Case Explained:This article breaks down the legal background, charges, and implications of Case Explained: DMPS not liable in teen’s suicide lawsuit, judge rules – Legal Perspective
Mother alleges mishandled bullying at DMPS lead to child’s suicide
Hear from Danielle Yonemura as she details the alleged mishandled bullying that lead to her child’s suicide.
- A Polk County judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Des Moines Public Schools regarding a teen’s suicide.
- The lawsuit claimed the district contributed to the death through bullying and repeated suspensions.
- The judge ruled that the specific law cited does not allow for a private lawsuit against the district.
Des Moines Public Schools is not liable in a lawsuit accusing it of contributing to a teen’s suicide, a Polk County judge has ruled.
Leilani Gonzalez, 13, died by suicide in March 2023. Her mother, Danielle Yonemura, sued the school district in 2025, claiming her child, who at times identified as nonbinary, experienced bullying from students and teachers related to her identity and faced disproportionate and repeated suspensions from Harding Middle School that left her isolated and contributed to her taking her own life.
“It was definitely obvious and there was a time to where I was essentially begging them to let her go back to the school and they said that their hands were tied,” Yonemura told the Des Moines Register in a 2025 interview. “… She’s not coping well here at home. The school is supposed to be our additional support, so why are you not helping me?”
Because Iowa lawmakers last year removed protections for gender identity under the Iowa Civil Rights Act, Yonemura instead sued the district under a separate statute prohibiting bullying and requiring districts to address it. The district sought summary judgment from the court, and on Tuesday, March 17, Judge Scott Rosenberg ruled for the district and dismissed the lawsuit.
Rosenberg wrote that Yonemura’s accusations, including that officials suspended her daughter on pretexts, mocked her, refused to use her preferred pronouns and failed to respond to complaints of bullying, “are serious.” The problem, he said, is that the law Yonemura cites is regulatory in nature and doesn’t create a legal duty or cause of action for students or parents.
“Without a legally cognizable duty, even the most troubling allegations of misconduct cannot form the basis for liability,” he wrote.
In a statement through her attorney, Amanda Adams, Yonemura said the decision means districts can make decisions against children’s interests with impunity.
“This is exactly the kind of outcome that exposes how broken the system is,” she said. “School districts operate behind layers of protection that make it nearly impossible for families to hold them accountable — even when real harm is done to a child.”
She particularly called out the overuse of school suspensions and an attitude of unconcern toward the needs of LGBTQ+ students.
“The lack of meaningful protection for transgender students is deeply concerning everywhere,” she said. “When a child is not treated as equally deserving of safety and dignity, it creates an environment where exclusion is not just possible — it is reinforced. Bullying is not just a student problem. It reflects what is tolerated at higher levels. When systems fail to protect vulnerable students, they are contributing to the very harm they claim to prevent.”
Adams said she and her client are considering an appeal.
Phil Roeder, a spokesman for DMPS, said the district “appreciate(s) the Court’s careful consideration of this matter and their granting of summary judgment.”
William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at wrmorris2@registermedia.com or 715-573-8166.