Woman federally indicted for racially motivated hate crime

A woman who allegedly stabbed an Indiana University student in Bloomington several times on a bus has been charged with committing a hate crime for her allegedly racially motivated attack on a woman of Chinese descent.

Billie Davis, 56, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Evansville for the single charge, according to a U.S. Justice Department release.

The student, 18, was getting off the bus Jan. 11 when Davis got up from her seat and allegedly stabbed her in the head with a folding knife.

The federal indictment alleges the offense included an attempt to kill the student.

It also alleges Davis willfully caused bodily injury to the student and attempted to do so with the use of a knife and because of the student’s race and national origin.

According to The Associated Press, Davis, who is white, is accused of repeatedly stabbing the 18-year-old woman with a folding knife on Jan. 11 as the victim, from Carmel, waited to get off a bus in downtown Bloomington.

Citing court records, WRTV-TV has reported that Davis told police she stabbed the woman multiple times in the head with a folding knife, because it “would be one less person to blow up our country.”

Asian Americans have increasingly been the target of racially motivated harassment and assaults in recent years, particularly since the coronavirus pandemic began, with many worrying that anti-Asian rhetoric linked to fraught relations between the U.S. and China could lead to more violence.

A affidavit from a detective who reviewed bus surveillance footage says the victim was stabbed about seven times in the top of the head, the Indianapolis Star reported.

“Davis then folds the knife, puts it back in her pocket and returns to her seated position on the bus,” the affidavit said.

Surveillance footage showed no interaction between the two women prior to the attack.

Kyle Dugger, an attorney representing Davis, said in a state-court motion in January that he is seeking an insanity defense on Davis’ behalf and that she “is incapable of assisting in the preparation of her defense because of mental illness.” Davis had been facing attempted murder and battery charges in state court related to the stabbing.

Dugger told The Associated Press in an email Friday that with the federal indictment, he anticipates the state-level charges will be dismissed and that Davis will be transferred to federal custody. Those charges were dismissed without prejudice on April 25.

“Ms. Davis has a long, documented history of severe mental illness,” he added. “She was seeking help managing her condition up to and including the day of the alleged attack.”

Davis was “extremely disorganized” and was “not aware why she was incarcerated” during the interview with police where it’s claimed she confessed her racist motive, Dugger said.

“Davis was still hallucinating in the jail for several days after being arrested,” he said. “People close to Ms. Davis — neighbors, family, friends — do not describe her having any known racist attitudes or history. They don’t recall her expressing racist ideas or engaging in hate speech.”

The FBI Indianapolis Field Office and Bloomington Resident Agency investigated the case, with assistance from the Bloomington Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter A. Blackett for the Southern District of Indiana and Trial Attorney Anita Channapati of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.

Editor’s note: This article has been corrected.