A former University of Kentucky student who was accused of whacking a black student in 2022 while using the N-word more than 200 times has pleaded guilty after mediation.
Sophia Rosing pleaded guilty in Fayette County Circuit Court to four counts of fourth-degree assault, one count of disorderly conduct and one count of alcohol intoxication, her attorney, Fred Peters, said, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.
A felony charge of third-degree assault on a police officer or probation officer was dropped as part of the deal, Peters said.
Rosing faces a possible sentence of up to 12 months in jail and 100 hours of community service, as well as a $25 fine, according to her attorney.
In November 2022, Rosing, who is white, entered Boyd Hall and began taunting, using racial slurs and insulting Kylah Spring, a black student who was working the front desk of the residence hall.
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The very drunk Rosing was videoed spouting the N-word more than 200 times in 10 minutes as Spring and a responding police officer were assaulted.
During a mediation session before the plea, Spring and Rosing met.
“I told her that she didn’t break my spirit,” Spring said, according to WLEX-TV. “That was one of the things I said the first time I ever spoke about what happened and that rings true today.”
Spring said she doubts Rosing regrets what she did.
“I feel that a person that is remorseful takes actions that are moving towards proving they are remorseful,” Spring said. “Not just words.”
She noted Rosing never spoke in court about using racial slurs.
“I think her admitting at least a piece of what she’s done -– admitting the things she said and being able to own up to them I think it’s going to follow behind,” Spring said. “Seeing yourself act in that light is not an easy thing to see, I imagine, so I guess there’s still a bit of maturing and unpacking she needs to do with that. So I’ll give her the space to do that.”
Ex-Kentucky student Sophia Rosing indicted by grand jury after racist assault https://t.co/vyz7SNBRiG pic.twitter.com/Z6PM5vt7Nx
— New York Post (@nypost) February 24, 2023
Spring said that she has forgiven Rosing.
“I forgive her more so for myself,” Spring said. “I was raised not to hold grudges, I was raised that we give people forgiveness because God forgave us. It’s a hard thing for me to come to terms with, but in the end, I want to live a life where people can say I was a kind and forgiving person.”
Fred Peters, Rosing’s attorney, said Rosing has stopped drinking and understands that words can hurt.
“She’s extremely remorseful,” Peters said. “She read a very heartfelt apology to Kylah during our mediation.”
Peters said that during the mediation, “A lot of things got said, apologies were made and we worked it out,” according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.
“Her life has been on hold for the past 18 to 20 months,” Peters said of Rosing. “She has had a lot of time to think about what she has done, and she wrote a nice letter of apology.”
Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney Kimberly Baird said she is talking with the University of Kentucky to have Rosing make a public service announcement about drinking, which she said Spring suggested, according to CNN.
After the incident, Rosing was at first suspended and then banned from the college’s campus.
