Teens describe shattered lives as 'party mom' gets max punishment: 'It's her turn to serve a very long sentence in jail'



A California woman — dubbed the "party mom" by local authorities — has been sentenced to decades in prison after throwing alcohol-fueled parties for young teens and orchestrating sexual misconduct between the minors.

The Santa Clara District Attorney announced Thursday that 52-year-old Shannon O’Connor, also known as Shannon Bruga, was sentenced to 35 years and 10 months in prison — the maximum punishment.

'The trauma shattered parts of me, and every day I wake up, I'm rebuilding what you broke.'

O’Connor has been in jail since her arrest in 2021, and she will receive credit for time served.

She also was ordered to register as a sex offender.

As Blaze News reported in March, O'Connor was convicted of 48 charges — including two felony charges of sexual penetration.

The Mercury News previously reported, "The sexual penetration convictions were the most serious, as prosecutors argued that O'Connor sexually assaulted the two girls by enabling them to become so intoxicated they could not legally consent."

The district attorney said O'Connor hosted "drunken parties for young teenagers where she bought alcohol and egged on sex acts — some with teens too drunk to consent."

The district attorney's office said O'Connor hosted "drunken and destructive parties" for teens for two years.

Authorities said O'Connor would message teenagers and encourage them to leave their homes in the middle of the night and come to her house to drink alcohol.

The DA said O'Connor supplied vodka, Fireball whiskey, and condoms to teens who attended parties at her home.

"At one party, O’Connor handed an underaged teenager a condom and pushed him into a room with an intoxicated minor," the district attorney stated.

"During a New Year’s Eve party with about five 14-year-olds, the defendant watched and laughed as a drunk teen sexually battered a young girl in bed," the statement read.

The DA noted, "In another case, the defendant brought one drunk teen into a bedroom, where an intoxicated 14-year-old girl was lying in the bed."

According to the district attorney, after the victim was sexually assaulted, she told O'Connor: "Why did you leave me in there with him? Like, you knew, like, what he was going to do to me."

During the trial, one of the female victims told the courtroom she became suicidal from the trauma she experienced at a house party, the DA said.

The district attorney noted that O'Connor instructed the victims to not tell anyone about the parties because she could go to jail.

Police said O'Connor allowed a minor to drive her SUV in the parking lot of Los Gatos High School with two other teens holding on to the back. However, one of the teens fell off the vehicle and was knocked unconscious, according to authorities.

O'Connor was arrested in October 2021 in Idaho.

When detectives went to O'Connor's house to arrest her, there were "10 underage boys and two girls at her home — most of whom spent the night there," according to the Ada County Sheriff's Office.

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KABC-TV reported that a victim during the hearing said, "I wish I could say that every memory with you has been healed with time, but I still find myself crying myself to sleep over the way that you took complete advantage of me."

Another victim said, "Shannon O'Connor held me prisoner for almost six years. It's her turn to serve a very long sentence in jail."

Yet another victim added, "The trauma shattered parts of me, and every day I wake up, I'm rebuilding what you broke."

The mother of one of the victims during the hearing said, "When people call you a monster, pedophile, rapist, they had it right. You preyed upon my daughter by supplying her alcohol, enticing a sexual situation, and pushing her when she was not in a place to consent."

The Los Gatan reported that one victim said, "I was 11 years old when I met you. That was when you started texting me every day, slowly earning my trust only to use it against me."

KRON-TV reported that O'Connor apologized to the victims and their families during the sentencing hearing.

"I am responsible for the harmful situation that I put your daughters and sons through," O'Connor told the courtroom.

"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 continued.

She added, "I'm sorry for all of you and what I put you through. I am ashamed, and I face every day knowing that I was the cause of so many people’s anguish."

O'Connor concluded, "I want you all to know that I live every day wishing I could take everything back."

However, Deputy District Attorney Joanne Lee described O’Connor’s remarks as "deeply offensive" and showed "zero accountability."

Before handing down the sentence, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth C. Peterson said she did not find O’Connor "genuinely remorseful."

Santa Clara District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement:

Many people call this defendant the "Los Gatos Party Mom." This isn’t some fun parent giving sips of wine spritzers to kids. 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.

O'Connor's lawyer, Stephen Prekoski, said they will appeal, according to KRON.

"She never had a meaningful opportunity to settle this case," Prekoski stated. "I'm not persuaded by those that believe that she was not remorseful. I'm not persuaded by those that believe that she didn’t take accountability for her actions."

Kate Gude, the mother of another one of the victims, said after the sentencing, "This shows that when you come together, you put these bad people away, and the kids have a shot. You got to speak up and speak out. It’s the only way to keep everybody safe, happy, and whole."

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'Pigs at the trough': Spencer Pratt and Bill Maher come together to blast California 'socialists'



Bill Maher says that Spencer Pratt needs to stop crying about his house burning down.

On the latest episode of his podcast "Club Random," Maher also called Pratt a "douchebag" while the two discussed Pratt's run for mayor of Los Angeles.

'They're not going to have any money to take from these people to give to you.'

However, while Maher joked that being unliked meant Pratt should have no problem facing off against unfettered California bureaucracy, the duo were in overwhelming agreement when it came to the fiscal waste that cripples L.A. and the surrounding area.

About three-quarters of the way into their discussion, Maher claimed that "douchebag guys" who are in debt from gambling websites represent Pratt's core audience.

While Pratt joked in response about having "more voters" than he realized, he immediately asserted that his true voting block consists of mothers who are concerned about the safety of their children in the city. Pratt used that talking point as a launchpad to warn young voters about opening the door to socialism.

"Socialism has captivated people. ... I feel like people are all hyped on socialism because they're like, 'Everything's so expensive. America's failed. Give me money,'" Pratt explained. "But what they're forgetting is all the people that these socialists are saying they're taking the money and giving it, they're gonna leave."

Pratt added, "Then they're not going to have any money to take from these people to give to you."

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Maher and Pratt largely agreed there is far too much red tape in Los Angeles, and furthermore, in the state, but it was Maher's anecdote about needing three city inspections to change his garage door that perfectly framed the issue.

The 70-year-old then warned Pratt that if he becomes mayor, the "special interests" representatives are going to eat him alive by demanding policies just like those that ruined his garage revamp.

"What you're going to go up against is a state that is just full of special interests, all of which are very, very powerful. I mean, you can't do anything in this state without, like, getting a license or an inspection."

At this point, Maher pointed to Pratt being a "douchebag" as a positive trait that would help him deal with the bureaucrats, whom Pratt described as "champagne socialists" who are stealing taxpayer dollars.

"This state is all these f**king pigs at the trough," Maher lamented.

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HIGHFIVE/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Pratt told the host his modus operandi has been to get into office so he can stop theft at the government level, which means letting the "successful rich people build businesses, build restaurants," and put money into the citizens' pockets.

The former star of "The Hills" said his leadership would get the money in the hands of the people without increasing taxes, because those "champagne socialists scammers steal" the money that is already coming in from wealthy L.A. residents.

"I can't even comprehend taxing more," Pratt announced.

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'Doomsday scenario': California governor race turns into high-stakes scramble as vote split may keep Republican out



The crowded California gubernatorial race, which started with 61 candidates, has now apparently narrowed to just three: former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra (D), climate advocate and businessman Tom Steyer (D), and former Fox News host and small-business owner Steve Hilton (R), according to the latest polling.

'If we don’t get together as a party, if we don’t unite, then we could have Tom Steyer and Xavier Becerra in the general election.'

With California’s primary election operating on a nonpartisan basis, which allows the top two candidates regardless of party affiliation to advance, there had previously been speculation that the Democratic Party’s failure to coalesce behind a single candidate could result in two Republicans, Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, advancing to the November 3 general election.

One month out from the election, polling showed 26% of voters were undecided, with votes split among the Democrat candidates.

However, polls conducted in the final days before the primary election revealed a significant decrease in undecided voters, an increase in support for Becerra, a close contest for second place between Steyer and Hilton, and Bianco falling behind.

An Emerson College poll conducted May 27-28 reported that 4% were still undecided. Of those surveyed, 28% stated they were likely to vote for Becerra, 22% for Steyer, 21% for Hilton, and 12% for Bianco.

A UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll completed May 19-24 showed a similarly close race, with 25% supporting Becerra, 21% supporting Hilton, and 19% supporting Steyer. Bianco trailed with 11%.

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Steve Hilton. Jason Henry/Nexstar/Bloomberg - Pool/Getty Images

The latest polling prompted Hilton to call on Bianco to drop out of the race. He encouraged Bianco supporters to vote for him to avoid two Democrat candidates advancing to the general election to succeed California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).

“These polls are looking very concerning. Yes, it’s true that I’m leading in some of them, but it’s also true that it’s a very, very tight race,” Hilton stated on Saturday in a video published to social media.

“If we don’t get together as a party, if we don’t unite, then we could have Tom Steyer and Xavier Becerra in the general election. That is a disaster for California. That means no change.”

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Chad Bianco. Leon Bennett/Getty Images

“There’s one person who could stop this doomsday scenario, and that is my friend Chad Bianco,” Hilton continued. “Chad, the best time to have dropped out would have been a couple of weeks ago, but the second-best time is right now.”

The following day, Bianco dismissed Hilton's comments by calling on Hilton's supporters to unite behind him instead.

"It’s clear that Steve Hilton supporters should unite and support me," Bianco wrote.

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Let them 'rot': Former Marine's solution to fixing California is about as anti-establishment as it gets



California used to be a land of promise that produced fine Americans who mocked D.C. elites, a former U.S. Marine officer says.

In the face of failed state and federal leadership in the Democratic Party, an ex-soldier has a message for inland communities.

The coastal cities and elites are supported by the inland residents, says security expert and veteran Adam Castillo.

'I'm tired of being the butt of jokes for MAGA.'

In an interview with Blaze News, Castillo explained that he found opportunity in Myanmar after being left as an "unemployed veteran as part of that massive sequestering period by the Obama administration around 2013."

Promises from the Barack Obama administration of finding jobs for veterans turned into nothing more than a check-box item for hiring managers, Castillo claimed, who would then say, "Hey, we we interviewed a veteran," and move on.

Castillo ran a security company during Myanmar's 2021 coup d'état, which taught him a valuable lesson: things can be done properly with the right leadership, even under the harshest conditions.

It is that experience that brought Castillo to believe the inland communities of California should be the focus for Republicans while the rest of the state crumbles around them.

"To be frank, who do you think supports these coastal cities? The inland desert communities, right? We're the ones commuting to the cities to make sure they're run, to make sure that the sanitation infrastructure is run [and] the electricity is run," Castillo declared.

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George Rose/Getty Images

Republicans and conservatives should start with town councils, school boards, and the like before splintering outward into state legislatures, Castillo suggested.

"When you start going inland, specifically into the deserts, this is where it gets really conservative. ... They are the power of California."

"What we need to concentrate on in terms of organization at the community level is the inland communities, not the coastal cities," he went on.

"School board, city council, mayor, state legislator, then congressman, then senator," Castillo said.

For the coastal elites, Castillo says the voters need to deal with the consequences of their elections for a bit longer.

"I think we just let the liberal coastal cities rot," the former officer bluntly stated. "Honestly. They're already rotting. So let them continue to rot. They do not represent us. They don't even have that many representatives."

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While Castillo's remarks could be seen as divisive or jarring by some, he remained confident that a Republican governor in 2026 and beyond would set an amazing precedent in smaller communities and provide much-needed inspiration.

In the end, his belief that Californians can still recapture their glory years serves as his ongoing motivation.

"I'm tired of being the butt of jokes for other states. I'm tired of being the butt of jokes for MAGA," he concluded.

"We're Californians. We were better than you people," he said of D.C. elites. "We were born better than you people. It's about time we reclaim our seat at that power."

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New Poll Dashes GOP’s Wildest Dreams For California Gubernatorial Election

'a wake-up call for every Republican in California'

Ranked-choice voting’s losing streak gets longer



It has been a dismal year for ranked-choice voting.

RCV allows voters to rank candidates instead of choosing one. It then runs multiple rounds of counting, adjusts rankings, and discards “exhausted” ballots to determine a winner.

Lawmakers, courts, cities, and voters are increasingly rejecting a system that makes elections harder to understand and easier to distrust.

Two states have already banned it. One state’s pilot program was phased out. A statewide ballot proposal failed to qualify. Several city councils rejected it. A state supreme court struck down an expansion bill. And the year still has months to go.

The states that banned RCV this year were Indiana and Ohio. The Ohio legislature first introduced a ban in 2023. It passed the Senate but not the House. This year, lawmakers passed it through both chambers on the second attempt, with Sens. Theresa Gavarone (R) and Bill DeMora (D) leading the effort. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed the bipartisan bill into law in February.

Indiana acted even faster. Lawmakers introduced a similar ban and enacted it two months later. The legislation reflected growing concern that RCV makes elections less transparent and harder for voters to trust.

“It is important to ensure Indiana’s voting system is secure and accurate for Hoosier voters. Having to rank each candidate could end up being a vote against the voter’s intended candidate, creating confusion and frustration, which is why we need this law in place,” said state Sen. Blake Doriot (R), the bill’s sponsor.

RCV supporters also suffered a setback in Utah, where the pilot program ended this year. Before the program closed, more than 20 cities tried it, but supporters never moved the state toward broader adoption. Multiple cities dropped out before the program ended.

In Michigan, Rank MI Vote’s RCV ballot proposal fell 200,000 signatures short of qualifying. RCV donors can find one consolation: At least they will not have to spend millions on another failed ballot measure, as they did in six states in 2024.

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KC McGinnis/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Albuquerque, New Mexico, also rejected RCV. The city council voted it down 6-3. The bill’s sponsor claimed switching from the current runoff system would save money, but the proposal failed because of concerns over system upgrades, staff training, and a long public education campaign. Similar proposals also failed in Vista, California, and Appleton, Wisconsin.

The District of Columbia offers another warning. Voters approved RCV, but the city has struggled to prepare for implementation. District residents will use the system for the first time in June, and a recent Opportunity D.C. survey found that 43% of voters remain unaware of the change. To address the confusion, the Board of Elections is spending $50,000 to educate voters.

D.C. Councilmember Wendell Felder introduced emergency legislation to delay implementation until 2027. The bill failed, so voters and election workers will have little time to prepare.

Finally, an effort to expand RCV in Maine was struck down in March when the state Supreme Judicial Court ruled the bill unconstitutional. Because the Maine Constitution requires a plurality for state elections, RCV remains limited to federal elections.

Every year, ranked-choice voting’s backers promise simplicity, fairness, and reform. This year showed the opposite. Lawmakers, courts, cities, and voters are increasingly rejecting a system that makes elections harder to understand and easier to distrust.

Tom Steyer Celebrates Biological Boy Who Won Girls’ Sports Titles

'So proud of you for what you're doing'

Newsom would rather pick fights than fix California’s fraud problem



California is being ripped off. The state is losing billions of dollars to fraudsters every year, and the state’s leaders have done too little to stop them.

While California’s population has dropped since 2020, Medi-Cal spending has doubled over the same time frame. How is this even possible? One reason is that per initial federal estimates, one out of every four Medi-Cal dollars is lost to fraud, for a whopping $50 billion in losses per year. This is an amount larger than the entire economy of some states.

If federal estimates are correct, the state has lost some $200 billion to Medi-Cal fraud under Governor Newsom, not to mention other kinds of fraud using taxpayer dollars.

The federal government must ensure that federal funding will be spent wisely by the states, not lost to fraudsters.

In California alone, federal auditors have found 1.2 million ineligible individuals on Medicaid, with another 3.2 million enrollees found to be potentially ineligible.

Auditors have flagged hundreds of thousands of individuals who were enrolled in Medicaid in multiple states at the same time — many of whom were flagged for fake or stolen Social Security numbers. Even worse, hundreds of millions of Medicaid dollars have funded benefits for the deceased.

Fortunately, the Trump administration is taking on fraudsters like no administration in American history and holding California’s leaders accountable. Earlier this year, the White House announced it would withhold roughly $10 billion in federal funding from five states, including California, until they make reasonable plans for reducing fraud.

This step is absolutely necessary: The federal government must ensure that federal funding will be spent wisely by the states, not lost to fraudsters.

Remarkably, Governor Newsom’s response has been to attack the Trump administration for its anti-fraud efforts and even blame President Trump for California’s carelessness and laxity toward criminals, all while casting himself as an anti-fraud champion.

This tactic might play well on Bluesky, but it is completely divorced from the facts and does nothing to solve the very real problem of taxpayer dollars being stolen.

Unless the governor gets serious, California taxpayers could end up paying an even higher price as soon as President Trump’s new welfare reform law goes into effect. The president’s new law requires states to clean up their rolls and reduce improper payments or risk losing the share of the federal dollars that support Medicaid.

RELATED: The Trump administration is cracking down on fraud

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

With these shocking rates of waste, fraud, and abuse, California could lose a large amount of federal funding while it continues to bleed billions of dollars to fraudsters. California has wisely had a balanced budget amendment to the state constitution for more than a century, but this means that every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar taken away from other priorities.

California can’t just print money. Fraudsters are stealing directly out of taxpayers’ pockets, and right now they are doing so on a massive scale.

The good news is that there is a common-sense solution on the table right now in the State Assembly. Republican Assemblywoman Alexandra Macedo has introduced the Protect the Promise Act to help California reduce Medicaid fraud and lower the state’s improper payment rate.

The bill would simply require more eligibility checks using more data. For example, it would require officials to cross-check Medi-Cal enrollment data with federal Medicaid enrollment data to ensure that people aren’t enrolling in multiple states, which is illegal. It would require the state to take immediate action when discrepancies are found.

The bill wouldn’t affect Medi-Cal benefits in the slightest. But by dramatically slashing payments to ineligible people, it could save Californians billions of dollars by reducing fraud and preventing a loss of federal funds. In a balanced-budget state like California, this would free up more resources for other priorities.

Medi-Cal was started to help Californians in need — not to enrich fraudsters with Californians’ hard-earned tax dollars. It is time for the state’s leaders to end the fraud crisis and finally protect the promise for the truly needy. Otherwise, Californians will pay a high price — one that is only getting higher.

Spencer Pratt and Nithya Raman shrink Karen Bass’ lead in tight race for LA mayor: Poll



Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ comfortable lead has dwindled significantly, with the incumbent now in a tight race with L.A. City Councilwoman Nithya Raman and former reality TV star Spencer Pratt, according to the latest polling.

A poll, conducted May 19-24 by the University of California Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies and co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, showed Bass receiving 26% of the vote, Raman close behind with 25%, and Pratt securing 22%.

'It’s going to boil down to turnout.'

The Times reported that Bass’ slight lead was “statistically insignificant,” according to pollsters. It further noted that prior polls showed Bass with a stronger lead over her challengers, which has since narrowed. Meanwhile, Raman and Pratt have made steady gains.

Only 10% of the 1,913 registered voters surveyed said they were still undecided ahead of the June 2 primary, down from 26% in a March poll. Analysts predicted that Bass is likely to receive enough votes to head into a November runoff with either Raman or Pratt.

When asked which issues they care about most, nearly all surveyed Pratt supporters said they care about addressing waste and political corruption, as well as crime and public safety.

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Mario Tama/Getty Images

Bass and Raman supporters, who gave similar responses to one another, prioritized protecting immigrants, moving the homeless indoors, and building more affordable housing.

In a one-on-one race between Bass and Pratt, those surveyed gave Bass an 18-point lead, with 12% undecided and 12% choosing neither or stating they would not vote. In a potential runoff between Raman and Pratt, Raman secured 45% to Pratt’s 28%, with 16% undecided and 11% choosing neither or declining to vote.

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Etienne Laurent/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images

Although the mayoral race is nonpartisan, Pratt, a registered Republican, is running in a city where less than 15% of the population is registered as Republican.

“You’ve got three very different candidates, each with very different constituencies, all within the margin of error. It’s going to boil down to turnout,” Mark DiCamillo, the director of Berkeley IGS polls, told the Times. “Pratt is an unusual candidate and is generating a lot of enthusiasm in the primary, but he trails by double digits to Raman and Bass in a runoff.”

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Charter school teacher arrested for alleged sexual abuse of student — police say there may be more victims



A California teacher was arrested for allegedly having inappropriate sexual contact with a student, and police believe there could be more victims.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Office said in a statement: "On January 28, 2026, the Riverside Sheriff’s Moreno Valley Station’s Investigation Bureau began investigating allegations of inappropriate contact with a student at a school in Moreno Valley."

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Special Victims Unit suspects that there may be additional victims.

Police identified the suspect as 41-year-old Samantha Josephine Watson of Eastvale.

The sheriff's office said Watson engaged in "inappropriate contact" with a student between 2017 and 2018. At the time of the alleged inappropriate contact, Watson was employed as a teacher at a charter school in Moreno Valley, according to the statement.

While the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office did not name the school, officials noted that the alleged abuse occurred at a charter school campus in the 23000 block of Sunnymead Boulevard, KCBS-TV reported, adding that an online search indicates Options for Youth Public Charter Schools "operates in the area."

Watson is not listed as an employee in the staff directory for the Options for Youth Public Charter Schools.

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mesh cube via iStock/Getty Images

Law enforcement on Friday executed a search warrant in Eastvale and took Watson into custody without incident.

Watson was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center on charges of sending harmful material to a juvenile, oral copulation, and digital penetration.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Special Victims Unit suspects there may be additional victims.

The New York Post, citing property records, reported that Watson shares a $1.2 million home in Eastvale with her husband.

Watson is scheduled to appear June 8 at the Riverside Hall of Justice for her first hearing, according to jail records provided by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.

The Options for Youth Public Charter Schools did not immediately respond to Blaze News' request for comment.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Office told Blaze News there are no updates at this time.

Police said the investigation is ongoing.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office urges those with information on the case to contact Master Investigator D. Schell at 951-955-1704 or the sheriff’s dispatch at 951-776-1099.

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