BLOOMINGTON — A Bloomington woman was sentenced Wednesday to six years in federal prison for a racially motivated attack on an Indiana University student aboard a city bus last year.
Billie Davis, 57, received 72 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to a federal hate crime. The sentence stems from a January 11, 2023, incident where Davis stabbed a Chinese student multiple times in the head while riding a Bloomington Transit bus.
According to court documents, Davis was sitting behind the victim when she attacked her with a folding knife as the student stood to exit the bus. Davis later told police she targeted the victim, identified in court papers as Z.F., because of her Chinese descent, referring to her as “the enemy” and using racist slurs.
“Racially motivated violence has no place in our society,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This defendant pulled out a knife and viciously attacked a young woman who was simply riding a public bus to school, seriously injuring her because she was of Chinese descent.”
U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers highlighted the case’s significance amid rising anti-Asian violence. “In recent years, we’ve sadly seen an increase of bias crimes targeting people of Asian descent, and the serious federal prison sentence imposed here should demonstrate our commitment to stopping this hate,” Myers said.
The FBI’s Indianapolis Field Office Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert ‘Alex’ Middleton emphasized that “hate-fueled actions will not be tolerated.”
Federal officials urged anyone experiencing hate-based violence to contact law enforcement immediately and report incidents to the Justice Department or FBI.
The case was prosecuted as part of the Justice Department’s United Against Hate initiative, which focuses on hate crime prevention and prosecution.
