Utah ‘Cheer Mom’ who murdered her daughter and then herself, “committed domestic abuse” in front of her child in 2020, lost custody

The Utah mother who fatally shot her 11-year-old daughter and then herself at a Las Vegas cheerleading competition had joint custody and primary decision-making authority over the child. This was the case even though a family court had previously found she committed domestic abuse in her daughter’s presence and raised serious concerns about her parenting.

Tawnia McGeehan, 38, was given significant authority over major decisions in her daughter Addi Smith’s life. This was decided in a May 7, 2024, court order after a nine-year custody battle with Addi’s father, Brad Smith.

But four years earlier, Family Court Commissioner Marian Ito had limited McGeehan’s parental rights to supervised visits. Court documents said that Smith showed a better understanding of Addi’s physical and emotional needs.

In a Dec. 8, 2020 order, Ito wrote that McGeehan “has committed domestic abuse in the presence of the minor child,” though the order did not specify the alleged victim. The commissioner also stated that Smith “demonstrates a better understanding of the child’s physical and emotional needs.” Brad was awarded temporary sole custody of Addi at that time.

Court records also showed that McGeehan engaged in “parental alienation,” and her ability to co-parent with Smith was “seriously in question.” Ito assigned a custody evaluator to review the arrangement.

Other court filings show that on Oct. 19, 2020, a judge ordered McGeehan’s parenting time to be supervised. Three family members or friends were chosen to monitor her visits. A hearing was set for January 2021 to review a temporary order giving Smith sole custody, but the outcome of that hearing is not clear from the records.

In the end, the 2024 order found that both parents were “fit and proper persons” and granted them joint legal and physical custody. The agreement established a week-to-week custody schedule and required minimal contact between the parents during exchanges.

The order also gave McGeehan primary authority to make decisions regarding Addi’s education, healthcare, religious upbringing, and other important matters. Smith kept the right to ask a judge to review any decisions he disagreed with.