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Custody Battle. Cheer Competition. A De::adly Outcome. The ‘Dance Mom’ at the Center of the Vegas Horror Had Just Secured Full Control of Her Daughter

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The Utah “dance mom” who killed her 11-year-old daughter before taking her own life in a Las Vegas hotel room went through an ugly custody dispute with her ex-husband starting with their divorce in 2015.

Addi Smith, 11, was found shot dead alongside her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, 38, at the Rio Hotel & Casino on Sunday after the pair failed to show up for a cheer competition, authorities said.

Court papers reveal McGeehan and her ex-husband, Brad Smith, spent a bitter nine years fighting for custody of Addi following their divorce — but the killer mom appeared to retain much of the control over her daughter, according to 2024 docs.

Addi Smith smiling in her cheer uniform.

Addi Smith is believed to have been shot and killed by her mother, Tawnia McGeehan.

A man with a beard and a woman with curly hair smile at the camera.

Brad Smith (right) in an undated photo.

Under their split custody arrangement, the court had a hand in orchestrating every detail of how the young girl was handed off between the parents after visits at their respective homes.

The couple was ordered to park their cars a full five spaces apart during custody handovers at Addi’s school, and she was made to walk between the parents’ vehicles by herself.

At times when school wasn’t in session, the parents were ordered to conduct the handover outside the Herriman Police Department in Utah at 9 a.m. every Monday.

The parents were further warned never to film the custody handovers, and to stay away from one another at Addi’s school events.

The court instructed them to attempt to resolve any issues that arose around parental decisions via email first, while deferring to “support professionals” including Addi’s teachers, pediatrician or therapist.

If they were unable to come to an agreement via email, both parents had to attend a mediation session.

A preteen girl in a cheer bow and a woman smile, seen through pink lighting.

Tawnia McGeehan allegedly shot and killed her daughter, Addi, before taking her own life.

Tawnia McGeehan and her daughter Addi Smith smiling for a photo.

Tawnia McGeehan and her daughter, Addi, were reported missing before being found dead.

A man and a young girl smiling for a photo while in a golf cart.

Addi’s dad, Brad Smith, and her mom were divorced.
Facebook/Brad Smith
The divorce decree documents, first reported on by Daily Mail, gave McGeehan decision-making authority over Addi as the divorce petitioner.

However, Smith was allowed to take the issue to court if he disagreed with any of her decisions.

The parents were required to use a court-approved custody app called Family Wizard, where both were expected to “post significant events in which the child is involved,” such as school, sports, religious, community events, as well as medical appointments.

The app’s text message function was only to be used “in order to address emergencies” involving Addi.

 

Hopes were raised when investigators said they found DNA inside the Arizona home of Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie’s mother Nancy Guthrie, who vanished in the early hours of Feb. 1. The DNA found inside Guthrie’s house, however, was “mixed,” complicating the search for the 84-year-old mother of three, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told NBC News on Friday, Feb. 20. “We listen to our lab, and our lab tells us that there’s challenges with it,” Nanos told NBC News, noting that it could take “weeks, months or maybe a year” to get results. A mixed sample contains genetic material from more than one person, which makes it harder to identify, CeCe Moore, the chief genetic genealogist at Parabon Nanolabs, tells PEOPLE. “A complex mixture is much more difficult to work with,” says Moore, who has helped law enforcement solve more than 300 cold cases using DNA and genetic genealogy. “The more people you get in that DNA (sample), particularly unknown people’s DNA, the harder it is to just isolate one person’s out of that,” says Moore. Sheriff in Nancy Guthrie Kidnapping Case Says Investigation Is ‘Still Growing’ as Search Enters Fourth Week Moore is not part of the investigation, but has worked with the lab the Pima County Sheriff’s Office is using to identify the genetic material. “They’re very, very good at what they do,” she says. “So if they are struggling with it, that tells me it’s a very difficult sample.” Based on what she has heard on the news about the evidence, she says she believes it’s “less likely to be a blood sample or something that is a really good source of DNA.” FBI in Contact with Mexican Authorities amid Search for Nancy Guthrie: Reports Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for   for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter. The good news, though, is the fact that DNA evidence was found in the first place. “If I was the kidnapper, I would be extremely worried right now, particularly if I knew there was some kind of altercation, or I knew I touched things in there,” says Moore. Speaking about the armed assailant who was caught on Nest camera surveillance video at Nancy’s front door, Moore says that person wore gloves and a mask to try to avoid leaving DNA behind. But that is very difficult to do, she says. “It looked like he may have had a bite flashlight in his mouth,” she explains. “When you see him bending over toward the camera, I think it’s very possible saliva could have been left because of that.” He could have easily transferred his saliva onto those gloves and then onto anything he touched, such as a doorknob, she says
Hopes were raised when investigators said they found DNA inside the Arizona home of Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie’s mother Nancy Guthrie, who vanished in the early hours of Feb. 1. The DNA found inside Guthrie’s house, however, was “mixed,” complicating the search for the 84-year-old mother of three, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told NBC News on Friday, Feb. 20. “We listen to our lab, and our lab tells us that there’s challenges with it,” Nanos told NBC News, noting that it could take “weeks, months or maybe a year” to get results. A mixed sample contains genetic material from more than one person, which makes it harder to identify, CeCe Moore, the chief genetic genealogist at Parabon Nanolabs, tells PEOPLE. “A complex mixture is much more difficult to work with,” says Moore, who has helped law enforcement solve more than 300 cold cases using DNA and genetic genealogy. “The more people you get in that DNA (sample), particularly unknown people’s DNA, the harder it is to just isolate one person’s out of that,” says Moore. Sheriff in Nancy Guthrie Kidnapping Case Says Investigation Is ‘Still Growing’ as Search Enters Fourth Week Moore is not part of the investigation, but has worked with the lab the Pima County Sheriff’s Office is using to identify the genetic material. “They’re very, very good at what they do,” she says. “So if they are struggling with it, that tells me it’s a very difficult sample.” Based on what she has heard on the news about the evidence, she says she believes it’s “less likely to be a blood sample or something that is a really good source of DNA.” FBI in Contact with Mexican Authorities amid Search for Nancy Guthrie: Reports Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for   for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter. The good news, though, is the fact that DNA evidence was found in the first place. “If I was the kidnapper, I would be extremely worried right now, particularly if I knew there was some kind of altercation, or I knew I touched things in there,” says Moore. Speaking about the armed assailant who was caught on Nest camera surveillance video at Nancy’s front door, Moore says that person wore gloves and a mask to try to avoid leaving DNA behind. But that is very difficult to do, she says. “It looked like he may have had a bite flashlight in his mouth,” she explains. “When you see him bending over toward the camera, I think it’s very possible saliva could have been left because of that.” He could have easily transferred his saliva onto those gloves and then onto anything he touched, such as a doorknob, she says

The investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance has entered its fourth week, with complexities surrounding her alibi. The most…