A former University of Kentucky student who was banned from campus for a racist attack on a Black student appeared in court Monday where she pleaded guilty to several charges, according to her attorney.
Sophia Rosing, 23, physically assaulted and spouted racial slurs at a student desk clerk, Kylah Spring. Spring, who is Black, was working at the front desk of a residence hall at the time.
Video of Rosing’s November 2022 attack and arrest went viral, making headlines around the world and putting a spotlight on UK.
Rosing pleaded guilty to four counts of fourth-degree assault, one count of disorderly conduct, and one count of public intoxication, according to her attorney, Fred Peters.
She faces 12 months in jail, 100 hours of community service, and a $25 fine, Peters said. The guilty plea came immediately following a mediation, which took place Monday morning.
Peters said at the mediation, “A lot of things got said, apologies were made and we worked it out.”
“Her life has been on hold for the past 18 to 20 months,” Peters told the Herald-Leader. “She has had a lot of time to think about what she has done, and she wrote a nice letter of apology.”
Rosing was initially charged with first and second offenses of public intoxication, third-degree assault of a police officer, fourth-degree assault and second-degree disorderly conduct. She posted a $10,000 bond the next night and was released.
A grand jury indicted Rosing in February 2023, and soon after she entered a plea of not guilty.
Her case was passed on the docket five times since then, while parties for both sides have attempted to find resolution in the case, according to Peters.
A docket pass is an agreed continuance by defense counsel and the commonwealth to another date.
What happened the night of the attack
Rosing, a white student, entered Boyd Hall and began taunting, using racial slurs and making derogatory comments toward Spring. After police arrived, Rosing continued using slurs, resisted arrest and bit a police officer, according to the arrest report.
The video was captured and shared on social media, and showed an intoxicated Rosing spouting racial slurs more than 200 times in 10 minutes. Rosing attacked a police officer who was called to the scene to assist, according to the police report.
The university banned Rosing from campus, and she withdrew from UK shortly after being arrested.
Rosing was quickly terminated from her job at Dillard’s, according to the company. She also lost her social media influencing partnership with CollegeFashionista.
A march was held on UK’s campus after the incident, where hundreds of students gathered to support Spring, make a call for unity and insist UK act.
In December 2022, Spring appeared on CBS mornings, which she said opened her eyes to the frequency of racism in America.
“It’s changed my outlook on how often that situations like this happen,” Spring said. “Obviously I’ve seen things like this in the news, but you never really know how common of an occurrence it is until it happens to you.
“It was a little bit of an eye-opening moment for me to wake up and realize what’s happening in our country to young children of color, to people of color.”
Source Agencies
