Stalker sentenced in Glenrock; crowd fills courtroom

GLENROCK —  The throng of Glenrock residents packing the courtroom were silent while Preston Sorensen stood before the judge and read his victim impact statement. As the high school junior reached the end of his letter, in which he chronicled a year and a half of stalking and harassment by a former girlfriend’s mother, Marcie Smith, he took a breath and looked up at Converse County Circuit Court Judge Clark C. Allen.

“No one should have to go through this – especially not because of an adult who should know right from wrong. This situation has left me feeling small and like my voice doesn’t matter,” the 6-foot-5- inch, 17-year-old Sorensen said. “But I am standing here today because I refuse to let this define me . . . I hope that by speaking out, not only will justice be served, but that no one else will have to endure what I have.”

Though Sorensen said Smith’s conviction and finally getting to tell his story was the “first step in letting go,” her sentence of two years of unsupervised probation and $1,390 in fines and fees for stalking two minors was a lack of justice.

That is something on which his mother and the mother of Marcie’s other victim, 16-year-old Gillian Holman, concurred.

Now, the mothers, Brandi Sorensen and Cathy Holman, are not only spreading awareness for victim advocacy, they’re pushing to change the state’s laws on stalking in hopes of shielding other children from what their own children have endured.

Smith case

Smith, who initially pleaded not guilty to stalking Gillian in October, pleaded no contest to charges against both teens March 19 at the circuit court in Douglas.

When they plead no contest, defendants accept the conviction of a crime without admitting fault. For sentencing’s sake, it’s no different than a guilty plea.

The sentencing hearing was attended by more than three dozen people, mostly from Glenrock and almost overwhelmingly in support of the victims, while a handful sat behind Smith.

Preston was one of six people who read impact statements in court. Both of his parents, Gillian and both of her parents read emotional statements about how Smith’s stalking had affected their lives.

The statements detailed Smith’s harassment that began for Preston in July 2023 while he was dating Smith’s daughter; and for Gillian in November 2023 when she and Preston became romantically involved.

What followed was months of electronic harassment and stalking.

While Smith sent many, often disparaging texts to the Holmans and Sorensens as herself, she sent the majority anonymously or under the guise of other people. There was evidence Smith purchased a ‘burner phone’ that was linked to these anonymous texts.

During some periods, she messaged Gillian and Preston pretending to be another student at Glenrock Junior/ Senior High School. Sometimes she pretended to be an anonymous male teenager in Douglas.

At one point, Smith even sent a deceptive email to the Holmans while impersonating a Glenrock teacher. Many of these texts, messages and emails seemed aimed at causing fighting between the Holmans and Sorensens, or simply tarnishing the reputation of the families.

Various other texts also included sexually vulgar comments and threats.

After all six impact statements had been read, the judge adjusted his glasses and addressed Smith.

“One of the most precious things about a small town is the trust they develop,” he told her. “You’ve obviously destroyed that.”

Allen suggested adding a stipulation to Smith’s probation that would forbid her from attending any school functions or athletic activities for the next two years.

However, Smith’s attorney, Patrick Lewallen, objected, as this wasn’t among the terms of Smith’s plea agreement with the State.

Lewallen also commented that Smith has her own children participating in local athletics whom she’d like to support. After agreeing to Lewallen’s objection, Allen addressed Smith again.

“The type of stalking case I’ve heard about today —  you need to really dig into your counseling and therapy,” he said, referencing Smith’s probation-ordered mental health evaluations. “Your future depends on it.”

While Smith’s charges were misdemeanor counts, Allen warned she could be facing a felony if she broke any probation guidelines or violated protection orders.

During the hearing, Smith waived her right to comment before the court. Smith and her attorney also declined to answer questions posed by The Independent after the hearing.

Support through struggles

Cathy said she noticed “a light return in the kids” after the hearing, adding they even sat down and ate at a restaurant whereas beforehand, they’d often get food from a drive-through out of fear of encountering Smith.

Struggles like this may seem obvious in stalking cases, but navigating the legal system and following the appropriate channels proved to be its own unique struggle for Cathy and Brandi.

Both mothers extensively praised help received from Converse County Witness Coordinator Stacey Mittleider and more specifically, aid from staff at the Converse County Hope Center.

“Basically, they held our hand the whole way,” Cathy said, “Which was amazing because I’ve never even had a parking ticket before. So I’m not familiar at all with the legal system.”

She continued that victim advocates helped her family file a protection order, walked them through various court processes, alerted them to updates in their case and provided general support.

“They do not mind when you ask the same question 20 times because you are in crisis mode. They are so patient and so brilliant,” Cathy said.

After the situation was first reported to the Glenrock Police Department in November of 2023, the Holmans and Sorensens worked on and off with law enforcement for months gathering evidence.

Brandi said this early process was frustrating because her son wasn’t initially seen as a victim.

“He was not crying, he was not freaking out that they could see, so they didn’t think he felt anything,” she said of Preston’s early interviews with GPD.

Brandi added that she was initially told by GPD officers that they didn’t think Smith had the intent to harm Preston, only Gillian.

“There is a stigma in our society about males being targeted by females in this way,” Preston’s dad, Ryan, wrote in his impact statement. “Too often, people brush it off, act like it’s not serious, or that a young man should be flattered or just ‘get over it.’ But - this is real. It is disgusting. And it has lasting consequences.”

But Brandi said many of these frustrations were eased after Cathy advised her to contact the CCHC.

“I felt heard. Preston felt heard, understood,” she said. “Definitely go to a victims advocacy group. Because when you’re in (that situation), sometimes it makes you question a lot of things. And victim advocates know a lot about the victims and how it can mess with your head.”

Having experienced these struggles and more, Brandi and Cathy want to offer support to others who have been affected by stalking and harassment.

“I used my platform Prairie Wife In Heels’ social media and website to share our story because the isolation was incredibly damaging,” Cathy said. “And I knew it would provide a safe place for other people to share their stories.”

Since going public last week, Cathy said she’s seen many people use her platform to openly share their stories of stalking and harassment, and even more people have sent private messages recounting their struggles.

She said she hopes to use her platform to spread educational information on where to access victim advocacy resources.

Similarly, Brandi said she’s noticed people speak up, many of whom were previously silent.

“Since this became public, we’ve heard so many stories from people that were harassed and couldn’t prove this or that (in their cases),” she said. “I’ll continue to advocate for victims and victims advocacy and education about perpetrators.”

Cathy or Brandi may be reached by email at prairiewifeinheels@ hotmail.com or Brandi@conversecountyhome.com, respectively.

Updating the law

The current law on stalking (Wyo. Stat. 6-2-506) labels the crime as a misdemeanor, carrying up to a year imprisonment and $750 in fines unless one of multiple other stipulations are met, like causing serious bodily harm to the victim, which could then bump it up to a felony.

“When we found out that’s what (Smith) was going to be charged with we looked (the law) up and I was appalled,” Cathy told the Independent earlier this month. “Because what this woman did is the same as a littering fine.”

So Cathy and Brandi decided to work with Sen. Brian Boner, R-Converse/Natrona, and others to update the Wyoming statute.

Under the mothers’ recommendation for a change to the law, an adult would face a felony, carrying up to 10 years imprisonment and $10,000 in fines should they be convicted of stalking a minor who is three or more years younger than them.

They also suggest the law define electronic methods of stalking or harassment to include social media, texting, emails and electronic account impersonation.

Brandi and Cathy said they’ve worked with Cyber Wyoming Executive Director Laura Baker to draft these technological updates to the law.

They’re also urging the legislature to make the crime fit the punishment, so to speak.

For example, the standard sentence for one year of stalking would equate to one year imprisonment.

Since Cathy reached out to him March 4, Boner said the law changes will be a topic of discussion during the legislature’s Management Council meeting April 8. There, committee members will decide whether or not the changes move on as an interim topic.

Should this happen and the legislature creates an official bill to change the law, the soonest it could go into effect would be next year.

“This overall topic is one that is worthy of consideration given the challenges with mental health with our young people in particular. And the role of technology in that in particular,” Boner said. The state senator added he thinks it’ll be important to take a broader look at the law and see what else they can do.

Cathy said she and Brandi have been a team throughout not just their law-changing efforts, but through the entire legal process involving their children.

“I’ve been the contact (for various sources) but Brandi is right along,” she said. “Because she knows so much about the court system and so like I said we’re going to move forward. She’s our girl with all the documentation. We have different strengths in this dynamic duo.”

Perhaps a testament to the duo’s efforts, Cathy said hundreds of people have messaged her saying they’ve contacted their area’s representative about stalking laws.

Both Cathy and Brandi plan to speak in support of the law changes when they address the Senate committee in April.

“We step up, and I couldn’t be more proud of what I’m seeing,” Cathy said. “But we can’t let off the gas, we can’t let the pressure down.”

This story was published on March 27, 2025.