Bullying, on-campus fight at South LA high school led to teen girl's death, mother says

SOUTH LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A Southern California mother claims her 16-year-old daughter died due to injuries she suffered during a school fight, but law enforcement says the teen died after falling down stairs. Now, the mother is demanding accountability.

Heartbroken mother speaks out

Maria Juarez said her daughter, Shaylee Mejia, had attended Manual Arts High School in South Los Angeles for eight months and had experienced bullying during that time. The mother said she had reported it to school officials.

Juarez, a single mother of two, said her daughter dreamt of becoming a nurse. The teen wanted to ease the physical and financial burden off her mother, who works as a hotel housekeeper. Juarez said she grew up as an orphan in Guatemala and immigrated to the U.S. alone. She was 16 -- the same age as Mejia at the time of her death -- when she gave birth to her daughter.

"[She was] very obedient, a very good daughter, a very good sister," said Juarez of Mejia as she held back tears.

Mejia died nearly one week ago.

According to Juarez, the teen was rushed to a hospital after fainting at a gathering with friends. Juarez said when she arrived at the hospital, Mejia was unconscious.

"I just ask for justice," said Juarez.

The mother and her attorney Luis Carrillo believe Mejia's death is the result of a head injury inflicted by another student. They say the incident happened on March 5, four days before she fainted.

"Because when I arrived at the hospital, they told me she had multiple brain injuries," recalled Juarez.

Juarez and Carrillo provided videos of two physical altercations, saying one is from December 2023 and another from March.

The latter shows Mejia's head slammed against a bathroom stall. Juarez says her daughter was bruised following the incident in December and said the teen eventually told her mother about it.

The mother went to the school, felt dismissed, and after insisting, was eventually able to file a report with school police, according to Juarez.

The Los Angeles Unified School District provided Eyewitness News a statement made to the school community sent by the principal, saying in part:

"While this tragic incident took place outside of school hours and off campus, our heartfelt thoughts remain with those affected by this loss ..."

Police told Eyewitness News detectives responded to an incident on March 9 where a victim at a party fell down a flight of stairs, but Juarez and her attorney say Mejia fainted and there were no stairs.

"The beatings were not off campus, the beatings were in Manual Arts High School, where these in inept administrators did not protect her daughter," said Carrillo.

Juarez says she was unaware of the March incident until after her daughter's death.

Meanwhile, Juarez and her attorney are now waiting for the teen's autopsy report.

Meanwhile, another parent who spoke with Eyewitness News outside of the school on Thursday said her daughter has also faced bullying and has been physically assaulted multiple times. She even said one incident happened that day. That mother feels school officials haven't done enough.