UNC history graduate student Maya Little is facing honor court proceedings that could lead to her expulsion after an incident at the Confederate monument on the Chapel Hill campus earlier this year.

Little poured what she said was a mixture of her own blood and red paint on the statue on McCorkle Place known as Silent Sam in April. She was found guilty of a misdemeanor criminal charge for defacing a public monument in Orange County District Court last week. But Judge Samantha Cabe continued judgment in the case and waived all associated costs, meaning Little faced no punishment.

Her attorney argued that the actions Little took were necessary because those who were calling for the statue’s contextualization or removal had exhausted their legal options to no avail.

Little has been a prominent figure at Silent Sam rallies over the last year.

After it was a point of protest for decades, protesters pulled the statue down from its pedestal at a rally on August 20. There were three subsequent rallies bringing opposing groups to the statue’s remaining base, leading to confrontations. There have been more than two dozen arrests across those rallies. One Silent Sam supporter from a pro-Confederate group in Alamance County was found guilty of simple assault earlier this week for punching an anti-Silent Sam protester at one of the rallies. District Court Judge Beverly Scarlett did not issue any punishment in that case, instead focusing her blame for the incident on the university.

Little’s honor court proceedings are scheduled to begin Thursday afternoon, according to supporters who have been calling for all charges to be dropped. A group is organizing a rally scheduled to take place before the hearing in support of Little.

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