudar" a Noelia Castillo, la joven española que se sometió a eutanasia" [Eduardo Verástegui wanted to "help" Noelia Castillo, the young Spanish woman who underwent euthanasia]. Infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  24. ^ Riesco Pérez, Santiago (26 March 2026). "Noelia Castillo, el final de una vida "sin metas ni proyectos", pero con la determinación de morir en paz" [Noelia Castillo, the end of a life "without goals or projects", but with the determination to die peacefully] (in Spanish). RTVE. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  25. ^ Pérez, Pilar (26 March 2026). "Noelia, la tercera española más joven en recibir la eutanasia: "Lo único que distorsiona en este caso es la edad"" [Noelia, the third youngest Spaniard to receive euthanasia: "The only unusual thing in this case is the age"]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2026.
  26. ^ a b c Pardillo, Nerea (28 March 2026). "Bulos sobre la eutanasia de Noelia Castillo: desde que fue violada por menas hasta que sus órganos estaban comprometidos" [Fake news about Noelia Castillo's euthanasia: from her being raped by unaccompanied child migrants to her organs being promised] (in Spanish). Onda Cero. Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  27. ^ Ocaña, Jorge (27 March 2026). "Nada prueba que Noelia Castillo, la joven que recibió la eutanasia, fuera violada por menores extranjeros" [Nothing proves that Noelia Castillo, the young woman who received euthanasia, was raped by foreign minors] (in Spanish). EFE. Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  28. ^ "Los bulos sobre la eutanasia de Noelia Castillo: agresiones sexuales de menas, donación de órganos, muerte por depresión..." [Fake news about Noelia Castillo's euthanasia: sexual assault by unaccompanied child migrants, organ donation, death for depression...]. 20 minutos. 28 March 2026. Retrieved 28 March 2026.