SAN JOSE (CBS SF) — A judge on Wednesday denied bail for the mom accused of throwing drunken sex parties for teens at her Los Gatos home and other locations over the course of nearly a year.
Santa Clara County prosecutors say Shannon O’Connor — aka Shannon Bruga — hosted teen parties in Los Gatos for about a year. One of her sons — also a teenager — was involved in the parties.
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The laundry list of 39 offenses — ranging from felony child endangerment and sexual assault to multiple misdemeanor charges of child endangerment and providing alcohol to minors — were detailed in a press release and charging documents filed by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office last week.
Wednesday afternoon, O’Connor made her first San Jose court appearance for her arraignment after being extradited from Idaho 700 miles away, facing a judge and the parents of the alleged victims.
Los Gatos teen sex party suspect Shannon O’Connor (CBS)
Wearing a jail uniform of a light orange colored top, green pants and handcuffs, O’Connor did not say a word as the judge issued protective orders for all 15 alleged victims, which included her son.
The protective order prohibits her from contacting or coming within 300 yards of the victims for the next three years. The judge also set no bail.
“We asked the judge to set no bail, because of the continuing criminal conduct. The threat to the victims in the case, the threat to other children who may be victims as well,” said District Attorney Jeff Rosen outside of the court after the appearance.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office will be the lead investigative agency in the case, officials said.
“Some people refer to the defendant as a ‘cool mom.’ There is nothing cool about letting children drive drunk. There is nothing cool about children getting so drunk that they vomit on alcohol that you provided in your own home. There is nothing cool about getting teenage children drunk, to then commit sexual assaults on one another,” said Rosen.
Families of victims told the DA’s office the case has been traumatic and requested privacy. Several family members of the victims also attended the hearing, but had no comment.
Investigators say over an 11-month period, she hosted alcohol fueled parties where she encouraged sex acts amongst 14 and 15-year-olds, sometimes non-consensual.
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According to court documents, at one point she gave an underage teenager a condom, and pushed him into a room with an intoxicated minor.
Sometimes O’Connor would watch.
“One of the crimes that we have charged involves committing the crime for sexual gratification. So we can certainly say that sexual gratification is one of the motives in this case. There may be other motives, and we’ll have to see. Sexual gratification can include voyeuristic, as well as actual participation. Both would be included in sexual gratification.”
O’Connor’s defense attorney requested that the arraignment be continued, but the judge denied that request Wednesday afternoon.
Teen sex party suspect Shannon O’Connor aka Shannon Bruga (Ada County Sheriff’s Office)
O’Connor is expected to enter a plea at her next court hearing, currently scheduled for December 17.
O’Connor was arrested on October 9 in Star, Idaho, northeast of Boise, where she and her two teenage sons moved to earlier this year. She currently faces 39 charges including felony child endangerment, sexual battery, annoying or molesting a child, and providing alcohol to a person under age 21.
She is also suspected of hosting similar parties in Idaho after relocating.
At one party at her Los Gatos home, O’Connor allegedly gave an underage teenager a condom and pushed him into a room with an intoxicated minor. During a New Year’s Eve party at her home with about five 14-year-olds, the defendant watched and laughed as a drunk teen sexually battered a young girl in bed, according to the court documents. In some cases, O’Connor would Snapchat or text teens to leave their homes in the middle of the night and drink at her home, providing the alcohol.
The Ada County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release deputies were investigating O’Connor after an Idaho family contacted reported O’Connor was harassing them. The family told investigators the harassment began after they met with O’Connor when she was looking for a home in Idaho but then tried to sever ties with her after finding out she was part of a sexual abuse investigation.
The investigation was ongoing when the arrest warrant for O’Connor was issued in Santa Clara County. When detectives arrived Saturday morning at her Star home, they found “there were 10 underage boys and two girls at her home — most of whom spent the night there,” according to a sheriff’s office news release. Investigators contacted the parents of those teens before releasing them.
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Additionally, O’Connor faces felony fraud charges in a separate case for making more than $120,000 in unauthorized charges on a company card she was given as an administrative assistant for Aruba Networks.
Source: sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com.