“Call 911 before walking in.”
This was the chilling message left in front of the door of a Las Vegas hotel room.
Behind the door was the lifeless body of an 11-year-old girl, Addilyn Smith, lying next to her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, 34. Their bodies were surrounded by stuffed animals and bottles of prescription medications, according to new details released by the Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner.
Highlights
- An 11-year-old girl, Addilyn Smith, was found lifeless beside her mother in a Las Vegas hotel room.
- New autopsy reports revealed she had a cocktail of prescription medication in her system, along with a firearm wound to her head.
- Her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, left a chilling note outside her hotel room’s door for the staff to find.
- “Call 911 before walking in,” the message said.
Tawnia McGeehan left a chilling message outside her hotel room door in Las Vegas
Trigger warning: This story contains graphic details of violence that may be disturbing to some.
New autopsy results have painted a harrowing picture of what went down in Tawnia McGeehan’s hotel room before she and her daughter, Addi Smith, were found at the Rio Hotel and Casino on February 15.
The Utah mom had traveled to Las Vegas for the 11-year-old girl’s cheer competition. Addi was a cheerleader for Xtreme Cheer.
Several notes written by Tawnia were found inside the hotel room, along with bottles of THC gummies and prescription pill bottles.
Multiple broken or empty capsules were also found, alongside a clear cup that contained white residue, believed to be the contents of the opened capsules.
Investigators found evidence of Addi being heavily medicated prior to her passing.
The mother allegedly gave Addi a cocktail of prescription medication before firing her weapon at her
It is believed Tawnia allegedly gave her daughter a cocktail of prescription medication, which included Caffeine, Quetiapine (an antipsychotic), Diphenhydramine (an antihistamine), Gabapentin (used to control seizures), and Lorazepam (an anti-anxiety medication), as per new autopsy reports.
Tawnia’s toxicology report also revealed that the same substances in her bloodstream, along with other substances like Citalopram (an antidepressant), Eszopiclone (used to treat insomnia), and cannabinoids.
Notes found around the room, written by Tawnia, said Addi was “very medicated” and “slept cuddled” with her mom.
Tawnia also wrote that she intentionally left Addi’s phone open so that whoever found the device could easily access photos and videos.
But the most harrowing note of them all was left outside the hotel room.
The Utah mom left a chilling note about her daughter’s body outside the hotel room door
Tawnia allegedly taped a shred of paper to a chair, which was partially blocking the entrance of her room.
“Call 911 before walking in. Two de*d bodies and one is an 11-year-old,” read the note allegedly left by the mother.
When hotel personnel found the note, they reportedly called the cops and entered the room using a passkey.
Inside the room, Tawnia and Addi were found side-by-side, with the child’s stuffed animals lying on the unmade bed.
The 11-year-old, lying next to her mom in one of the room’s two beds, was wearing her pajamas and covered by a blanket when she was found.
Her face was covered by a pillow.
The divorced mom allegedly fired a bullet into her daughter’s head before pulling the trigger on herself
Both the mother and girl had sustained firearm wounds, suggesting their passings were a case of m**der-s**cide.
The medical examiner confirmed that it was the firearm wounds and not the myriad of medications that brought Tawnia and Addi’s lives to an end.
“[Addi] and her mother were both in one bed, and the other bed appeared unmade and had miscellaneous items to include stuffed animals and a clear purse,” said the newly released report.
“There was an apparent defect in the pillow that correlated with the g*nsh*t wound to [Addi's] head,” the report continued. “[Addi's] mother was lying next to her. There was a Ruger 5.7 x 28mm handg*n found on the mother's face and upper chest area.”
It is believed Tawnia was “severely drespressed” over breakups and struggled with thoughts of ending her own life
The report claimed that Tawnia was “severely depressed over [her] breakups” and her “ongoing custody battle” with ex-husband Bradley Smith.
The former couple divorced in 2015 but were locked in a bitter custody dispute over Addi for nine years.
Their agreements included complicated arrangements, such as parking five spaces away from each other during handovers of their daughter.
Addi was expected to walk between her parents’ two cars without either of them beside her.
The parents were also forbidden from approaching each other at school events and were ordered to hand over their daughter outside Utah’s Herriman Police Department at 9 a.m. every Monday.
Tawnia and Bradley were also not allowed to criticize each other in front of their daughter and could only text each other when there was an emergency related to Addi.
Tawnia’s family members had told investigators that she had a “history of severe depression” and was previously using prescription medication, according to official documents.
If you or someone you know is struggling with self-h*rm or s**c*de ideation, help is available: International Hotlines
“I feel bad for the child… The person you trust more than anybody in life does this to you,” one commented online
