A heartbroken father is speaking out after the tragic death of his 15-year-old daughter, who died by suicide just three weeks after starting at a new high school. He’s urging parents, educators, and school officials to take bullying and mental health more seriously—before it’s too late.

Lacie May Murphy had recently moved from Muswellbrook, New South Wales, to live with her father, Todd Murphy, on Australia’s Gold Coast. They were hoping for a fresh start. At first, things looked promising. Lacie texted her dad saying she loved her new school.

But by the end of her first week, everything changed.

Lacie, who had a history of mental health challenges including ADHD, began asking questions that alarmed her father: “Why are they bullying me? Why are they saying this?”

She told the school about the bullying. But her father, Todd, 39, said her concerns were brushed aside and that staff made her feel like her issues “weren’t important.”

“They asked if she wanted to transfer to another school,” Todd recalled. “But Lacie told me, ‘Dad, I want to battle through and finish 10th grade.’ And I told her, ‘That’s good, I’ll handle the bullying. You just go to school and do your best.’”

Lacie, who identified as Aboriginal, was also hoping to connect with the school’s First Nations liaison officer. But her father said no one reached out to her until March 18—the same day she died.

“The liaison officer called three weeks too late,” he said. “That’s every parent’s worst nightmare—to come home and find their child like that.”

Though the school had given Lacie a special card to excuse herself from class when overwhelmed, her father believes more could—and should—have been done.

“Lacie didn’t have all the tools she needed to explain what she was feeling,” Todd said. “She bottled it up. She smiled through it. She tried to carry it all on her own.”

Now, he’s pleading with schools to treat bullying as a serious issue—and asking parents to recognize signs of emotional distress in their kids before it’s too late.

“This stigma around mental health and bullying—it has to stop. We need to do something.”

A Loving, Selfless Teen Remembered

Lacie is remembered as a kind, giving young girl who loved playing rugby league and always put others before herself.

“She cared more about everyone else than she did herself,” her dad said. “On the football field, she’d push herself to the limit for her team. She always stood up for her friends, but she carried all the pain on her own.”

“She loved too much. She cared too much. And she didn’t know how to let go.”

Officials Respond and Call for Change

The Queensland Department of Education expressed condolences to Lacie’s family and acknowledged the need to create safer, more inclusive school environments.

“Our thoughts and sympathies are with her loved ones during this devastating time,” a department spokesperson said.

In response to growing concerns about bullying, the Queensland Government recently announced a $33 million initiative to tackle the issue in schools. This includes creating “Rapid Support Squads” that can quickly deploy to schools in crisis, additional funding for mental health and wellbeing staff, and an expanded hotline for caregivers.

The state’s Anti-Bullying Stakeholder Reference Group—made up of experts—will help guide future policies aimed at prevention and intervention.

“All students have access to school-based mental health professionals,” the department said, “along with expert teams that focus on student safety, wellbeing, and protection.”