Daughter of Former National Intelligence Director Convicted of Murder for Killing Friend in Maryland Airbnb

Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office (2) Sophia Negroponte, Yousuf Rasmussen

Sophia Negroponte, the 29-year-old daughter of Bush administration official John Negroponte, was found guilty of second-degree murder Tuesday in the 2020 stabbing death of her friend.

On the night of Feb. 13, 2020, officers in Rockville, Maryland, responded to a 911 call reporting that a man had been stabbed in the neck during an altercation at an Airbnb. When officers arrived, they found Negroponte covered in blood and laying atop 24-year-old Yousuf Rasmussen yelling, "I'm sorry," according to charging documents obtained by PEOPLE.

First responders pronounced Rasmussen dead at the scene and took Negroponte into custody, where she reportedly told police that she did not remember attacking Rasmussen, but remembered arguing over a "silly issue" and later removing a knife from Rasmussen's neck.

RELATED: Former U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte's Daughter Accused of Stabbing a Man to Death

"Yousuf was a kind and gentle soul, a loving person who brought our family and his many friends great joy in his 24 years of life," Rasmussen's family said in a statement this week. "We will carry him with us forever."

Following Negroponte's conviction on Tuesday — in which the jury determined she acted with a "depraved heart" on the night of the stabbing — the Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office announced that she is scheduled for sentencing on March 31, where she faces up to 40 years in prison.

The Negroponte family told The Washington Post that they are discussing a possible appeal with their attorneys.

Charles Dharapak/AP Photo President George W. Bush and John Negroponte

Negroponte is one of five children that John and Diana Negroponte adopted from Honduras.

John, now 83, enjoyed a lengthy career in politics dating back to the Reagan administration, over time serving as the U.S. ambassador to Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines, Iraq and the United Nations.

Under President George W. Bush, he served as the nation's first director of national intelligence and eventually became the deputy secretary of state.

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"Neither the prosecutors nor perhaps the jury took into sufficient consideration the complexities and mitigating circumstances of the case — Sophia's past trauma and other factors that led to a very troubled existence. She's had severe alcohol use disorder," John told The Washington Post after the jury announced its verdict.

"We love and care for this young lady very, very much," he added. "We don't want to see her life wasted in prison."

John, who sat in the second row of the courtroom every day of the trial, according to the Post, said his daughter has been living with him and Diana and has been sober nearly three years now, suggesting that she stopped drinking shortly after Rasmussen's death.