Prosecutors announced on Thursday that Kathleen 'Katie' Sorensen, a California social media influencer, has been sentenced to 90 days in jail for falsely accusing a Latino couple of attempting to kidnap her children in a viral Instagram video.
Sorensen, aged 31, filed a false police report on December 7, 2020, alleging the incident took place at a Michaels arts and craft store in Sonoma County.
District Attorney Carla Rodriguez stated, "Ms. Sorensen has been held accountable for her crime, and we believe the Judge handed down a fair sentence. 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."
As part of her sentence, Sorensen will be permitted to serve 60 days of her jail time in a work release program. She has also been placed on 12 months of probation, during which she is prohibited from having a social media presence.
On the day of the false report, Sorensen informed the police that a Petaluma couple had tried to abduct her children from the parking lot of the Michaels store.
A week later, she posted an Instagram video in which she provided "great detail" about the alleged near abduction.
The video gained significant attention, and Sorensen appeared on a local news program. However, her claims were contradicted during a police investigation, leading to the revelation of her false accusations.
