SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — Twelve jurors on Tuesday were shown text messages from Shannon O’Connor, also known as the “Los Gatos Party Mom,” in which one juror wrote: “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.”
Prosecutors showed O’Connor’s text messages in court to prove the mother of two actively encouraged the underage teen and his friends to drink.
O’Connor, 50, is accused of supplying large amounts of alcohol to students at Los Gatos High School, forcing the minors to perform sex acts while their mother watched and organizing secret parties at her home and vacation rental.
The text messages shown in court Tuesday were exchanged during a family trip to Las Vegas in the summer of 2020, when O’Connor’s son was 14 and about to enter high school. A girl alleged to be a victim in the case, known as “Jane Doe 7,” was also on the trip.
As soon as the group’s plane landed in Las Vegas, O’Connor’s son wrote in a group chat: “Someone get me a damn beer.” His mother responded: “I’m so depressed. Champagne?[Let’s]go drink in the pool, drink a lot.”
Eyewitness testifies that parents trust Los Gatos party mom ‘100 percent’
An investigator testified that it was unclear whether the “party mom’s” wealthy husband was on the Las Vegas trip.
Dozens of witnesses testified in the trial, which began in December. O’Connor has pleaded not guilty to 63 charges. The alleged victims include 12 girls (identified as “JaneDoes”) and 8 boys (identified as “JohnDoes”).
John Doe 5 previously testified that her relationship with her son’s friend went beyond being considered a “cool mom.” He testified that she was more like one of the “popular girls” in the group and that she controlled which teens were excluded and which were included in the popular crowd. According to testimony, O’Connor tried to control who “hooked up” or dated.
“Party moms” allegedly used Snapchat to communicate with teenagers without their parents’ knowledge. When prosecutors asked Jane Doe 5 why he felt it was normal to talk regularly about sex with women in their 40s, he said, “In retrospect, that’s weird.”
Country music blared in the courtroom on Tuesday as a prosecutor played a cellphone video showing a wild pool party at O’Connor’s home in May 2020. The boys can be seen dancing in O’Connor’s pool, jacuzzi and diving board. An investigator explained that the mother recorded the video while sitting in the kitchen through a glass door that led to the pool area.
Investigators testified that the video was relevant because some of the sexual assaults between minors occurred in the jacuzzi. The video showed that even though O’Connor was in the kitchen area, she could clearly see what was happening in the pool area, according to testimony.
At a New Year’s Eve party in 2020, the mother allegedly saw a boy sexually assaulting “Jane Doe 3” in a jacuzzi while the victim was so drunk “she could barely keep her head above water,” court documents said.
Los Gatos High School is located in an affluent community. (KRON4/Photo by Amy Larson)
Prosecutors said O’Connor was the only adult at the drunken and dangerous party.
“When the defendant hosted parties for children, she went to great lengths to hide the parties from adults and authorities. She told (the teen) that if anyone found out, she could go to jail,” Deputy District Attorney Joanna Lee wrote.
Lee wrote that for the Los Gatos High School students who attended the parties, the gatherings turned into “an extremely traumatic time in their lives.”
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports and streaming videos, head to KRON4.
