Just about a year ago, 14-year-old Adriana Kuch faced an assault by a group of teenagers within the confines of Central Regional High School in Berkeley Township, New Jersey. Tragically, it marked the final week of her life.

Prior to the attack that took place on February 1, 2023, Adriana had endured bullying, as stated by her family. The horrifying incident was captured on video and swiftly disseminated on social media platforms, subjecting Adriana to further vitriol and cyberbullying.

Within less than 48 hours, Adriana took her own life at her residence due to the emotional distress, humiliation, and embarrassment she endured. These circumstances led to her family filing a lawsuit against the Central Regional Board of Education, the former superintendent of the school district, and other parties this week.

In a statement conveyed by the family’s attorney, Michael Kuch, Adriana’s father, expressed, “Adriana was the light of our lives, and one year after her horrific and needless death, we are still waiting for justice.” Jennifer Ferro, Adriana’s sister-in-law, fondly remembered her as a “fun-loving little girl we always loved being around.”

“It’s evident that this school grapples with a significant bullying issue that the school administrators are unwilling to acknowledge or address,” Michael Kuch added.

The lawsuit names several defendants, including the Central Regional Board of Education, Triantafillos Parlapanides (the former superintendent at the time of the assault), Irene Marousis (the principal of Central Regional High School at the time), and Darryl Heale (the school’s assistant principal and “Anti-bullying specialist” at the time), as outlined in the lawsuit. CNN has attempted to reach out to each of these defendants for comment.

Regarding the attack, four juveniles faced criminal charges. One was charged with aggravated assault, two were charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, and the fourth faced harassment charges. CNN has inquired with the Ocean County prosecutor’s office for updates on these criminal cases.

The video evidence, obtained and reviewed by CNN, depicts Adriana enduring repeated blows from a water bottle in a school hallway. It also captures her being punched and kicked, resulting in bruises and a brief loss of consciousness, as later revealed by her father.

The video was shared on various social media platforms, including TikTok, on the same day as the assault, leading to a barrage of hateful comments and online bullying. Ultimately, this contributed to Adriana taking her own life.

Family attorney Bill Krais emphasized, “Adriana didn’t take her life because of TikTok. She was physically attacked, she was attacked online, and the school failed to protect her.”

The civil lawsuit, filed on Monday, alleges negligence, defamation, and infliction of emotional distress against the defendants. It also contends that the then-superintendent invaded the family’s privacy by making false statements about their family history, including allegations of infidelity and drug use.

The lawsuit argues that the school board had a responsibility to supervise, monitor, and train staff to address harassment, intimidation, and bullying. It asserts that the defendants should have been aware that physical assaults and attacks were being recorded and posted on social media platforms by students, contrary to school board policy.

Despite the school board policy allowing defendants to take possession of students’ cell phones used to record such incidents and post them online, the lawsuit claims they failed to follow this policy.

Additionally, the lawsuit accuses the former superintendent of not pursuing criminal charges against the attackers. According to the lawsuit, this decision was allegedly made to prevent the attackers from facing disciplinary actions by both school authorities and law enforcement.

In the aftermath of Adriana’s tragic death, Parlapanides resigned as superintendent due to mounting pressure from parents and students demanding improvements in the school’s handling of bullying incidents.

While the lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages, it does not specify the amounts. Bill Krais, representing the Kuch family, explained, “Under New Jersey law, a party is not permitted to request a specific amount of damages in the complaint. That said, we are seeking punitive damages sufficient to punish the egregious conduct here by the superintendent and other school officials as the facts may develop.”

A separate lawsuit filed in October 2022 alleges that over a year before Adriana’s death, another 14-year-old at the same high school was assaulted even after reporting threats made against her to the school.

The lead plaintiff in this case, a teen referred to as Olivia O’Dea, was physically assaulted in January 2022 by two teenagers who had allegedly sent her threatening text messages. The assault was reportedly filmed by one of the individuals responsible for the threats and later posted on a social media platform.

The O’Dea family’s civil case is currently in the discovery phase. Jonathan Ettman, the attorney handling the case, stated that the former superintendent, Parlapanides, has also been added to the list of defendants.

Racheal O’Dea, Olivia’s mother, extended her condolences to Adriana’s family, emphasizing that such a tragedy should never have occurred. She added, “It’s devastating those parents are living every parent’s worst nightmare. This could’ve been prevented.”