Larissa Garcia: Murder Case, Wrongful Death Suit, and the Palms

The Larissa Garcia murder case centers on the June 2024 strangulation and sexual assault of a 30-year-old single mother inside a room at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. Jason Kendall, then 35, confessed to killing her and faces charges of open murder, sexual assault, and battery by strangulation to commit sexual assault. In May 2026, a judge found Kendall incompetent to stand trial, stalling the prosecution. That same month, Garcia’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Palms and the escort agency that allegedly sent her to the hotel.¹

What Happened at the Palms

Surveillance video showed Kendall meeting Garcia in the Palms lobby around 4:00 p.m. on June 12, 2024. According to the arrest report, Kendall told police he had paid Garcia $2,000 for sex, then “snapped” when she asked for more money. He said he struck her in the face, strangled her for roughly ten minutes, and sexually assaulted her before dragging her away from the door and leaving the room. About an hour after the two entered together, Kendall was captured on surveillance leaving alone.¹

Instead of calling for medical help, Kendall contacted hotel security and reported that a woman in his room was overdosing. Security found Garcia on the floor with a visible cut to her jaw. She was rushed to Spring Valley Hospital in critical condition. Medical staff found no drugs or alcohol in her system and concluded she was a battery victim, not an overdose patient.² On June 18, a nurse documented evidence of strangulation and possible suffocation injuries. Garcia was declared brain dead and died on June 21, 2024. Her official cause and manner of death were listed as “undetermined.”³

Where the Criminal Case Stands

Kendall surrendered to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police headquarters on June 28, 2024, more than two weeks after the assault. In a written statement, he admitted hitting Garcia, choking her for several minutes, and raping her.³ A judge ordered him held without bail the next day.²

The case was bound over to Clark County District Court after a preliminary hearing on August 6, 2024. Kendall was then ordered to undergo a competency evaluation. In January 2025, he was found competent to stand trial and proceedings were set to resume.⁴ That finding was reversed on May 13, 2026, when a District Court judge deemed him incompetent to stand trial. The prosecution is effectively stalled. Kendall remains in custody without bail.¹

The Wrongful Death Lawsuit

On May 1, 2026, Garcia’s family sued the Palms Casino Resort and Jodi Mattinson, a self-described “Madam” who operates the Bombshell escort agency. The complaint pleads negligence, premises liability, human trafficking, and failure to provide reasonable security. It seeks unspecified compensatory and wrongful death damages for Garcia’s pain and suffering and for the harm sustained by her surviving children.⁵

Allegations Against the Palms

The suit accuses the Palms of actively facilitating escort services by requiring front desk staff to connect calls from known escort agencies directly to guest rooms. It alleges the hotel “encourages and welcomes prostitution” because it generates tourist revenue. The complaint also says staff ignored warning signs during the incident itself. Garcia’s screams were allegedly audible in the hallway, and Kendall left the property visibly bleeding with scratch marks on his face and body, yet no one intervened or checked on her.¹

A related allegation concerns internal culture. The lawsuit claims staff were told to treat guest privacy as a “paramount concern” while explicitly excluding sex workers from the category of “guests” deserving safety protections. Even when employees knew a commercial sex transaction was underway, according to the complaint, they took no steps to ensure the safety of the person providing the service.⁵

The complaint also points to prior regulatory history. In 2013, the Nevada Gaming Control Board fined the Palms $1 million to settle a 17-count complaint arising from a 2012 joint undercover investigation with Las Vegas police that found nightclub staff at the casino had offered undercover officers drugs and prostitution services, with security guards allegedly overseeing illicit activity in private rooms and poolside cabanas. As part of that settlement, the Palms overhauled nightclub security and mandated employee drug testing.⁶

A Palms spokesperson said the resort is “deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life” and takes “the safety and wellbeing of every Palms guest” seriously, adding that the casino continues to cooperate with law enforcement and “intend[s] to respond through the appropriate legal process.”¹

Allegations Against Jodi Mattinson and the Bombshell Agency

The complaint describes how the Bombshell Agency allegedly operated. “Phone girls” coordinated meetings between escorts and clients. The standard arrangement involved a “pickup” fee of around $400, collected by the escort upon arrival, after which the escort was expected to negotiate a “second transaction” offering sex acts for additional money. The suit claims this two-step model frequently provoked violence from clients who were not expecting to pay more, and that Mattinson knew the risk yet continued sending workers into those situations.⁵

Mattinson allegedly required Garcia to surrender 50% of every pickup fee and 40% of all tips, a practice the complaint argues violates Nevada law prohibiting employers from taking workers’ gratuities. The family’s attorneys characterize Garcia as a victim of human trafficking and allege the agency “negligently sent Garcia on a dangerous call” that resulted in her death. The complaint asserts that Kendall’s violence was a “foreseeable” consequence of the agency’s business model.¹

Who Owns the Palms

The Palms is owned and operated by the San Manuel Gaming and Hospitality Authority, the business arm of the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation (also known as the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians), a federally recognized tribe based in Southern California. The authority acquired the property from Red Rock Resorts in a $650 million deal approved by the Nevada Gaming Commission in December 2021, making the Palms the first tribally owned casino resort in Las Vegas.⁷ Whether the tribal entity’s status as a sovereign governmental instrumentality may factor into the civil proceedings remains to be seen.

As of mid-2026, the wrongful death case is in its early stages with no reported settlement discussions, and the criminal case remains paused pending any change in Kendall’s competency status.

1
8 News Now. Lawsuit Filed Against Las Vegas Casino, Well-Known Madam Two Years After Man Accused of Killing Sex Worker Inside Hotel Room
2
NewsNation. Las Vegas Sex Worker Assault
3
News 3 Las Vegas. Suspect Charged With Killing Woman in Las Vegas Hotel Room Ordered for Competency Hearing
4
Fox 5 Vegas. Man Accused in Sex Worker’s Death at Las Vegas Casino Found Competent to Stand Trial
5
Casino.org. Family of Slain Sex Worker Sues Palms Casino for Failing to Prevent Her Murder
6
Las Vegas Review-Journal. Palms to Pay $1 Million Fine to Settle Drug, Prostitution Complaint
7
The Nevada Independent. Palms Purchase by San Manuel Tribe Approved by Regulators, Deal to Close Friday