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A former University of Kentucky student who was accused of hurling racial slurs and attacking a Black schoolmate while drunk has pleaded guilty to assault and other charges.
Sophia Rosing, 23, admitted four counts of fourth-degree assault, one count of disorderly conduct, and one count of public intoxication, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.
She was arrested and charged in 2022 after she attacked a Black student working at a campus residence hall while she was drunk.
The attack was caught on video and went viral on social media. The victim in the attack, Kylah Spring, says in the video that Rosing struck her numerous times and kicked her in the stomach. As Spring is explaining what happened to her, Rosing can be heard yelling at her in the background, calling the Black student the n-word and a "b****" throughout the footage. She uses the racial slur approximately 200 times over the course of the video.
Rosing was ultimately indicted by a grand jury on six counts, according to WKYT. Shortly after the attack, the University of Kentucky banned her from the campus and announced Rosing would be ineligible to re-enroll.
"As a community working wholeheartedly to prevent racist violence, we also must be committed to holding people accountable for their actions. The processes we have in place are essential," the university president, Eli Capilouto, said in a video the school released after the attack.
She faces up to a year in jail and 100 hours of community service, according to her attorney, Fred Peters.
The 23-year-old reportedly decided to plead guilty after participating in a mediation session with the victim.
"A lot of things got said, apologies were made and we worked it out," Peters said. "She has had a lot of time to think about what she has done, and she wrote a nice letter of apology."
Spring, the woman Rosing attacked, had a less rosy view of the meeting. She told WLEX that she did not believe Rosing to be genuinely remorseful.
"I feel that a person that is remorseful takes actions that are moving towards proving they are remorseful," Spring told the outlet. "Not just words."
Spring said the mediation hearing also provided her with the opportunity to address Rosing directly.
“I told her that she didn't break my spirit,” Spring said. “That was one of the things I said the first time I ever spoke about what happened and that rings true today.”
Rosing initially pleaded not guilty when she was arraigned in November 2022. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for October 17.
