California’s ‘Los Gatos party mom’ sentenced to 35 years in prison

A judge has sentenced a San Francisco Bay Area mother to 35 years in prison after her conviction for a slew of crimes resulting from hosting drunken sex parties for young teenagers.Widely known as the “Los Gatos party mom”, a nickname that references her hometown, 52-year-old Shannon O’Connor was convicted of four dozen crimes in March, including child endangerment, dissuading witnesses from reporting a crime and facilitating forcible sexual assault. Her sentence was the maximum allowed under state law.O’Connor must also register as a sex offender.“This isn’t some fun parent giving sips of wine spritzers to kids,” Santa Clara district attorney Jeff Rosen wrote in a statement. “She facilitated dangerous and drunken sex acts with these children. She risked their lives and damaged their psyches. She is not a party mom. Shannon O’Connor is a convicted felon. Shannon O’Connor is a registered sex offender.”During a series of parties, O’Connor bought Fireball whiskey, vodka and condoms for teens mostly aged 14 and 15, allowed them to drink to the point of vomiting, then declined to seek medical attention for them. In some cases, she encouraged the drunken teens to have sex with each other or placed them into rooms together, including in instances where they were too drunk to consent.Several victims testified in court that they had been sexually assaulted or traumatized in O’Connor’s care.O’Connor hid her activity from other parents as well as her husband.“My actions are the cause for your pain and I am ashamed,” she said in court, according to ABC7 Eyewitness News. “And I face every day knowing that I was the cause.”“I am not sorry for myself, I am sorry for all of you and what I put you through,” O’Connor added. “But as I look at you all today, I hope you can find some comfort knowing that I have been punished and will continue to be for years to come.”O’Connor’s lawyer told the court that she threw the parties in an attempt to improve her son’s social life during the isolated times of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Los Angeles Times.