Influencer gets 90 days in jail for false kidnap report

A California woman and Instagram “mom influencer” who falsely reported and posted online that a couple had attempted to kidnap her two young children in 2020 was sentenced Thursday to 90 days in jail, prosecutors said.

A Sonoma County Superior Court judge sentenced the woman, Katie Sorensen, 30, the Sonoma County district attorney's office said in a statement. Sorensen was convicted in April of making a false report, a misdemeanor.

The district attorney, Carla Rodriguez, said that 60 of the 90 days could be served on a work-release program.

Sorensen also was sentenced to 12 months of informal probation. During this time, she was ordered to have no social media presence, to submit to warrantless search and seizure of her electronic devices, and to complete a four-hour implicit bias training program, in addition to paying various fines and fees, the district attorney said. Sorensen had faced a maximum sentence of six months in jail.

She was immediately remanded after her sentencing.

“Ms. Sorensen has been held accountable for her crime, and we believe the judge handed down a fair sentence,” Rodriguez said in the statement. “Our hope is that this measure of accountability will help provide some closure to the couple that was falsely accused of having attempted to kidnap two young children.”

Sorensen's lawyer, Charles Dresow, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.

On Dec. 7, 2020, Sorensen visited a Michaels craft store in Petaluma with her 4-year-old son and 1-year-old daughter, prosecutors said.

After purchasing some items, prosecutors said, she loaded her children into her car and left the store's parking lot.

“A few minutes later, Ms. Sorensen called the Petaluma Police Department and reported that a couple had tried to kidnap her children,” prosecutors said.