Littrell Connor -

Littrell Connor

Associate Attorney

Biography

Littrell Connor is an associate attorney in McCathern, Shokouhi, Evans’ Dallas office, where she leverages her courtroom and trial experience to assist clients across several practice areas, including Criminal Defense, Civil Litigation, Business & Commercial Litigation, and Family Law.

Prior to joining the firm, Littrell served in the Misdemeanor Division of the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office, where she primarily prosecuted family violence cases. Working across multiple Dallas County criminal courts, she managed a high-volume docket, handled hearings and trials, negotiated resolutions, and worked closely with law enforcement officers, victims, and witnesses. Littrell maintained an impressive winning record at trial while advocating for victims of crime and their families, helping them navigate the criminal justice system and secure the justice they deserved.

Littrell earned her Juris Doctor from SMU Dedman School of Law in 2025, where she distinguished herself as one of the school’s premier advocates. As a member of SMU’s nationally recognized Mock Trial Team, she competed in some of the country’s most competitive advocacy tournaments, earning an undefeated record in the preliminary rounds of the AAJ Trial Competition, a semi-finalist finish at SMU’s annual Mock Trial Competition, and an octo-finalist finish at the South Texas Mock Trial Challenge, where she was also individually selected from more than 200 competitors as the competition’s Most Professional Advocate in recognition of her advocacy and professionalism. She also earned the Best Advocate Award at the Jackson Walker Moot Court Competition and the Best Voir Dire Award at the Top Gun Mock Trial Competition, where she finished as runner-up. In her final year of law school, Littrell was inducted into the National Order of Barristers, a national honor recognizing excellence in trial and appellate advocacy, and was awarded the Master Advocate Award by SMU Law, the school’s highest honor for excellence in advocacy.

In addition to refining her own advocacy skills, Littrell served as Director of Administration for the SMU Dedman School of Law Board of Advocates, where she mentored younger students in trial advocacy and helped organize a community outreach program through which she coached fifth-grade mock trial students. She continues to give back to the advocacy community as a guest judge for mock trial competitions at both SMU Law and Texas Tech University.

Littrell further refined her courtroom experience through the SMU Dedman School of Law Criminal Defense Clinic, where she represented individuals accused of criminal offenses in Dallas County. She also interned with the Dallas County Public Defender’s Office, assisting in the representation of indigent clients facing felony charges, including work on a high-profile death penalty writ arising out of Harris County. Additionally, she served as a judicial extern and interim law clerk to the Honorable Judge Lindsay in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, gaining valuable exposure to federal practice and judicial decision-making.

Prior to law school, Littrell was born and raised in Oklahoma. She earned her B.A. degree in Psychology, with a minor in Sociology-Criminology, from the University of Oklahoma in May 2022. At OU, she was selected as one of 100 incoming students for the President’s Community Scholar Program out of more than 10,000 applicants, where she worked on community service initiatives and partnered with local nonprofit organizations to develop and implement service projects. She was also active in the Psychology Club, Criminal Law Association, and Students Against Human Trafficking. Littrell was a member of Delta Gamma Fraternity, Alpha Iota Pi Chapter.

While still in college, Littrell worked part-time at the Mary Abbott House, a children’s advocacy center, where she became certified by the National Advocate Credentialing Program (NACP) and collaborated with members of the Child Abuse Response Team, including the Department of Human Services, law enforcement, and medical professionals, to support child abuse investigations and victim services. She also worked at Andrews Law Firm, a local civil litigation firm.

Littrell is a member of the Dallas Women Lawyers’ Association, Association of Young Lawyers, and the Mac Taylor Inn of Court.

Location

Dallas (MAIN)

3710 Rawlins Street
Suite 1600
Dallas, Texas 75219

PRACTICE AREAS

EDUCATION

Juris Doctor (2025)

B.A., Psychology

Minor in Sociology-Criminology

(2022)

PROSPER ISD PARENTS QUESTION DISTRICT RESPONSE TO BUS DRIVER ACCUSED OF SEXUALLY ASSAULTING STUDENTS

December 15, 2025

Author: Rebecca Lopez with WFAA Watch the interview here. PROSPER, Texas — Parents of two young girls who say they were repeatedly sexually assaulted by a Prosper ISD school bus driver are speaking out about what they describe as serious failures by the district — including delayed notification to families and promised safety changes they say were never fully implemented. The parents asked that they not be identified to protect their children, who were just elementary school age at the time of the abuse. In a lawsuit filed in 2023, the girls — identified only as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 — allege former bus driver Frank Paniagua assaulted them repeatedly during the 2021–2022 school year. According to the lawsuit, Paniagua would wait until other students exited the bus, then assault the girls, sometimes holding one child back so he could take her to the rear of the bus. Attorneys say the abuse occurred over several months and was captured on bus surveillance video. How the abuse was discovered The girls’ mother said the abuse came to light after their grandmother noticed troubling comments about gift cards offered by the bus driver. When the mother later questioned the girls again, they disclosed what had been happening. Prosper ISD police reviewed surveillance video from the bus in May 2022. Paniagua was arrested two days later and charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and indecency with a child. Paniagua later died after jumping from the second floor of the Collin County Jail while awaiting trial. Concerns about delayed notifications Attorneys for the family say more than 100 days passed after Paniagua’s arrest before Prosper ISD publicly acknowledged the allegations — a delay parents say may have prevented other potential victims from being identified. At a packed school board meeting, Prosper ISD parent Morgan Grahovec, a child psychologist whose daughter attended the same school as the victims, told trustees that delays in notifying parents can have serious consequences. “Children who are victims of abuse need to be identified and interviewed as soon as possible because memory fades over time,” Grahovec said. “The longer you wait, it’s harder to get a child to report abuse accurately.” Parents at those meetings called for Superintendent Holly Ferguson’s resignation, arguing district leaders should have acted sooner and communicated more transparently. Ferguson did not step down, instead promising changes to safety protocols. District response and former statement In an earlier written statement to WFAA, Prosper ISD said it took appropriate action once allegations surfaced: “We are horrified that an employee violated the trust of our families and students, as Prosper ISD’s foremost priority is to protect our students’ safety and well-being at all times. We strongly condemn the actions of any adult who would cause mental or physical harm to a child, and we do not tolerate such behavior.” The district has declined additional comment, citing pending litigation. Disputed claims about safety changes Prosper ISD previously told parents it would implement additional safeguards, including increased supervision during bus drop-offs, a volunteer “bus buddy” program, and improved monitoring of bus surveillance video. But the parents and their attorneys say those changes were not consistently put in place. Attorney Levi McCathern says the district does not regularly review bus surveillance footage — even though video captured the alleged abuse in this case. “You would think the first thing you would do after this happens is change your monitoring program,” McCathern said. “They don’t monitor them at all.” McCathern and co-counsel Kristin Hecker say the lawsuit is aimed at forcing policy changes rather than seeking financial gain. Questions about oversight and leadership The case has also raised broader concerns about district leadership and oversight. Prosper ISD’s school board president later resigned in an unrelated child abuse case, further shaking confidence among some parents. Families have also questioned the independence of the district’s internal review, noting that the law firm hired to investigate the district’s response is also defending Prosper ISD in the lawsuit. “All we want is an independent investigation,” McCathern said. Parents push for accountability and change The parents say their children remain enrolled in Prosper ISD, but they continue to press for reforms they believe could prevent similar abuse. “We want justice for our kids,” the girls’ mother said. “But we also want changes to happen at the district so that this doesn’t happen to other children.”