‘Just a happy kid’: Parents, family reflect on slain 19-year-old as one of his killers gets 8 1/2 years

Andrew Sorensen would have celebrated his 24th birthday this weekend.
Instead, his life was cut short in 2020 by a Spokane couple who bound, beat and stabbed the then 19-year-old, and then laughed while he cried and begged for his life.
After a roughly 2½-hour hearing Thursday filled with tearful impact statements from Sorensen’s parents and family members who packed the courtroom, Spokane County Superior Court Judge Annette Plese sentenced one of the defendants, Brenda D. Kross, to 8½ years in prison for her role in the killing.
Kross, 57, pleaded guilty Nov. 14 to first-degree manslaughter. Her fiancé, 63-year-old John B. Eisenman, pleaded guilty that day to first-degree murder in Sorensen’s death.
Eisenman, who Spokane County Deputy Prosecutor Tom Treppiedi said was the “primary actor” in the killing, was also set to be sentenced by Plese on the same day as Kross. It is rescheduled for Thursday because Eisenman’s attorney was ill.
The killing drew national attention because Eisenman claimed that Sorensen sex-trafficked their daughter. Kross and Spokane police wrote in court documents, however, that there was no evidence that Sorensen sex-trafficked the woman.
The sex-trafficking claim initially earned Eisenman financial support on a crowd-funding website for his legal defense. He later said he was likely under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the slaying.
Sorensen’s body was found Oct. 22, 2021 – nearly one year after Sorensen was killed – in the trunk of an abandoned Honda Accord registered to Kross next to Rochester Heights Park in northeast Spokane, according to court documents.
Police wrote in documents that Sorensen’s ankles were bound with zip ties, and his hands were bound behind his back with ties. Tape appeared to cover Sorensen’s mouth.
Curtis Boutain, Sorensen’s grandfather, said the “gruesome way” the defendants inflicted pain on his grandson was the worst thing a human could endure.
“It had to be one of the worst things that a person could do,” he said.
About 50 of Sorensen’s loved ones filled the courtroom Thursday, and eight of them, including Boutain, stood and addressed the heartache the murder caused while describing Sorensen as a happy, caring man.
Theresa Sorensen, Andrew Sorensen’s mother, said she and her husband, Randy Sorensen, adopted Andrew despite his diagnoses of cerebral palsy and autism. His physical and mental issues required extensive therapies and doctor appointments, but Andrew was “just a happy kid” free of tantrums that young children often have, Theresa said.
“The longer Andrew was with us, the more we fell in love with him,” she said.
Theresa said her son earned “most affectionate” in kindergarten and was awarded “kindest heart” when he was 10. Sorensen showed Plese those certificates from school.
Still, Andrew started to have issues in school when he was 16, Theresa said.
She said her son would often leave home and return with a homeless person he befriended.
Boutain said it was those friends on the street Andrew, who was bullied through school for being autistic, could relate to.
Theresa said her son’s friends were allowed to stay if they worked on themselves, like going to school or working.
“He knew I would care and help out each kid he brought home,” Theresa said. “And I did.”
Andrew inched his way toward the credits he needed for his high school diploma before earning it in June 2020.
“It meant a lot,” Theresa said. “He was so excited to receive it in the mail.”
She said her son worked hard, and they had plans for his future, but those were cut short in November 2020.
Theresa said she begged Andrew not to leave the family home prior to his disappearance, fearing something bad was going to happen. She said her son reassured her everything would be OK and he’d be back that night.
He never returned.
“Eisenman and Brenda showed no mercy when they brutally murdered my son,” Theresa said.
She said she is haunted by the cries of her son begging for his life in her head every night before she goes to sleep.
Theresa’s husband, Randy, said he believed the evidence pointed to Kross being the mastermind behind the kidnapping and torture of their son.
“She was right there by John’s side helping him plan this out,” Randy said.
He said the social media attacks on his family weren’t enough for Kross, as he claimed she bragged about the torture and murder. Court documents cite a co-worker of Kross who reported that she casually hummed the same song she confided choosing to taunt Sorensen as he begged for his life.
Randy and many family members asked Plese to impose the maximum sentence possible.
Theresa also asked for a more severe sentence than the eight years recommended by the prosecution and defense.
“I pray you consider our family and our fear,” Theresa said.
Madilynn Payne, Andrew’s sister, described her brother as a smart, caring and loving person who helped everyone, including herself, at their lowest points.
She said he pulled her out of dark holes and took her out of bad situations where she put herself.
“Now, I don’t have that because of these two people who took him away,” Payne said. “They ruined his life and his family.”
She said he would take the clothes off his back for someone in need and use the last dollar in his wallet to feed a homeless person. He lived every day with a big smile on his face and a “fighting spirit.”
“Andrew was a hero in my eyes,” Payne said.
Judy Boutain, Andrew’s aunt, described her nephew as a “beautiful baby and a sweet kid growing up.” He was a bit quiet and loved to play basketball when he got older.
She said she prayed Andrew would be found “no matter the outcome” because the “not knowing was killing (Andrew’s parents).”
Judy and others spoke about the devastating effects on the family of the national attention and praise and money Eisenman was getting for the killing.
Eisenman was arrested one week after Sorensen’s body was found, and Kross was arrested in September 2022.
According to court documents, Eisenman told police he and Kross went to Seattle in October 2020 to rescue their daughter from the alleged prostitution. After returning to Spokane with the girl, he learned Sorensen was going to be at a mobile home park in Airway Heights.
Eisenman said he surveilled the location and saw Sorensen being dropped off there, according to documents.
Eisenman confronted Sorensen, used zip ties to tie Sorensen’s hands behind his back and placed him into the trunk of the Honda, he told police. Eisenman said he used zip ties to bound Sorensen’s ankles, put a sock in his mouth and wrapped tape around his mouth.
While Sorensen was in the trunk, Eisenman admitted to punching Sorensen and throwing a cinder block at his head, then stabbing him several times in the stomach.
Eisenman told police he drove the car back to his residence with Sorensen’s body inside the trunk and left the vehicle parked on the street. The next day, Eisenman drove the Honda, with Sorensen’s body still inside, to property off U.S. Highway 2. He put the Honda in the back of the property and removed the car battery, so that no one could drive it.
Kross made it nearly another year before being arrested after she told a co-worker about taunting the dying teen, according to documents.
Kross told the co-worker in August 2022 she played a song about “crying, crying, crying” while she and Eisenman killed Sorensen. Kross then started to hum the song, the co-worker told police, saying she played the song because Sorensen was crying so much while begging for his life. The woman said Kross told her that she and Eisenman were laughing and singing while the 19-year-old cried.
Kross told the co-worker she punched Sorensen in the face and that she and Eisenman hit Sorensen with a cinder block, beat him and stabbed him. She said they put Sorensen’s body in the trunk of her vehicle before ditching the car.
The woman said Kross told her Sorensen “got what he deserved.”
Rocky Boutain, Andrew’s uncle, told the court Thursday he could not begin to explain the pain and suffering his family endured. He said that not only included the “horrific murder,” but the deceit and lies that were spread about Andrew being portrayed as a sex trafficker.
He said the light in his sister’s eyes diminished because of the crime.
“They will never fully recover from this,” said Rocky, who recited a poem he wrote for Andrew.
Kross, fighting tears and wearing gray Spokane County Jail clothing, apologized to the Sorensen family, adding that she lays awake every night thinking about the lives she affected. She said she hoped the family finds it in their hearts to forgive the anger and grief her actions caused.
“I cannot imagine the pain and suffering you’re going through,” Kross said.
Two of Kross’ family members watching the hearing via Zoom expressed their deepest apologies to the Sorensen family.
Kross’ attorney, Katharine Allison, said her client took responsibility for the killing but understood her accountability will probably never feel sufficient for the Sorensen family.
She said Kross has significant mental health issues and a mental health defense may have been possible if the case went to trial. Kross, she said, was having delusions prior to her arrest and while incarcerated, which could have affected her statements about the incident.
She noted Kross had a difficult upbringing, including abuse from her stepmother and family members dying by suicide. She was also kicked out of the house as a teen.
She said evidence supported the charges that Eisenman was the one who instigated and carried out the killing.
Treppiedi said Kross’ mental competency could have been an issue for the prosecution at trial. He said Eisenman took full responsibility for the murder and that a plea agreement could help start the healing process for the Sorensen family.
Treppiedi and Allison recommended an eight-year prison sentence, but Plese imposed 8½ years, the high end of the standard sentence range.
Plese said Kross got a “pretty good break” pleading to manslaughter instead of murder, her original charge.
The judge said she couldn’t imagine the pain the Sorensen family was going through. While it’s commonly said closure helps, Plese wasn’t sure, at least in this case.
“I would probably disagree, because you’ll never get over this,” she said.
Plese reminded the family that they took Andrew into their home from the foster system and gave him a good life he would not have received in foster care. She encouraged family members to remember the good times moving forward.
Eisenman is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday. The prosecution and defense agreed to a 22-year prison sentence for him.
“We are tired,” Theresa told the court. “We want to be done will all this.”