Family of Texas A&M Student Who Fell from 17-Story Balcony File $1M Wrongful Death Lawsuit, Claim Neighbors Heard Shouting

The family of a Texas A&M University student has filed a $1 million wrongful death lawsuit against two Austin, Texas, organizations.

Brianna Marie Aguilera, 19, was found dead at a student apartment complex in Austin in the early morning hours of Nov. 29, 2025. Hours earlier, she had attended a tailgate for Texas A&M’s football game against the University of Texas. Austin Police later said she died by suicide, detectives said in a press conference on Dec. 4.

Aguilera’s parents, Stephanie Rodriguez and Manuel Aguilera, have now filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Travis County, Texas, seeking $1 million in damages from the Austin Blacks Rugby Club and the University of Texas Latin Economics and Business Association, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

PEOPLE reached out to Austin Blacks Rugby Club and the University of Texas Latin Economics and Business Association for comment on the lawsuit.

The family’s attorney, Tony Buzbee said in a press conference on Tuesday, Jan. 6, “Now more than we were 30 days ago, we believe even more today that this was not a suicide as has been suggested by the police.”

“This was either an accident or something much more sinister,” Buzbee, 57, claimed.

Dana Rodriguez, a neighbor who lived across the hall from the unit Brianna was visiting the night she died, also appeared at the press conference. Rodriguez claimed she was in her apartment with her parents at the time of Brianna’s death.

“To this day, the Austin Police Department has not interviewed me or requested a statement,” Dana began during the press conference on Tuesday. “The only thing I have received from the Austin Police Department is a generic email sent to all residents of the 21 Rio apartment complex. I hope they listen to this statement and understand I am willing to cooperate in this investigation.”

Dana went on to detail that she heard people “screaming” in the apartment, and her mother had assumed that a guest had dropped a drink inside, while her father allegedly remarked that he hoped they were “not arguing on the balcony” given the height of the building. The resident of the apartment, a woman Dana identified in the press conference as Natalie, allegedly vacated her apartment shortly after Brianna’s death. Rodriguez claimed police never entered Natalie’s unit.

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Still, in the police’s Dec. 4 press conference, Sgt. Nathan Sexton pointed to “evidence” that led to the authorities’ ruling on Brianna’s manner of death, stating, “In every investigation, we have to rely on the evidence, and all evidence in this case is indicative of suicide.”

Hours before her death, Brianna attended a tailgate hosted by the UT Latin Economics and Business Association, a student group, at the Austin Blacks Rugby Club facility off of Loyola Lane in far East Austin. She attended the tailgate party while visiting friends before the Lone Star Showdown football game between Texas and Texas A&M, the lawsuit claimed.

While Brianna’s parents alleged in their lawsuit that Brianna arrived at the tailgate at approximately 6 p.m., Austin police previously claimed she arrived between 4 and 5 p.m, the Statesman reported. The lawsuit further alleges she was served alcohol despite being underage.

“As Brianna consumed more alcohol, witnesses described her behavior shifting from upbeat to disoriented and ultimately grossly intoxicated,” the lawsuit alleges. “Brianna began to stumble at the tailgate and lose physical faculties…witnesses had to assist Brianna with walking and standing at times.” Both the lawsuit and police then claim that Brianna lost her phone and stumbled into the woods nearby.

In a days-long investigation, Austin Police interviewed witnesses, some multiple times, to piece together the turn of events that led to Brianna’s death. During the investigation, they found a “deleted digital suicide note” dated four days prior, on Nov. 25, 2025, on Brianna’s phone, “which was written to specific people in her life,” authorities said Dec. 4.

“Between all of the witness statements, all of the video evidence, all of the digital evidence collected, at no time, did any evidence point to this being anything of a criminal nature,” Det. Robert Marshall, lead homicide detective, added. “Rather, our investigation revealed that, unfortunately, Brianna had made suicidal comments previously to friends back in October of this year. This continued through the evening of her death with some self-harming actions earlier in the evening and a text message to another friend indicating the thought of suicide.”

Stephanie exclusively told PEOPLE in December that she did not believe her daughter’s death was an accident.

“And that’s when it made me very upset because I was like, my daughter wasn’t suicidal,” Rodriguez said. “I would know. She’s not suicidal. Why would she be? She was living her best life. She loved life. I mean, she loved going to school. She wanted to become a lawyer. I mean, it was just something that I was like, you don’t say that.”

Stephanie previously speculated to PEOPLE that Brianna was pushed from the 17th floor of the apartment building. However police, who said Brianna was heard arguing on the phone with her boyfriend two minutes before she fell, said there was no evidence she was pushed.

PEOPLE has reached out to the Austin Police for comment regarding the lawsuit.

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional distress, substance use problems, or just needs to talk, call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7.