In a tragic turn of events, dispatch records recently released have shed light on the somber discovery of an 11-year-old girl and her mother found dead in a Las Vegas hotel room. A note found on the door hinted at a potential suicide attempt shortly before the bodies were uncovered.
Addilyn “Addi” Smith and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, were tragically found deceased inside their room at the Rio Hotel & Casino on February 15. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department reported that hotel staff initiated a welfare check after concerns were raised.
The initial alert to authorities came around 10:45 a.m. local time. Addi was expected at a cheerleading competition, but when she and her mother failed to appear, her coach became concerned and requested a welfare check, according to 911 call records reviewed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Police officers responded, knocking on the door and attempting to make contact for approximately 15 to 20 minutes. However, without visible signs of trouble, they eventually cleared the call.
The situation took a grave turn in the following hours. Additional welfare check requests were made, and at about 2:26 p.m., fire officials alerted dispatchers to a note discovered on the door, suggesting a possible suicide attempt, as reported by the Review-Journal. Hotel staff entered the room immediately after.
Addi and her mother had traveled to Las Vegas for the cheer competition, making the grim discovery even more poignant. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police are actively investigating this heartbreaking case.
By 2:35 p.m., ambulance officials told dispatchers they had located an adult woman and a child deceased, according to the outlet.
“The mother shot her daughter and then shot herself,” LVMPD Homicide Lt. Robert Price said at a previous news conference. He confirmed a note was left behind but declined to discuss its contents. Authorities have not publicly identified a motive, and the investigation remains ongoing.
A view of the Rio Hotel & Casino exterior and surrounding landscape in Las Vegas on Nov. 11, 2025. (Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service Via Getty Images)
The Clark County coroner ruled McGeehan’s cause of death as a gunshot wound to the head and listed the manner of death as suicide. Addi’s cause and manner of death remain pending.
Although police have not formally identified the victims, court documents and family members have identified them as McGeehan and Addi.
Court filings reviewed by Fox News Digital show McGeehan and Addi’s father, Brad Smith, were locked in a contentious custody battle for nearly a decade following their 2015 divorce. Judges imposed detailed exchange protocols governing how and where the parents could hand off their daughter. Records show McGeehan temporarily lost custody of Addi in 2017 but was granted joint custody in 2020.
Addi Smith, 11, had traveled to Las Vegas for a national cheer competition before she and her mother were found dead at the Rio Hotel & Casino. Authorities say the investigation remains ongoing. (GoFundMe)
McGeehan had also recently been receiving “mean” text messages from other parents on her daughter’s Utah Xtreme Cheer team, the New York Post reported.
Connie McGeehan, Tawnia’s mother, told the outlet her daughter had been having issues with “one or two” other mothers on the team and that tensions escalated about a month before the tragedy.
“In the last comp they had, another girl got dropped and some of the moms were saying it was because of Addi,” Connie McGeehan told The Post. “They were texting [Tawnia] mean stuff and blaming Addi.”
The Post cited a source close to the team who said there had been a recent “confrontation” between McGeehan and another mother in a waiting room. Utah Xtreme Cheer owner Kory Uyetake acknowledged to the outlet that there had been “comments back and forth” between McGeehan and some other parents but said everything appeared normal when the team traveled to Las Vegas.
One of the other cheer moms who spoke with Fox News Digital confirmed tensions among some parents but said the focus now is on the children grieving. She said her daughter has struggled with the loss but plans to launch a mental health awareness and suicide prevention program at her school next year in honor of her friend.
The JAMZ Nationals cheer competition at the Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, where Addilyn “Addi” Smith was scheduled to compete. (X@CheerTheory)
Valerie Krystine Muniz, who identified herself on social media as Addi’s aunt and the sister of her father, urged the public to stop speculating as the family grieves.
“We already see so much speculation going around so please help in just spreading love and prayers while my brother tries to pick up the pieces of what has happened,” Muniz wrote.
“I have never known a man to love and fight for his daughter like he has done all of Addi’s life,” she added. “The system failed him and her.”
Muniz did not elaborate.
James Watts, who represented McGeehan, confirmed to PEOPLE that he is aware of the note but has not seen it.
“I do not know what the content is,” Watts told the outlet. “It is the family’s hope at some point, when it’s no longer required by law enforcement, that it will be returned to [McGeehan’s] mother, [who] would like to know what was being said at the time.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to Watts for additional information.
Authorities have not released further details about a possible motive. When contacted, Metro Police said they do not have any new updates.
Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.
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