An Indianapolis woman who stabbed an Asian-American student in her head multiple times has been sentenced to six years in prison for the hate crime.
Billie Davis, 57, of Bloomington, Ind., will spend six years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, the United States Attorney’s Office announced in a press release on Wednesday, Dec. 11.
An Indiana University at Bloomington student of Chinese descent was riding a Bloomington Transit bus on Jan. 11, 2023, when Davis boarded and sat behind her.
The student, identified only as “Z.F.,” stood up a few stops later once the bus arrived near the campus, and that’s when Davis “reached for a folding knife from inside her pocket and stabbed Z.F. in the head approximately seven to 10 times,” the release said.
Z.F. ran away, but other passengers confronted Davis, as the 57-year-old sat back down on the bus. Davis was later arrested by Bloomington Police, referring to the victim as “some Asian f—— c—.” Davis also told a fellow passenger who confronted her over the attack tha the student was “going to blow up the bus because she was Asian.”
The woman also claimed that since she committed the crime, there was “one less enemy.” Z.F.’s injuries included multiple stab wounds and cuts, and the college student required medical attention which resulted in sutures and staples.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said Clarke said Davis “targeted” Z.F., “who was simply riding a public bus to school, solely because she was Chinese.”
“The sentence imposed for these vicious hate crimes should send a strong message that perpetrators of hate-fueled violence will be held accountable,” the attorney general added of Davis’ sentence. “The Justice Department is steadfast in its commitment to investigating and prosecuting hate crimes wherever they occur in our country.”
Davis has remained in jail since the attack, Indiana Public Media reported on Wednesday.
